Director in the first half to mid
20th century; famous for his work with
Boris Karloff on such films as
Frankenstein (1931),
Bride Of Frankenstein (1935); also contributed to the horror genre with
The Invisible Man (1933).
Being
homosexual within his time period in
Hollywood was not an easy task, and
James Whale was practically run out of
Paramount and the
studio system on the whole because of his
sexual orientation. After
suffering several
strokes, he drowned himself in his backyard pool in
Hollywood, CA. on
May 29th, 1957.
Ian McKellan delivers a
stellar performance as James Whale, creating an excellent likeness and image of the aging director in
Gods And Monsters (1998)