J. Farrell MacDonald
Personal Info
Known for
Acting
Gender
Male
Birthday
1875-06-05
Day of Death
1952-08-02 (77 years old)
Place of Birth
Waterbury, Connecticut, USA
J. Farrell MacDonald
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Farrell MacDonald (June 6, 1875 – August 2, 1952) was an American character actor and director. He played supporting roles and occasional leads. He appeared in over 325 films over a 41-year career from 1911 to 1951, and directed forty-four silent films from 1912 to 1917.
MacDonald was the principal director of L. Frank Baum's Oz Film Manufacturing Company, and he can frequently be seen in the films of Frank Capra, Preston Sturges and, especially, John Ford.
Early in his career, MacDonald was a singer in minstrel shows, and he toured the United States extensively for two years with stage productions. He made his first silent film in 1911, a dramatic short entitled The Scarlett Letter made by Carl Laemmle's Independent Moving Pictures Company (IMP), the forerunner of Universal Pictures,. He continued to act in numerous films each year from that time on, and by 1912 he was directing them as well. The first film he directed was The Worth of a Man, another dramatic short, again for IMP, and he was to direct 43 more films until his last in 1917, Over the Fence, which he co-directed with Harold Lloyd. MacDonald had crossed paths with Lloyd several years earlier, when Lloyd was an extra and MacDonald had given him much-needed work – and he did the same with Hal Roach, both of whom appearing in small roles in The Patchwork Girl of Oz, which MacDonald directed in 1914. When Roach set up his own studio, with Lloyd as his principal attraction, he hired MacDonald to direct.
By 1918, MacDonald, who was to become one of the most beloved character men in Hollywood, had given up directing and was acting full-time, predominantly in Westerns and Irish comedies. He first worked under director John Ford in 1919's A Fight for Love. In all, Ford would use MacDonald on twenty-five films between 1919 and 1950.
With a voice that matched his personality, MacDonald made the transition to sound films easily, with no noticeable drop in his acting output – if anything, it went up. In 1931, for instance, MacDonald appeared in 14 films – among them the first version of The Maltese Falcon, in which he played "Detective Tom Polhaus" – and in 22 of them in 1932. Although he played laborers, policemen, military men and priests, among many other characters, his roles were usually a cut above a "bit part". His characters usually had names, and he was most often credited for his performances. A highlight of this period was his performance as the hobo "Mr. Tramp" in Our Little Girl with Shirley Temple (1935).
In the 1940s, MacDonald was part of Preston Sturges' unofficial "stock company" of character actors, appearing in seven films written and directed by Sturges. MacDonald appeared in Sullivan's Travels, The Palm Beach Story, The Miracle of Morgan's Creek, The Great Moment, The Sin of Harold Diddlebock, Unfaithfully Yours and The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend, Sturges' last American film. Earlier, MacDonald had also appeared in The Power and the Glory, which Sturges wrote. His work on Sturges' films was generally uncredited. He was notable in 1946 in John Ford's My Darling Clementine in which he played "Mac," the bartender in the town saloon. MacDonald also had uncredited roles in It's a Wonderful Life and Here Comes The Groom.
Known For
Acting
(1997)
Barbara Stanwyck: Straight Down The Line
as Self (archive footage)
(1951)
Superman and the Mole Men
as Pop Shannon
(1951)
Here Comes the Groom
as Husband on Airplane (uncredited)
(1951)
Mr. Belvedere Rings the Bell
as Mr. Kroeger
(1950)
Woman on the Run
as Cap, the Retired Ferryboat Captain
(1950)
When Willie Comes Marching Home
as Gilby - Pharmacist (uncredited)
(1950)
Hostile Country
as Mr. Lane (uncredited)
(1950)
Dakota Lil
as Ellis
(1950)
The Daltons' Women
as Alvin
(1949)
The Dalton Gang
as Judge Price
(1949)
You're My Everything
as Doorman (uncredited)
(1949)
Streets of San Francisco
as Pop Lockhart
(1948)
Sitting Pretty
as Cop (uncredited)
(1948)
Belle Starr's Daughter
as Doc Benson
(1948)
Whispering Smith
as Bill Baggs
(1948)
Panhandle
as Doc Cooper
(1948)
The Walls of Jericho
as Bailiff (uncredited)
(1948)
If You Knew Susie
as Police Sergeant (uncredited)
(1948)
Trouble Preferred
as Apartment House Manager (uncredited)
(1948)
Shep Comes Home
as Sheriff Cap Weatherby
(1948)
Fury at Furnace Creek
as Pops Murphy (uncredited)
(1947)
The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer
as Mac, Bailiff (uncredited)
(1947)
Christmas Eve
as Policeman (uncredited)
(1947)
The Sin of Harold Diddlebock
as Desk Sergeant (uncredited)
(1947)
Web of Danger
as Scotty MacKronish - Bus Driver
(1947)
Keeper of the Bees
as Postmaster
(1947)
Thunder in the Valley
as McPherson - Innkeeper
(1946)
It's a Wonderful Life
as Man Whose Grandfather Planted Tree (uncredited)
(1946)
My Darling Clementine
as Mac the barman
(1946)
Smoky
as Jim, the Cook
(1946)
Joe Palooka, Champ
as Long-Count Bowman
(1946)
Goodbye, Weeds
as Gardener
(1945)
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
as Mr. Carney The Junkman (uncredited)
(1945)
Fallen Angel
as Bank Guard (uncredited)
(1945)
Hangover Square
as Street Vendor (uncredited)
(1945)
Johnny Angel
as Capt. Angel
(1945)
Circumstantial Evidence
as Jury Foreman
(1945)
(1944)
The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek
as Sheriff (uncredited)
(1944)
The Great Moment
as The Priest
(1944)
Greenwich Village
as O'Shea, policeman
(1944)
Texas Masquerade
as John Martindale
(1943)
The Ape Man
as Captain O'Brien
(1943)
True to Life
as Man (uncredited)
(1943)
Tiger Fangs
as Geoffrey MacCardle
(1943)
Harrigan's Kid
as Frank (uncredited)
(1942)
Private Snuffy Smith
as Gen. Rosewater
(1942)
The Palm Beach Story
as Officer O'Donnell (uncredited)
(1942)
Bowery at Midnight
as Capt. Mitchell
(1942)
Reap the Wild Wind
as Port Captain
(1942)
Captains of the Clouds
as Dr. Neville (from Churchtown)
(1942)
The Living Ghost
as Police Lt. 'Pete' Peterson
(1942)
(1942)
Wild Bill Hickok Rides
as Henry Hathaway
(1942)
One Thrilling Night
as Police Sergeant Haggerty
(1942)
Phantom Killer
as Police Captain
(1941)
Meet John Doe
as 'Sourpuss'
(1941)
The Great Lie
as Dr. Ferguson
(1941)
In Old Cheyenne
as Tim Casey
(1941)
Broadway Limited
as Mulcahey
(1941)
Law of the Timber
as Adams
(1941)
Riders of the Timberline
as Jim Kerrigan
(1940)
Dark Command
as Dave
(1940)
Light of Western Stars
as Bill Stillwell
(1940)
Untamed
as Dr. Billar
(1940)
Stagecoach War
as Jeff Chapman
(1940)
The Last Alarm
as Jim Hadley
(1940)
I Take This Oath
as Insp. Tim Ryan
(1940)
Prairie Law
as Sheriff Jim Austin
(1940)
Friendly Neighbors
as Sheiff Potts
(1940)
Pony Express Days
as Nevada Jim
(1940)
Knights of the Range
as Cappy
(1939)
They Shall Have Music
as Police Chief (uncredited)
(1939)
Full Confession
as Joe, Police Sergeant (uncredited)
(1939)
The Housekeeper's Daughter
as Captain
(1939)
Susannah of the Mounties
as Pat O'Hannegan
(1939)
The Lone Ranger Rides Again
as Craig Dolan
(1939)
Coast Guard
as Capt. Hansen (uncredited)
(1939)
Zenobia
as Judge
(1939)
East Side of Heaven
as Doorman (uncredited)
(1939)
Conspiracy
as Captain of the Falcon
(1939)
Mickey the Kid
as Sheriff J.J. Willoughby
(1939)
The Gentleman from Arizona
as Wild Bill Coburn
(1938)
Gang Bullets
as Chief Reardon
(1938)
Submarine Patrol
as CWO 'Sails' Quincannon
(1938)
State Police
as Charlie Wheeler
(1938)
There Goes My Heart
as Officer
(1938)
The Crowd Roars
as Father Patrick Ryan
(1938)
Come On, Rangers
as Colonel Forbes
(1938)
Barefoot Boy
as Warden
(1938)
Little Orphan Annie
as 'Pop' Corrigan
(1938)
My Old Kentucky Home
as Mayor Jim Hopkins
(1938)
Extortion
as Coach Pearson
(1938)
White Banners
as Dr. Thompson
(1938)
The Last Express
as William Barton (Detective Agency Head)
(1938)
Numbered Woman
as Capt. Ryan
(1937)
Topper
as Policeman
(1937)
Maid of Salem
as Captain of Ship
(1937)
Slim
as Pop
(1937)
Slave Ship
as Proprietor
(1937)
Parnell
as Irish Laborer (uncredited)
(1937)
Parnell
as Irish Laborer
(1937)
The Hit Parade
as Sgt. O'Hara
(1937)
Flying Fists
as Bill 'One-Punch' Fagin
(1937)
The Game That Kills
as Joe Holland
(1937)
My Dear Miss Aldrich
as 'Doc' Howe
(1937)
Roaring Timber
as Andrew MacKinley
(1937)
The Great Barrier
as Major Rogers
(1937)
County Fair
as Calvin Williams
(1937)
Courage of the West
as Buck Saunders
(1936)
Show Boat
as Windy MacLaine
(1936)
Riffraff
as 'Brains'
(1936)
Florida Special
as Harrigan
(1936)
Mysterious Crossing
as Police Chief Bullock
(1936)
Exclusive Story
as Michael Devlin
(1935)
Front Page Woman
as Hallohan
(1935)
Star of Midnight
as Inspector Doremus
(1935)
Northern Frontier
as Inspector
(1935)
The Whole Town's Talking
as Prison Warden (uncredited)
(1935)
Our Little Girl
as Hobo
(1935)
Danger Ahead
as Harry Cromwell
(1935)
The Irish in Us
as Capt. Jackson
(1935)
Stormy
as Trinidad Dorn
(1935)
Romance in Manhattan
as Murphy
(1935)
Shadows of the Orient
as Inspector Sullivan
(1935)
Fighting Youth
as Coach Parker
(1935)
Waterfront Lady
as Capt. O'Brien
(1935)
Let 'em Have It
as Mr. Keefer
(1935)
The Arizonian
as Marshal Andy Jordan
(1935)
Hitch Hike Lady
as Judge Hale
(1935)
Maybe It's Love
as The Cop
(1935)
Square Shooter
as Sheriff
(1935)
The Healer
as Applejack
(1935)
Swellhead
as Umpire
(1935)
The Best Man Wins
as Captain--Harbor Patrol
(1934)
Once to Every Woman
as Flannigan
(1934)
The Crime Doctor
as Kemp
(1934)
Man of Two Worlds
as Michael
(1934)
The Crosby Case
as The Doorman--Mike Costello
(1934)
Beggar's Holiday
as Pop Malloy
(1933)
The Working Man
as Henry 'Hank' Davis
(1933)
Murder on the Campus
as Police Capt. Ed Kyne
(1933)
I Loved a Woman
as Shuster
(1933)
Laughing at Life
as Prison Warden
(1933)
Myrt and Marge
as Grady
(1933)
The Power and the Glory
as Mulligan
(1933)
Peg o' My Heart
as Patrick Shamus 'Pat' O'Connell
(1933)
Under Secret Orders
as John Burke
(1933)
The Vanishing Frontier
as Waco
(1933)
The Iron Master
as J.C. Stillman
(1933)
How to Break 90 #6: Fine Points
as Himself
(1932)
The Strange Love of Molly Louvain
as Police Sgt. J.B. Antrim (uncredited)
(1932)
Heritage of the Desert
as Adam Naab
(1932)
Me and My Gal
as Pop Riley
(1932)
Hotel Continental
as Detective Martin
(1932)
Under Eighteen
as Pop Evans
(1932)
The Hurricane Express
as Jim Baker
(1932)
Probation
as George Holman
(1932)
Men Are Such Fools
as Prison Warden Randolph
(1932)
The Thirteenth Guest
as Captain Ryan
(1932)
The Pride of the Legion
as Chief Scott
(1932)
Scandal for Sale
as Treadway
(1932)
No Man of Her Own
as 'Dickie' Collins
(1932)
Madame Racketeer
as John Adams
(1932)
70,000 Witnesses
as State Coach
(1932)
Steady Company
as Hogan
(1932)
Discarded Lovers
as Sommers
(1932)
Week-End Marriage
as Mr. Davis
(1932)
Hearts of Humanity
as Tom O'Hara
(1932)
The Phantom Express
as D.J. 'Smokey' Nolan
(1932)
This Sporting Age
as Jerry O'Day
(1932)
The Racing Strain
as Mr. Martin
(1931)
The Painted Desert
as Jeff Cameron
(1931)
The Stolen Jools
as Policeman
(1931)
The Maltese Falcon
as Det. Sgt. Tom Polhaus
(1931)
The Spirit of Notre Dame
as The Coach
(1931)
Other Men's Women
as Peg-Leg
(1931)
The Easiest Way
as Ben Murdock
(1931)
The Millionaire
as Dan Lewis
(1931)
Touchdown!
as Pop Stewart
(1931)
Sporting Blood
as MacGuire
(1931)
Stranger in Town
as Scout
(1931)
The Brat
as Timson, the butler
(1931)
The Squaw Man
as Big Bill
(1931)
Woman Hungry
as Buzzard
(1931)
Too Young to Marry
as Rev. Stump
(1931)
(1930)
Men Without Women
as Costello
(1930)
The Girl of the Golden West
as Sonora Slim
(1930)
River's End
as O'Toole
(1930)
The Truth About Youth
as Colonel Graham
(1930)
Song o' My Heart
as Rafferty
(1929)
Strong Boy
as Angus McGregor
(1929)
Happy Days
as Train Conductor
(1929)
Masquerade
as Joe Hickey
(1929)
South Sea Rose
as Hackett
(1929)
Masked Emotions
as Will Whitten
(1929)
The Painted Angel
as Pa Hudler
(1928)
In Old Arizona
as Stage Passenger (uncredited)
(1928)
4 Devils
as The Clown
(1928)
Bringing Up Father
as Jiggs
(1928)
The Cohens and the Kellys in Paris
as Patrick Kelly
(1928)
Riley the Cop
as James 'Aloysius' Riley
(1928)
Abie's Irish Rose
as Patrick Murphy
(1928)
None But the Brave
as John Craig
(1927)
Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans
as The Photographer
(1927)
Cradle Snatchers
as George Martin
(1927)
Ankles Preferred
as McGuire
(1927)
Paid to Love
as Peter Roberts
(1927)
East Side, West Side
as Pug Malone
(1926)
3 Bad Men
as Mike Costigan
(1926)
The First Year
as Mr. Barstow
(1926)
The Dixie Merchant
as Jean Paul Fippany
(1926)
A Trip to Chinatown
as Benjamin Strong
(1926)
The Shamrock Handicap
as Con O'Shea
(1926)
The Family Upstairs
as Joe Heller
(1926)
Bertha the Sewing Machine Girl
as Sloan
(1926)
The Country Beyond
as Sgt. Cassidy
(1925)
The Iron Horse
as Corporal Casey
(1925)
Thank You
as Andy
(1925)
Lightnin'
as Lemuel Townsend
(1925)
Kentucky Pride
as Donavan
(1925)
The Lucky Horseshoe
as Mack
(1925)
Let Women Alone
as Commodore John Gordon
(1925)
The Fighting Heart
as Jerry
(1924)
The Signal Tower
as Pete
(1924)
Mademoiselle Midnight
as Duc de Moing (Prologue)
(1924)
The Brass Bowl
as Hickey
(1924)
(1924)
Western Luck
as 'Chuck' Campbell
(1923)
Drifting
as Murphy
(1923)
(1923)
The Age of Desire
as Dan Reagan
(1923)
Quicksands
as Col. Patterson
(1923)
Racing Hearts
as Silas Martin
(1922)
Manslaughter
as (uncredited)
(1922)
Come on Over
as Michael Morahan
(1922)
Sky High
as Jim Frazer (as J. Farrel MacDonald)
(1922)
The Ghost Breaker
as Sam Marcum
(1922)
The Young Rajah
as Amhad Beg - Prime Minister
(1922)
Over the Border
as Peter Galbraith
(1922)
The Bonded Woman
as Captain Gaskell
(1922)
The Bachelor Daddy
as Joe Pelton
(1921)
Action
as Mormon Peters
(1921)
The Freeze-Out
as Bobtail McGuire
(1921)
The Wallop
as Neuces River
(1921)
Trailin'
as Joseph Piotto
(1921)
(1921)
Riding with Death
as Sheriff Pat Garrity
(1920)
Bullet Proof
as Jim Boone
(1920)
Hitchin' Posts
as Joe Alabam (as J. Farrell McDonald)
(1920)
The Path She Chose
as Father
(1919)
Marked Men
as Tom Placer McGraw
(1919)
A Sporting Chance
as Luther Ripley aka Kennedy
(1919)
(1919)
Riders of Vengeance
as Buell
(1919)
Roped
as Butler
(1919)
A Fight For Love
as The Priest
(1918)
$5,000 Reward
as Norcross
(1915)
Rags
as Paul Ferguson (as Joseph Farrell MacDonald)
(1913)
(1912)
A Timely Repentance
as Louis Nordell
(1911)
The Dream
as Secondary Role (uncredited)
(1911)
(1911)
The Lighthouse Keeper
as The Lighthouse Keeper
(1911)
'Tween Two Loves
as Farmer Howard
(1910)
The Time-Lock Safe
as Office Worker
Crew
(1917)
Over the Fence
Director
(1915)
Lonesome Luke, Social Gangster
Director
(1914)
The Patchwork Girl of Oz
Director
(1914)
The Magic Cloak of Oz
Director
(1914)
His Majesty, the Scarecrow of Oz
Director
(1914)
Samson
Director
(1914)
The Backslider
Director
(1913)
Rory o' the Bogs
Director