Throughout the history of film, few images have endured as has the face of Frankenstein's monster. His first appearance onscreen is an instantly iconic shot. His gaunt cheeks and exaggerated brow suggest a Godforsaken upending of the human form. Which is perfect, because that's exactly what the makeup was meant to evince. Rarely before and never since has a character been so adequately adapted. Mary Shelley didn't draw us any pictures when she wrote her gothic classic that birthday the monster, so it was up to Universal Studios to execute a vision.

The makeup's importance was rivaled only by its wearer, and Boris Karloff proved it was the man who made the grease paint, and not the other way around. The actor imbued the monster with this palpable goodness, wherein his insides most certainly did not match his outsides. There was a soft heart at odds with the creature's destructive brain, and it all made for an earnestly compelling watch.

Audiences responded in droves, and today hail the movie as an all-time classic. Shelley subtitled her book "The Modern Prometheus," but it's the story's Lazarus who draws in generations of new fans. So, why? What is it about Frankenstein's monster that draws our eye (and our dollar) over and over again?

Karloff stated that the monster appealed "to our sympathy... as a symbol of humanity itself adrift in an uncaring world."

"[Director James] Whale and I both saw the character as an innocent one. Within the heavy restrictions of my makeup, I tried to play it that way. This was a pathetic creature who, like us all, had neither wish nor say in his creation and certainly did not wish upon itself the hideous image which automatically terrified humans whom it tried to befried... What astonished us was the fantastic number of ordinary people that got this general air of sympathy. I found all my letters heavy with it."

Well, there we have it. There's no arguing with Karloff. I mean, have you seen the guy?