Franklyn Farnum
Encyclopedia
William Smith better known by his screen name
, Franklyn Farnum, was an American
character actor and Hollywood extra who appeared in 433 productions between the years 1916 and 1961.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1878, Farnum became a vaudeville
actor at the age of 12 and was featured in a number of theatre and musical productions by the time he entered silent films near the age of 40. He appeared to be at his most comfortable in a saddle, his career dominated mostly by westerns. Some of his more famous films include the serial Vanishing Trails
(1920) and the features The Clock (1917), The Firebrand (1922), The Drug Store Cowboy (1925), and The Gambling Fool (1925). He left films in 1925 but returned five years later at the advent of sound, only to find himself billed much further down the credits, if billed at all. He continued on, however, in these obscure roles well into the 1950s.
One of his three wives was the ill-fated actress Alma Rubens
, to whom he was briefly married in 1918. He had one daughter, Martha Lillian Smith, who was born in 1898.
Farnum appeared in six Academy Award for Best Picture
winners, more than any other actor in history: The Life of Emile Zola
(1937), The Lost Weekend (1945), Gentleman's Agreement
(1947), All About Eve
(1950), The Greatest Show on Earth
(1952), and Around the World in Eighty Days
(1956).
He died of cancer
in Woodland Hills, California, in 1961 at the age of 83.
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
, Franklyn Farnum, was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
character actor and Hollywood extra who appeared in 433 productions between the years 1916 and 1961.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1878, Farnum became a vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
actor at the age of 12 and was featured in a number of theatre and musical productions by the time he entered silent films near the age of 40. He appeared to be at his most comfortable in a saddle, his career dominated mostly by westerns. Some of his more famous films include the serial Vanishing Trails
Vanishing Trails
Vanishing Trails is a 1920 Western film serial directed by Leon De La Mothe. The film is considered to be lost.-Cast:* Franklyn Farnum - Silent Joe* Mary Anderson - Durant's Daughter, Lou* L. M. Wells - William Stillman* Duke R...
(1920) and the features The Clock (1917), The Firebrand (1922), The Drug Store Cowboy (1925), and The Gambling Fool (1925). He left films in 1925 but returned five years later at the advent of sound, only to find himself billed much further down the credits, if billed at all. He continued on, however, in these obscure roles well into the 1950s.
One of his three wives was the ill-fated actress Alma Rubens
Alma Rubens
Alma Rubens was an American silent film actress and stage performer.-Early life:Born to John B. and Theresa Hayes Rueben in San Francisco, California, she performed since youth and became a star at the age of 19. She was educated at the Sacred Heart Convent in San Francisco...
, to whom he was briefly married in 1918. He had one daughter, Martha Lillian Smith, who was born in 1898.
Farnum appeared in six Academy Award for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
winners, more than any other actor in history: The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
(1937), The Lost Weekend (1945), Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement
Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 drama film about a journalist who goes undercover as a Jew to conduct research for an exposé on antisemitism in New York City and the affluent community of Darien, Connecticut...
(1947), All About Eve
All About Eve
All About Eve is a 1950 American drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, based on the 1946 short story "The Wisdom of Eve", by Mary Orr.The film stars Bette Davis as Margo Channing, a highly regarded but aging Broadway star...
(1950), The Greatest Show on Earth
The Greatest Show on Earth
The Greatest Show on Earth is a 1952 drama film set in the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The film was produced, directed, and narrated by Cecil B. DeMille, and won the Academy Award for Best Picture...
(1952), and Around the World in Eighty Days
Around the World in Eighty Days (1956 film)
Around the World in 80 Days is a 1956 adventure film produced by the Michael Todd Company and released by United Artists. It was directed by Michael Anderson. It was produced by Michael Todd, with Kevin McClory and William Cameron Menzies as associate producers. The screenplay was written by James...
(1956).
He died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in Woodland Hills, California, in 1961 at the age of 83.
See also
List of actors who have appeared in multiple Best Picture Academy Award winnersSelected filmography
- The Empty GunThe Empty GunThe Empty Gun is a 1917 silent Western film directed by Joe De Grasse and starring Lon Chaney, Sr.-Cast:* Franklyn Farnum - Robber* Claire McDowell - Mary* Lon Chaney - Frank* Sam De Grasse - Jim...
(1917) - Anything OnceAnything OnceAnything Once is a 1917 silent drama film directed by Joe De Grasse and starring Lon Chaney, Sr.-Cast:* Franklyn Farnum - Theodore Crosby* Claire Du Brey - Sñorita Dolores* Marjory Lawrence - Dorothy Stuart* Mary St. John - Mrs. Stuart...
(1917) - The Scarlet CarThe Scarlet CarThe Scarlet Car is a 1917 silent drama film directed by Joe De Grasse and starring Lon Chaney, Sr. -Cast:* Franklyn Farnum - Billy Winthrop* Edith Johnson - Beatrice Forbes* Lon Chaney, Sr. - Paul Revere Forbes* Sam De Grasse - Ernest Peabody* Al W...
(1917) - Fast CompanyFast Company (1918 film)Fast Company is a 1918 silent comedy film directed by Lynn Reynolds and starring Lon Chaney, Sr.-Cast:* Franklyn Farnum - Lawrence Percival Van Huyler* Katherine Griffith - Mrs. Van Huyler* Lon Chaney, Sr. - Dan McCarty...
(1918) - Vanishing TrailsVanishing TrailsVanishing Trails is a 1920 Western film serial directed by Leon De La Mothe. The film is considered to be lost.-Cast:* Franklyn Farnum - Silent Joe* Mary Anderson - Durant's Daughter, Lou* L. M. Wells - William Stillman* Duke R...
(1920) - Gold Diggers of 1935Gold Diggers of 1935Gold Diggers of 1935 is a Warner Bros. musical film directed and choreographed by Busby Berkeley and starring Dick Powell, Gloria Stuart, Adolphe Menjou, Winifred Shaw, Alice Brady, Hugh Herbert and Frank McHugh...
(1935) - What Becomes of the Children? (1936)
- The Life of Emile ZolaThe Life of Emile ZolaThe Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
(1937) - Stagecoach (1939)
- Meet John DoeMeet John DoeMeet John Doe is a 1941 American comedy drama film directed and produced by Frank Capra, and starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. The film is about a "grassroots" political campaign created unwittingly by a newspaper columnist and pursued by a wealthy businessman. It became a box office hit...
(1941) - Hail the Conquering HeroHail the Conquering HeroHail the Conquering Hero is a satirical comedy/drama written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Eddie Bracken, Ella Raines and William Demarest, and featuring Raymond Walburn, Franklin Pangborn, Elizabeth Patterson and Bill Edwards....
(1944) - The Lost Weekend (1945)
- The Jolson StoryThe Jolson StoryThe Jolson Story is a 1946 musical biography which purports to tell the life story of singer Al Jolson. It stars Larry Parks as Jolson, Evelyn Keyes as "Julie Benson" , William Demarest as his manager, Ludwig Donath and Tamara Shayne as his parents, and Scotty Beckett as the young Jolson.The...
(1946) - Gentleman's AgreementGentleman's AgreementGentleman's Agreement is a 1947 drama film about a journalist who goes undercover as a Jew to conduct research for an exposé on antisemitism in New York City and the affluent community of Darien, Connecticut...
(1947) - Monsieur VerdouxMonsieur VerdouxMonsieur Verdoux is a 1947 black comedy film directed by and starring Charles Chaplin. The supporting cast includes Martha Raye, William Frawley, and Marilyn Nash.-Plot:...
(1947) - Road to RioRoad to RioRoad to Rio is a 1947 comedy film, directed by Norman Z. McLeod and starring Bing Crosby as Scat Sweeney, Bob Hope as "Hot Lips" Barton, and Dorothy Lamour as Lucia Maria de Andrade. It was the fifth of the "Road to …" series.-Plot:...
(1947) - Johnny BelindaJohnny Belinda (1948 film)Johnny Belinda is a 1948 American drama film based on the play of the same name by Elmer Blaney Harris. The movie was adapted to the screen by Allen Vincent and Irma von Cube, and directed by Jean Negulesco....
(1948) - I Remember MamaI Remember MamaI Remember Mama is a play by John Van Druten. Based on the fictionalized memoir Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes, it focuses on the Hanson family, a loving family of Norwegian immigrants living on Steiner Street in San Francisco in the 1910s.Produced by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein...
(1948) - The Fighting KentuckianThe Fighting KentuckianThe Fighting Kentuckian American comedy action film starring John Wayne and Oliver Hardy. The movie was written and directed by George Waggner and made by Republic Pictures...
(1949) - The Jackie Robinson StoryThe Jackie Robinson StoryThe Jackie Robinson Story is a 1950 biographical film starring baseball legend Jackie Robinson as himself. The film focuses on Robinson's struggle with the abuse of racist bigots as he becomes the first African American Major League Baseball player of the modern era...
(1950) - Destination MurderDestination MurderDestination Murder is an American crime film noir directed by Edward L. Cahn. The drama features Joyce Mackenzie, Stanley Clements and Hurd Hatfield.-Cast:* Joyce Mackenzie as Laura Mansfield* Stanley Clements as Jackie Wales...
(1950) - Bright LeafBright LeafBright Leaf is a 1950 film drama based on a 1949 novel by Foster Fitzsimmons. It stars Gary Cooper, Patricia Neal and Lauren Bacall, directed by Michael Curtiz....
(1950) - Destination MoonDestination Moon (film)Destination Moon is an American science fiction feature film produced by George Pal, who later produced When Worlds Collide, The War of the Worlds, and The Time Machine. Pal commissioned the script by James O'Hanlon and Rip Van Ronkel...
(1950) - Sunset BoulevardSunset Boulevard (film)Sunset Boulevard is a 1950 American film noir directed and co-written by Billy Wilder, and produced and co-written by Charles Brackett...
(1950) - All About EveAll About EveAll About Eve is a 1950 American drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, based on the 1946 short story "The Wisdom of Eve", by Mary Orr.The film stars Bette Davis as Margo Channing, a highly regarded but aging Broadway star...
(1950) - Strangers on a TrainStrangers on a Train (film)Strangers on a Train is an American psychological thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and based on the 1950 novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith. It was shot in the autumn of 1950 and released by Warner Bros. on June 30, 1951. The film stars Farley Granger, Ruth Roman,...
(1951) - The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
- Here Comes the GroomHere Comes the GroomHere Comes the Groom is a 1951 musical romantic comedy film starring Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman. Directed and produced by Frank Capra, the film was released by Paramount Pictures.-Plot:...
(1951) - The Bad and the BeautifulThe Bad and the BeautifulThe Bad and the Beautiful is a 1952 MGM melodramatic film that tells the story of a film producer who alienates all around him. It was directed by Vincente Minelli and stars Lana Turner, Kirk Douglas, Walter Pidgeon, Dick Powell, Barry Sullivan, Gloria Grahame and Gilbert Roland. The film was...
(1952) - CarrieCarrie (1952 film)Carrie is a 1952 feature film based on the novel Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser.Directed by William Wyler, the film stars Jennifer Jones in the title role and Laurence Olivier as Hurstwood. Carrie received two Academy Award Nominations: Costume Design, and Best Art Direction...
(1952) - The Beast from 20,000 FathomsThe Beast from 20,000 FathomsThe Beast from 20,000 Fathoms is a 1953 science fiction film directed by Eugène Lourié and stars Paul Christian, Paula Raymond and Cecil Kellaway with visual effects by Ray Harryhausen. The film is about an atomic bomb test in the Arctic Circle that unfreezes a hibernating fictional dinosaur, a...
(1953) - A Star Is BornA Star Is Born (1954 film)A Star Is Born is a 1954 American musical film directed by George Cukor. The screenplay written by Moss Hart was an adaptation of the original 1937 film, which was based on the original screenplay by Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker, and Alan Campbell...
(1954) - White ChristmasWhite Christmas (film)White Christmas is a 1954 Technicolor musical film starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye that features the songs of Irving Berlin, including the titular "White Christmas"...
(1954) - Black Widow (1954)
- The Long, Long TrailerThe Long, Long TrailerThe Long, Long Trailer is a novel by Clinton Twiss from the 1950s, about a couple who buy a new travel trailer home and spend a year traveling across the United States....
(1954) - East of Eden (1955)
- Guys and DollsGuys and Dolls (film)Guys and Dolls is a 1955 musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine. The film was made by the Samuel Goldwyn Company and distributed by MGM. It was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay...
(1955) - The Ten CommandmentsThe Ten Commandments (1956 film)The Ten Commandments is a 1956 American epic film that dramatized the biblical story of the Exodus, in which the Hebrew-born Moses, an adopted Egyptian prince, becomes the deliverer of the Hebrew slaves. The film, released by Paramount Pictures in VistaVision on October 5, 1956, was directed by...
(1956) - Around the World in Eighty DaysAround the World in Eighty Days (1956 film)Around the World in 80 Days is a 1956 adventure film produced by the Michael Todd Company and released by United Artists. It was directed by Michael Anderson. It was produced by Michael Todd, with Kevin McClory and William Cameron Menzies as associate producers. The screenplay was written by James...
(1956) - Gunfight at the O.K. CorralGunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957 film)The film was based on a real event which took place on October 26, 1881. It was directed by John Sturges and featuring a screenplay written by novelist Leon Uris, and the movie's supporting cast included Rhonda Fleming, John Ireland, Jo Van Fleet, Martin Milner, Dennis Hopper, Jack Elam, Lee Van...
(1957) - My Man GodfreyMy Man GodfreyMy Man Godfrey is a 1936 American screwball comedy film directed by Gregory La Cava. The screenplay was written by Morrie Ryskind, with uncredited contributions by La Cava, based on "1101 Park Avenue", a short story by Eric Hatch. The story concerns a socialite who hires a derelict to be her...
(1957) - King CreoleKing CreoleKing Creole is a 1958 American film directed by Michael Curtiz and produced by Hal B. Wallis. The story was adapted from the Harold Robbins novel A Stone for Danny Fisher and featured Elvis Presley, Carolyn Jones, and Walter Matthau. The film tells the story of a nineteen-year-old who gets mixed...
(1958) - Pillow Talk (1959)