William Farnum
William Farnum (born July 4, 1876 in Boston , Illinois , † June 5, 1953 in Hollywood , California ) was an American actor who reached the height of his popularity in the silent film era.
Life
Born into a family of actors, Farnum made his stage actor debut at the age of ten in Julius Caesar alongside Edwin Booth . Engaged in his father's drama troupe, Farnum initially played in numerous plays by William Shakespeare . After his title role as Ben Hur, Farnum achieved great success as an actor from 1900, and at times even ran his own theaters in Buffalo and Cleveland . On Broadway , he played leading roles in numerous costume pieces between the 1900s and 1920s. In 1914 he made the leap into the film business, in particular the lead role in the western The Spoilers made him immediately popular there. In The Spoilers , there was a ten-minute saloon fight scene between Farnum and actor Tom Santschi who was quoted often in later decades. This was followed by other films such as The Battle of Hearts (1916), Les Miserables (1917) and If I Were King (1920), all of which were successes in their time.
For years, William Farnum was one of the highest-earning film stars and at times got around 10,000 US dollars in a week. Most of his films are now considered lost . Even before the end of the silent film, Farnum was forced to return largely to acting in the theater, as he sustained a serious injury while shooting the film The Man Who Fights Alone (1924). Farnum had often had to fight sword fights in his stunted roles. After the end of the silent film era , Farnum moved back to Hollywood, where, however, due to his age, he was unable to build on his old successes. In the 1930s and 1940s, he remained primarily in demand as a supporting actor in the cinema, who appeared particularly frequently in western films or as a respectable authority figure. He played his last role in 1952 as king in the film Jack and the Beanstalk on the side of the comedian duo Abbott and Costello .
William Farnum was married three times. In his first marriage to Mabel Eaton, he was the father of the later screenwriter Dorothy Farnum (1900-1970), with his second wife Olive White he had the daughter Sara Adele and from his third marriage the children Isabelle, Elizabeth and William Farnum Jr. His elder Brother Dustin Farnum (1874–1929) was also a film star and his younger brother Marshall (1879–1917) worked as a film director until his death. When Farnum died of cancer in 1953 at the age of 76, Pat O'Brien gave the eulogy at his funeral. Other guests included Cecil B. DeMille , Jesse Lasky , Frank Lloyd , Clarence Brown , Charles Coburn and Leo Carrillo . William Farnum's contribution to the film industry was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame .
Filmography (selection)
- 1914: The Redemption of David Corson (short film)
- 1914: The Spoilers
- 1916: The Battle of Hearts
- 1916: The Man from Bitter Roots
- 1917: When a Man Sees Red
- 1917: Les Misérables
- 1918: Rough and Ready
- 1918: Riders of the Purple Sage
- 1918: True Blue
- 1920: If I Were King
- 1920: Drag Harlan
- 1920: The Scuttlers
- 1922: Moonshine Valley
- 1924: The Man Who Fights Alone
- 1930: You Barry, Woman of Passion
- 1931: Enmity (The Painted Desert)
- 1931: A Connecticut Yankee
- 1932: Mr. Robinson Crusoe
- 1932: The Drifter
- 1934: Are We Civilized?
- 1934: The Count of Monte Cristo
- 1934: Cleopatra
- 1935: Crusader - Richard the Lionheart (The Crusades)
- 1936: Zorro - The Vigilantes Are Coming
- 1937: Cross-examined (Maid of Salem)
- 1938: If I'd king (If I Were King)
- 1940: In the Valley of Terror (Kit Carson)
- 1941: Cheers for Miss Bishop
- 1941: The Woman with the Scar (A Woman's Face)
- 1941: Blood revenge ( The Corsican Brothers )
- 1942: The Spoilers (The Spoilers)
- 1942: The King of Texas (American Empire)
- 1942: Tennessee Johnson
- 1943: Executioners die too (Hangman Also Die!)
- 1944: The Mummy's Curse
- 1945: Under the black flag (Captain Kidd)
- 1947: Pauline, stop kissing (The Perils of Pauline)
- 1949: Samson and Delilah (Samson and Delilah)
- 1951: Murder in Hollywood (Hollywood Story) ( as himself )
- 1952: Man against Man (Lone Star)
- 1952: Jack and the Beanstalk
Web links
- William Farnum in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ William Farnum at Silent Hollywood
- ↑ William Farnum in the Internet Broadway Database (English)
- ^ William Farnum in the Internet Movie Database (English), there at Bio
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Farnum, William |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | US-American actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 4th July 1876 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Boston , Illinois |
| DATE OF DEATH | 5th June 1953 |
| Place of death | Hollywood , California |