George William Broderick O'Farrell (July 13, 1882 — September 2, 1955) was an American film and stage actor who appeared in both silent and sound films. He began his career at age 14, appearing onstage with the

Baker Stock Company The Baker Stock Company was a theater group based in Portland, Oregon, United States, active from 1901 through 1923. The company was established by businessman George Luis Baker, who served as its manager from 1901 to 1915. History The Baker Sto ...

in his hometown of

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

. He subsequently appeared in several locally-produced films, such as '' The Golden Trail'' (1920), before pursuing a film career in Los Angeles. He appeared in numerous silent films throughout the 1920s, and later had minor roles in several

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American Double act, comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood cinema, Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–19 ...

films, including ''

Beau Hunks ''Beau Hunks'' is a 1931 American Pre-Code Laurel and Hardy film, directed by James W. Horne. The title is a reference to the Beau Geste trilogy (''Beau Geste'' (1924), ''Beau Sabreur'' (1926) and ''Beau Ideal'' (1927) and the Hollywood films ...

'' (1931). O'Farrell had minor

bit part In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British television, ...

s throughout the 1940s, often appearing as conductors, doctors, and coroners in a variety of films. Some of his later credits include ''

Mourning Becomes Electra ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' is a play cycle written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on 26 October 1931 where it ran for 150 performances before closing in March 1932, starring Lee Baker ...

'' (1947), ''

Whispering Smith ''Whispering Smith'' is a 1948 American Western film directed by Leslie Fenton and starring Alan Ladd as a railroad detective assigned to stop a gang of train robbers. The supporting cast includes Robert Preston, Brenda Marshall and Donald C ...

'' (1948), and ''

The Girl from Jones Beach ''The Girl from Jones Beach'' is a 1949 American comedy film directed by Peter Godfrey (director), Peter Godfrey and written by I. A. L. Diamond. The film stars Ronald Reagan, Virginia Mayo, Eddie Bracken, Dona Drake, Henry Travers and Lois Wilso ...

'' (1949). He died in Los Angeles at age 73 from a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

Biography

O'Farrell was born July 13, 1882 in

, and where he was a regular performer with the

beginning at age 14. He appeared in various stage productions in Portland and the Pacific Northwest, including theatrical productions in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. He began his film career in 1920 during the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...

, appearing in locally-produced films such as the early serial short titled ''And Women Must Weep'', in which he appeared opposite

Mayo Methot Mayo Jane Methot (March 3, 1904 – June 9, 1951) was an American film and stage actress. She appeared in over 30 films, as well as in various Broadway productions, though she attracted significant media attention for her tempestuous marriage t ...

. O'Farrell married Mae Norton in 1921, and had two children—a son, Kevin, and a daughter, Dawn—before separating. He went on to appear in numerous silent pictures, followed by sound films. He appeared in several

films in minor roles, including ''

'' (1931). He supporting roles in numerous films, including ''

No More Orchids ''No More Orchids'' is a 1932 American pre-Code comedy-drama film starring Carole Lombard and Lyle Talbot as mismatched lovers, based on the novel of the same name by Grace Perkins. Plot The departure of an ocean liner is held up to wait for s ...

'' (1932) with

Carole Lombard Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard 2 ...

, ''

The World Accuses ''The World Accuses'' is a 1934 American drama film directed by Charles Lamont and starring Vivian Tobin, Dickie Moore and Cora Sue Collins Cora Susan Collins (born April 19, 1927) is an American former child actress who appeared in numerous ...

'' (1934), and the Western ''

The Law of the 45's ''The Law of the 45's'' (also known as ''The Mysterious Mr. Sheffield'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1935 American Western film directed by John P. McCarthy. The screenplay was based on the 1933 novel of the same name by William Colt MacDonald ...

'' (1935). In the 1940s, O'Farrell primarily appeared in uncredited bit parts, being cast as butlers, coroners, and doctors. Some of his later credits include the film noir ''

Experiment Perilous ''Experiment Perilous'' is a 1944 melodrama set at the turn of the 20th century. The film is based on a 1943 novel of the same name by Margaret Carpenter, and directed by Jacques Tourneur. Albert S. D'Agostino, Jack Okey, Darrell Silvera, and Cl ...

'' (1944), starring

Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American film actress and inventor. A film star during Hollywood's golden age, Lamarr has been described as one of the greatest movie actresse ...

; the aviation adventure film '' Blaze of Noon'' (1946), and ''

'' (1947).

Death

O'Farrell died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

on September 2, 1955, of complications from a

. He was survived by his two children, and his second wife, Loretta Fitzpatrick. He was interred at the

San Fernando Mission Cemetery The San Fernando Mission Cemetery is a Catholic cemetery located in the Mission Hills community of the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. The property adjoins the San Fernando Mission and Bishop Alemany Catholic High School. ThSan Fernando Mi ...

Select filmography

References

Sources

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External links

*
Broderick O'Farrell
at

AFI Catalog of Feature Films The ''AFI Catalog of Feature Films'', also known as the ''AFI Catalog'', is an ongoing project by the American Film Institute (AFI) to catalog all commercially-made and theatrically exhibited American motion pictures from the birth of cinema in ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:O'Farrell, Broderick 1882 births 1955 deaths American film actors American male stage actors Catholics from Oregon Male actors from Portland, Oregon