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Frank Graham (voice actor)

Frank Graham
Graham on CBS in the 1940s
Born
Frank Lee Graham

(1914-11-22)November 22, 1914
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
DiedSeptember 2, 1950(1950-09-02) (aged 35)
Hollywood, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Radio announcer, voice actor
Years active1936–1950
So Much for So Little, an Oscar-winning short documentary film narrated by Frank Graham

Frank Lee Graham (November 22, 1914 – September 2, 1950) was an American radio announcer and voice actor.

Biography

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Graham was born on November 22, 1914, in Detroit, Michigan, to Frank L. Graham and opera singer Ethel Briggs Graham. He later traveled with his mother on tour.[1]

He starred in Jeff Regan, Investigator[2] and co-developed the radio drama Satan's Waitin' with Van Des Autels. Graham was also The Wandering Vaquero, the narrator of The Romance Of The Ranchos radio series (1941–1942), also on the CBS network.

One of his few live-action roles was portraying the title character in the film Cosmo Jones, Crime Smasher (1943). He had also served as a writer for the radio program upon which the film was based.

Graham voiced numerous characters in animated films for Walt Disney, MGM, Columbia and Warner Bros. He voiced the Wolf in Tex Avery's Droopy cartoons, as well as the Mouse in King-Size Canary at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. He provided the voices of the Fox and the Crow in the shorts of the same name at Columbia.

He was found dead at age 35 in his convertible in the carport of his home in Hollywood on September 2, 1950, with a photograph of Mildred Rossi by his side.[3][4] Rossi had ended a relationship with him weeks earlier.[5] A coroner declared he had committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning.[6]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1941 The Night Before Christmas Narrator[7] Voice, uncredited
1942 A Hollywood Detour Narrator Voice, uncredited
Horton Hatches the Egg Narrator / Tall Hunter Voice, uncredited
Woodman, Spare That Tree The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Foney Fables Narrator / Wolf Voice, uncredited
Blitz Wolf Narrator Voice, uncredited
Saludos Amigos Himself Uncredited
The Early Bird Dood It! Bird Voice, uncredited
Toll Bridge Troubles The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
1943 Slay It with Flowers The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Cosmo Jones, Crime Smasher Professor Cosmo Jones
Dumb-Hounded Wolf / Mayor[8] Voice, uncredited
Plenty Below Zero The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Red Hot Riding Hood Wolf / Storyteller / Nightclub MC / Cab Driver[8] Voice, uncredited
Tree for Two The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Coming!! Snafu Narrator[9] Voice, uncredited
A-Hunting We Won't Go The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Reason and Emotion Narrator / Reason Voice, uncredited
Sleepy Lagoon Narrator Uncredited
Room and Bored The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Way Down Yonder in the Corn The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Chicken Little Narrator / Foxy Loxy / Chicken Little / Cocky Locky / Turkey Lurkey / Additional Voices[10] Voice, uncredited
Rumors Narrator – Soldier Voice, uncredited
1944 Ladies Courageous Col. Andy Brennan Voice, uncredited
The Weakly Reporter Various Voice, uncredited
The Lady and the Monster Narrator Uncredited
The Dream Kids The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Going Home Narrator Voice, uncredited
The Chow Hound Narrator Voice, uncredited
Mr. Moocher The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Big Heel-Watha Narrator / Chief Rain-in-Face / Interpreter[8] Voice, uncredited
The Stupid Cupid Narrator and Elmer Fudd Voice, uncredited
Be Patient, Patient The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
The Egg-Yegg The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
The Three Caballeros Narrator Voice
1945 Tokyo Woes Narrator Voice, uncredited
The Shooting of Dan McGoo Wolf / Bartender / Narrator Voice, uncredited
Jerky Turkey Indian[11] Voice, uncredited
Something You Didn't Eat Narrator Voice, uncredited
Ku-Ku Nuts The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Swing Shift Cinderella Wolf / Nightclub MC / Wolves[11] Voice, uncredited
Fresh Airedale Narrator – Shep's Master Voice, uncredited
Treasure Jest The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Phoney Baloney The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Wild and Woolfy Race Caller[11] Voice, uncredited
1946 Baseball Bugs Baseball Commentator / Gas-House Gorilla[12] Voice, uncredited
Springtime for Thomas Jerry's Devil Conscience / Butch Voice, uncredited
Foxy Flatfoots The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Unsure Runts The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
The Hick Chick Bull[13] Voice, uncredited
The Eager Beaver Narrator Voice, uncredited
Cagey Bird Dog Voice, uncredited
Northwest Hounded Police Wolf / Chief / Dr. Putty-Puss[13] Voice, uncredited
Mysto-Fox The Fox and the Crow Voice, uncredited
Honesty Is the Best Policy Professor J. Waldo Purrington / Fish Vendor[14] Voice, uncredited
1947 Slap Happy Lion Mouse Voice, uncredited
King-Size Canary Mouse Voice, uncredited
1948 Lo, the Poor Buffal Indian (saying "Yipe!")[15] Voice, uncredited
1949 So Much for So Little Narrator Voice, uncredited
The House of Tomorrow Narrator / Machine[16] Voice, uncredited
Each Dawn I Crow Narrator Voice, uncredited
1950 Jerry and the Lion Lion / Radio Announcer Voice, uncredited
The Chump Champ Announcer[8] Voice, uncredited, final film role, released posthumously

References

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  1. ^ Gilmore, Art; Middleton, Glenn (1946). Radio Announcing. Hollywood, CA: Hollywood Radio Publishers. p. 113. "Frank comes by his talent naturally, having toured with his famous singing mother, Ethel Briggs Graham."
  2. ^ "Main Street" (PDF). Radio Daily. October 18, 1949. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  3. ^ 'Radio Star Graham Commits Suicide', Los Angeles Times, September 4, 1950.
  4. ^ "Frank Graham" (PDF). Broadcasting. September 11, 1950. p. 82. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  5. ^ O'Meara, Mallory (2019). The lady from the black lagoon : Hollywood monsters and the lost legacy of Milicent Patrick. Toronto, Ontario, Canada. ISBN 9781335937803. OCLC 1080884379.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ^ "Graham Suicide Letter Interrupted by Friend: Filing of Will Discloses Last Writing by Radio Producer Resumed After He Had Caller". Los Angeles Times. September 19, 1950. p. A8. ProQuest 166134820. The producer ended his life last Sept. 2 by inhaling monoxide gas in his automobile outside his home, 9115 Wonderland Ave.
  7. ^ "MGM's "The Night Before Christmas" (1941) With Tom & Jerry". cartoonresearch.com. 23 December 2015. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  8. ^ a b c d ""Hello All You Happy Tax Payers": Tex Avery's Voice Stock Company". cartoonresearch.com. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  9. ^ "Snafu Special: For the Boys". cartoonresearch.com. 27 October 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  10. ^ "Disney's "Chicken Little" Cartoon from 1943". cartoonresearch.com. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  11. ^ a b c ""Pretty Long Wait, Wasn't It?": TEX AVERY'S VOICE ACTORS (Volume 3) |". cartoonresearch.com. Retrieved 2021-10-07.
  12. ^ Beck, Jerry (2020). The 100 Greatest Looney Tunes. Insight Editions. p. 15. ISBN 978-1647221379.
  13. ^ a b Scott, Keith (3 October 2022). Cartoon Voices of the Golden Age, Vol. 2. BearManor Media.
  14. ^ "Norm McCabe's "Honesty Is The Best Policy" (1946)". cartoonresearch.com. 20 August 2018. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
  15. ^ "The Endlessly Finicky Job of Revising "Cartoon Voices Of The Golden Age"". cartoonresearch.com. 8 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-23.
  16. ^ "AVERY.... Vol. 2??? WELL, IMAGINE THAT!". cartoonresearch.com. 7 December 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
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