The Grinch Original and Limited Edition Art

The Grinch is a fictional character created by Dr. Seuss. He first appeared as the main protagonist in the 1957 children's book, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

The Grinch lives in a cave, high in the mountains above Whoville. The Grinch despises Christmas in all its forms because his heart is "two sizes too small" and the Whos of Whoville working hard to celebrate the holiday in earnest disgusts and enrages him. In a devious plot, (because he's evil) the Grinch conspires to steal Christmas. Dressing in a mocking imitation of Santa Claus' outfit and riding in a sleigh, the Grinch descends on Whoville, taking all the Christmas decorations and presents, leaving the town bare. However, when the Whos come out to investigate, the Grinch is puzzled when they decide to continue to celebrate despite his efforts to take away Christmas. On that day, his heart grew "three times" and he came to appreciate the holiday spirit.

The devious, anti-holiday spirit of the character has led to the name "Grinch" becoming a term used to describe a person opposed to Christmas time celebrations or to someone with a coarse, greedy attitude. In fact, a document in the live-action film (the Book of Who) stated that "The term Grinchy shall apply when Christmas spirit is in short supply".

The Grinch has since become an icon of the winter holidays, despite the character's hatred of the season, and has appeared on various forms of memorabilia such as Christmas ornaments, plush dolls, Halloween costumes, and various clothing items.

In 2002, TV Guide ranked The Grinch number 5 on it's "50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time" list.