Frank Orth

Birthday:

02/20/1880

Place of birth:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA:

Biography:

Frank Orth was an American actor born in Philadelphia. He is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Inspector Faraday in the 1951-1953 television series “Boston Blackie”. By 1897, Orth was performing in vaudeville with his wife, Ann Codee, in an act called “Codee and Orth.” In 1909, he expanded into song writing, with songs such as “The Phone Bell Rang” and “Meet Me on the Boardwalk, Dearie.” His first contact with motion pictures was in 1928, when he was part of the first foreign-language shorts in sound produced by Warner Bros. He and his wife also appeared together in a series of two-reel comedies in the early 1930s. Orth's first major screen credit was in “Prairie Thunder,” a Dick Foran western, in 1937. From then on, he was often cast as bartenders, pharmacists, and grocery clerks, and always distinctly Irish. He had a recurring role in the Dr. Kildare series of films and also in the Nancy Drew series as the befuddled Officer Tweedy. Among his better roles were the newspaper man Cary Grant telephones early in “His Girl Friday,” one of the quartet singing “Gary Owen” in “They Died with Their Boots On” (thereby giving Errol Flynn as Gen. Custer the idea of associating the tune with the 7th Cavalry), and as the little man carrying the sign reading “The End Is Near” throughout Colonel Effingham's Raid. However, Orth is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Inspector Faraday in the 1951-1953 television series “Boston Blackie.” A short, plump, round-faced man, often smoking a cigar, Orth as Faraday wore his own dark-rimmed spectacles, though rarely in feature films. In 1959, Orth retired from show business after throat surgery. His wife died in 1961 after around fifty years of marriage. Orth died on March 17, 1962. He is buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills next to his wife.



Credits

Here Come the Girls (1953)
Mr. Hungerford
Houdini (1953)
Mr. Hunter
Something to Live For (1952)
Waiter (uncredited)
Double Dynamite (1951)
Mr. Kofer
The Petty Girl (1950)
Moody (process server)
Father of the Bride (1950)
Joe
Cheaper by the Dozen (1950)
Higgins (uncredited)
The Great Rupert (1950)
Mr. Frank Dingle
Bride for Sale (1949)
Police Sergeant
Red Light (1949)
Wallace 'Wally' Stoner
Blondie's Secret (1948)
Mr. Philpotts
The Girl from Manhattan (1948)
Oscar Newsome
The Big Clock (1948)
Burt
It Had to Be You (1947)
Train Conductor
The Gas House Kids in Hollywood (1947)
Police Captain
Heartaches (1947)
Mike Connelly, Vic's Agent
The Guilt of Janet Ames (1947)
Danny
Born to Speed (1947)
Breezy Bradley
Lady in the Lake (1946)
Floyd Greer (Uncredited)
Wake Up and Dream (1946)
Milkman
It's Great to Be Young (1946)
Franklin Johnson
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)
Hotel Clerk
The Bride Wore Boots (1946)
Judge
Murder in the Music Hall (1946)
Henderson
The Hoodlum Saint (1946)
Chronicle Editor (uncredited)
Doll Face (1945)
Peters
The Lost Weekend (1945)
Opera Cloak Room Attendant
She Went to the Races (1945)
Skelly
Tell It to a Star (1945)
Augustus T. Goodman
Pillow to Post (1945)
Clayfield Taxi Driver
Storm Over Lisbon (1944)
Murgatroyd
Greenwich Village (1944)
Ordway
The Impatient Years (1944)
Counterman
Wilson (1944)
Smith (uncredited)
Summer Storm (1944)
Cafe Maitre d' at End (uncredited)
Roger Touhy, Gangster (1944)
. Comic in Theater (uncredited)
Sweet Rosie O'Grady (1943)
Taxi Driver
Coney Island (1943)
Bartender
Hello, Frisco, Hello (1943)
Lou, Bartender at Sharkey's
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)
Larry Kinkaid (uncredited)
The Meanest Man in the World (1943)
Bartender
Springtime in the Rockies (1942)
Bickel (uncredited)
Dr. Gillespie's New Assistant (1942)
Mike Ryan
Orchestra Wives (1942)
Rex Willet
Tales of Manhattan (1942)
Secondhand Clothes Dealer (Rogers sequence)
Footlight Serenade (1942)
Mike
The Magnificent Dope (1942)
Messenger
Henry and Dizzy (1942)
Joe McGuire
My Gal Sal (1942)
McGuiness
Rings on Her Fingers (1942)
Roxie Hart (1942)
Bar Client #2 (uncredited)
Dr. Kildare's Victory (1942)
Mike Ryan
Over My Dead Body (1942)
Detective
Blue, White, and Perfect (1942)
Mr. Toby
They Died with Their Boots On (1941)
Barfly (uncredited)
I Wake Up Screaming (1941)
Cemetery Caretaker
Sergeant York (1941)
Drummer (uncredited)
Broadway Limited (1941)
Lou, Cafe Proprietor
The People Vs. Dr. Kildare (1941)
Mike Ryan
Ride on Vaquero (1941)
Auctioneer
Come Live with Me (1941)
Jerry
Respect the Law (1941)
Peter Brennan
Michael Shayne: Private Detective (1940)
Steve
You, the People (1940)
Soda Jerk
Dr. Kildare's Crisis (1940)
Mike Ryan, Cafe Owner
Father Is A Prince (1940)
Drugstore Proprieter
Gallant Sons (1940)
Newspaper Foreman (uncredited)
Mexican Spitfire Out West (1940)
Window Washer
Dr. Kildare Goes Home (1940)
Mike Ryan (uncredited)
Boom Town (1940)
Barber
Buyer Beware (1940)
Smith (uncredited)
Pier 13 (1940)
Dead Pan Charlie
Gold Rush Maisie (1940)
Harris
Brother Orchid (1940)
Waiter at Fat Dutchy's (uncredited)
Florian (1940)
Detective
La Conga Nights (1940)
Dennis O'Brien
The Doctor Takes a Wife (1940)
New York Editor
'Til We Meet Again (1940)
Hong Kong Bartender (uncredited)
Dr. Kildare's Strange Case (1940)
Mike Ryan, Sullivan's Hospital Cafe
Know Your Money (1940)
Tobacconist (uncredited)
His Girl Friday (1940)
Duffy
The Secret of Dr. Kildare (1939)
Mike Sullivan
At the Circus (1939)
Chef in Diner (uncredited)
Fast and Furious (1939)
Joe Burke
Dust Be My Destiny (1939)
Wedding Witness on Stage (uncredited)
Thunder Afloat (1939)
Old Sailor in Bilge Area (uncredited)
Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (1939)
Captain Tweedy
Stanley and Livingstone (1939)
Newspaperman with Pills
Tell No Tales (1939)
Vic - Bartender (uncredited)
Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)
Loafer (uncredited)
Calling Dr. Kildare (1939)
Mike Sullivan - Hospital Cafe Owner (uncredited)
Broadway Serenade (1939)
Mr. Fellows
Within the Law (1939)
Jim Jenks
Nancy Drew... Reporter (1939)
Captain Tweedy (uncredited)
Fast and Loose (1939)
Detective Hendricks
Idiot's Delight (1939)
Benny Zinsser
Burn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939)
Tim McKelvy
Comet Over Broadway (1938)
Cab Driver (uncredited)
Nancy Drew… Detective (1938)
Captain Tweedy
Young Dr. Kildare (1938)
Mike Ryan (uncredited)
Mr. Chump (1938)
Sheriff Frank Hinton
Think It Over (1938)
Brown, Clothing Store Owner
Torchy Blane in Panama (1938)
First Leopard (uncredited)
The Patient in Room 18 (1938)
Joe Higgins - Night Watchman
Missing Witnesses (1937)
Gordon (uncredited)
The Footloose Heiress (1937)
Justice Abner Cuttler
Prairie Thunder (1937)
Wichita
The Devil's Saddle Legion (1937)
Judge Barko
Talent Scout (1937)
Burlesque Theatre Manager (uncredited)
Ever Since Eve (1937)
Cocktail Waiter (uncredited)
Marry the Girl (1937)
Bar owner
San Quentin (1937)
Convict in Bunkhouse (uncredited)
Land Beyond the Law (1937)
Shorty Long
Polo Joe (1936)
Bert
Hot Money (1936)
Hank Ford
Two Against the World (1936)
Tommy - Bartender
Unwelcome Stranger (1935)
Jackson
The Payoff (1935)
Porter (uncredited)
Taking Ways (1930)
A Bird in the Hand (1929)
The Mummy's Curse (1944)
Songs