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Frankie Thomas

American actor (1923–1965)

Summary

American actor (1923–1965)

Field	Value
name	Frankie Thomas
image	Frankie Thomas in On Dress Parade 1939.jpg
caption	Thomas in On Dress Parade (1939)
birth_name	Frank Marion Thomas Jr.
birth_date
birth_place	New York City, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Sherman Oaks, California, U.S.
other_names	Frankie Thomas Jr.
Frank M. Thomas Jr.
occupation
years_active	1932–1955
spouse

Frank M. Thomas Jr.

Frank Marion Thomas Jr. (April 9, 1921 – May 11, 2006), was an American actor, author and bridge-strategy expert who played both lead and supporting roles on Broadway, in films, in post-World War II radio, and in early television. He was best known for his starring role in Tom Corbett, Space Cadet.

Early years

Thomas was born in New York City to actors Frank M. Thomas and Mona Bruns. His uncle, Calvin Thomas, was also an actor.

Thomas portrayed a Kiowan youth in the Broadway play Carry Nation (1932). He appeared in six other Broadway plays between 1932 and 1936, including Little Ol' Boy, Thunder on the Left, Wednesday's Child, The First Legion, Remember the Day, and Seen But Not Heard.

Thomas's last "A" film was Boys' Town (1938) with Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney. Thomas was Freddy Fuller, Boys' Town's mayor, and was not asked to appear in the sequel, Men of Boys' Town (1941). He then appeared in a string of "B" films such as Little Tough Guys in Society and Nancy Drew... Detective (both 1938), Nancy Drew... Reporter, Code of the Streets, Nancy Drew… Trouble Shooter, The Angels Wash Their Faces, Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase, On Dress Parade and Invisible Stripes (all 1939).

In the summer of 1940, Thomas acted with the Guy Palmerton Players.

In 1941 he had small parts in Flying Cadets and One Foot in Heaven. His last film roles were small roles in Always in My Heart and The Major and the Minor (1942), where he played a military school cadet who flirted with Ginger Rogers' character.

Death

Thomas died in 2006 at age 85 at a Sherman Oaks, California, hospital of respiratory failure, following a stroke. At his request, he was buried in his Space Cadet uniform. His wife, Virginia, had preceded him in death in 1997.

Partial filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1934	Wednesday's Child	Bobby Phillips
1935	A Dog of Flanders	Nello Daas
1937	Tim Tyler's Luck	Tim Tyler	Serial
1938	Boys' Town	Freddie Fuller
Little Tough Guys in Society	Danny
1939	Nancy Drew... Detective	Ted Nickerson
Nancy Drew... Reporter
Code of the Streets	Bob Lewis
Nancy Drew… Trouble Shooter	Ted Nickerson
The Angels Wash Their Faces	Gabe Ryan
Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase	Ted Nickerson
On Dress Parade	Cadet Lt. Murphy
Invisible Stripes	Tommy
1941	One Foot in Heaven	Hartzell Spence
Flying Cadets	Newton R. Adams / Ames
1942	Always in My Heart	Martin Scott
The Major and the Minor	Cadet Osborne

Bibliography

References

Holmstrom, John (1996). The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995. Norwich: Michael Russell, p. 103-104.
Willson, Dixie (1935). Little Hollywood Stars. Akron, OH, e New York: Saalfield Pub. Co.

References

Obituary ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', May 17, 2010.
Obituary ''[[The New York Times]]'', May 18, 2010.
(2006-05-16). "Frankie Thomas". The Independent.
"Frankie Thomas". The Broadway League.
(August 13, 1940). "Frankie Thomas, Young, Engaging, Delights Big Whalom Audience; Portland Stars Are Welcomed Back". Fitchburg Sentinel.
"Frankie Thomas, 85; actor starred as a TV space cadet".

Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

1921-births 2006-deaths 20th-century-american-novelists 21st-century-american-novelists american-male-child-actors american-mystery-writers american-male-novelists 20th-century-american-male-writers 21st-century-american-male-writers american-male-stage-actors 20th-century-american-male-actors film-serial-actors united-states-coast-guard-personnel-of-world-war-ii united-states-coast-guard-officers deaths-from-respiratory-failure-in-the-united-states

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