Acting
Frank Orth
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.
Movies with Frank Orth
Cheaper by the Dozen
1950
Houdini
1953
Sergeant York
1941
His Girl Friday
1940
Father of the Bride
1950
They Died with Their Boots On
1941
Greenwich Village
1944
Roxie Hart
1942
Come Live with Me
1941
The Lost Weekend
1945
The Ox-Bow Incident
1943
Unwelcome Stranger
1935
Young Mr. Lincoln
1939
The Big Clock
1948
Double Dynamite
1951
Tall in the Saddle
1944
Idiot's Delight
1939
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
1946
Nancy Drew… Detective
1938
Boom Town
1940
Lady in the Lake
1946
It Had to Be You
1947
Brother Orchid
1940
Fast and Furious
1939
Summer Storm
1944
Buyer Beware
1940
Stanley and Livingstone
1939
Tales of Manhattan
1942
Roger Touhy, Gangster
1944
The Petty Girl
1950
You, the People
1940
Wilson
1944
Within the Law
1939
Dr. Kildare's Crisis
1940
Coney Island
1943
At the Circus
1939
The Strawberry Blonde
1941
I Wake Up Screaming
1941
The Hoodlum Saint
1946
Nancy Drew... Reporter
1939
San Quentin
1937
Red Light
1949
Taking Ways
1930
The Great Rupert
1950
Rings on Her Fingers
1942
Orchestra Wives
1942
The Secret of Dr. Kildare
1939
Young Dr. Kildare
1938
Tell No Tales
1939
'Til We Meet Again
1940
The Bride Wore Boots
1946
Father Is A Prince
1940
Dr. Kildare's Strange Case
1940
Sweet Rosie O'Grady
1943
My Gal Sal
1942
It's Great to Be Young
1946
Ever Since Eve
1937
Dust Be My Destiny
1939
Let's Make Music
1941
Comet Over Broadway
1938
Gold Rush Maisie
1940
Marry the Girl
1937
Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase
1939
Fast and Loose
1939
Something to Live For
1952
Storm Over Lisbon
1944
Land Beyond the Law
1937
Pillow to Post
1945
The Guilt of Janet Ames
1947
Two Against the World
1936
Bride for Sale
1949
Calling Dr. Kildare
1939
Born to Speed
1947
Right to the Heart
1942
Torchy Blane in Panama
1938
Polo Joe
1936
Thunder Afloat
1939
Here Come the Girls
1953
Dr. Kildare Goes Home
1940
Hello, Frisco, Hello
1943
Gallant Sons
1940
Michael Shayne: Private Detective
1940
Missing Witnesses
1937
Florian
1940
Wake Up and Dream
1946
Doll Face
1945
Broadway Limited
1941
Dr. Gillespie's New Assistant
1942
The Patient in Room 18
1938
Broadway Serenade
1939
Talent Scout
1937
Over My Dead Body
1942
Pier 13
1940
The People Vs. Dr. Kildare
1941
La Conga Nights
1940
The Girl from Manhattan
1948
Blondie's Secret
1948
Blue, White and Perfect
1942
The Doctor Takes a Wife
1940
The Gas House Kids in Hollywood
1947
The Impatient Years
1944
Know Your Money
1940
The Payoff
1935
Dr. Kildare's Victory
1942
Burn 'Em Up O'Connor
1939
Springtime in the Rockies
1942
The Devil's Saddle Legion
1937
The Footloose Heiress
1937
Murder in the Music Hall
1946
Ride on Vaquero
1941
Hot Money
1936
She Went to the Races
1945
Think It Over
1938
Mexican Spitfire Out West
1940
The Magnificent Dope
1942
Henry and Dizzy
1942
The Meanest Man in the World
1943
Footlight Serenade
1942
Prairie Thunder
1937
Mr. Chump
1938
Tell It to a Star
1945
Respect the Law
1941
Heartaches
1947
A Bird in the Hand
1929
The Victim
1931
