Ferrin Fraser
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Ferrin Fraser (May 11, 1903 – April 1, 1969 in
Lockport, New York Lockport is both a city and the Lockport (town), New York, town that surrounds it in Niagara County, New York, Niagara County, New York (state), New York. The city is the Niagara county seat, with a population of 21,165 according to 2010 census ...
) was a radio scriptwriter and short story author who collaborated with Frank Buck on radio scripts and five books.


Education and early career

Ferrin Fraser was the son of Louis F. Fraser and Martha Fraser. Louis F. Fraser was secretary-treasurer of the Ferrin & Fraser Coal Company in Lockport, New York. Ferrin Fraser's older brother, Carl E. Fraser, born November 25, 1896, became a coal salesman. A member of the Lockport High School Glee Club and the Lockport High School basketball team (1922), Ferrin Fraser was in the Columbia University class of 1927 but did not graduate. His first successful work for radio was "A Piece of String," adapted from the
Guy de Maupassant Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (, ; ; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, as well as a representative of the Naturalist school, who depicted human lives, destin ...
short story. The drama premiered on New York's WABC at 9pm on May 28, 1933. Fraser's books included ''Lovely ladies: Being the Love Affairs of Ten Women in the Life of a Young Man'' (1927); ''The Screaming Portrait'' (1928); ''If I Could Fly'' (1929); and ''The Passionate Angel'' (1930).


Collaboration with Frank Buck

Fraser was co-author of five books with Frank Buck: * ''
Fang and Claw ''Fang and Claw'' is a 1935 jungle adventure documentary starring Frank Buck. Buck continues his demonstration of the ingenious methods by which he traps wild birds, mammals and reptiles in Johore Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a s ...
'' (1935). * Novel, '' Tim Thompson in the Jungle'' (1935). * '' On Jungle Trails'' (1936), for many years a sixth grade reader in the Texas public schools. * Buck’s autobiography, '' All In A Lifetime'' (1941). * Illustrated children’s book, '' Jungle Animals'' (1945).


Radio, movies and television

Fraser wrote the scripts for Frank Buck's first radio programs, when Buck replaced ''
Amos 'n Andy ''Amos 'n' Andy'' is an American radio sitcom about black characters, initially set in Chicago and later in the Harlem section of New York City. While the show had a brief life on 1950s television with black actors, the 1928 to 1960 radio sho ...
s
Freeman Gosden Freeman Fisher "Gozzie" Gosden (May 5, 1899 – December 10, 1982) was an American radio comedian, actor and pioneer in the development of the situation comedy form. He is best known for his work in the radio series ''Amos 'n' Andy''. Life and ...
and
Charles Correll Charles James Correll (February 2, 1890 – September 26, 1972) was an American radio comedian, actor and writer, known best for his work in the radio series ''Amos 'n' Andy'' with Freeman Gosden. Correll voiced the main character Andy Brown, al ...
during their eight-week vacation during 1934. During the 1930s and 1940s, Fraser was a radio scriptwriter, notably for ''
Little Orphan Annie ''Little Orphan Annie'' is a daily American comic strip created by Harold Gray and syndicated by the Tribune Media Services. The strip took its name from the 1885 poem "Little Orphant Annie" by James Whitcomb Riley, and it made its debut on Aug ...
''. Dramatic and thriller programs with scripts by Fraser include ''
Suspense Suspense is a state of mental uncertainty, anxiety, being undecided, or being doubtful. In a dramatic work, suspense is the anticipation of the outcome of a plot or of the solution to an uncertainty, puzzle, or mystery, particularly as it aff ...
'', '' Lights Out'' and ''
Nick Carter, Master Detective ''Nick Carter, Master Detective'' was a Mutual radio crime drama based on tales of the fictional private detective Nick Carter from Street & Smith's dime novels and pulp magazines. Nick Carter first came to radio as ''The Return of Nick Carte ...
''. Fraser also wrote the script for the
Joan Lowell Joan Lowell (born Helen Wagner; November 23, 1902 – November 7, 1967) was a movie actress of the silent film era from Berkeley, California. Lowell published a sensational autobiography, ''Cradle of the Deep'', in 1929, which turned out to ...
movie ''Adventure Girl,'' and wrote for television during the 1950s.


Magazines and children's books

Fraser was the author of more than 500 short stories for magazines, including '' Argosy'', ''
Collier's ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...
'', ''Mystery'', ''Real Detective Tales & Mystery Stories'' and ''
Redbook ''Redbook'' is an American women's magazine that is published by the Hearst Corporation. It is one of the " Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines. It ceased print publication as of January 2019 and now operates an article-comprise ...
''. Ferrin and his wife Beatrice Fraser published ''Bennie, the Bear Who Grew Too Fast'' (1956), a musical nonsense tale that teaches the names of various stringed instruments and the differences in their sizes and sounds, ''Arturo and Mr. Bang'' (1963) and other children's music books.


Family and later life

Wife Beatrice Ryan Fraser, an author, composer and church musician, was a graduate of the
Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York. It was established in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman. It offers Bachelor of Music (B.M ...
in Rochester and was a featured organist at the Eastman Theater and an organist with the
Rochester Philharmonic The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is an American orchestra based in the city of Rochester, New York. Its primary concert venue is the Eastman Theatre at the Eastman School of Music. History George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak Company ...
. She studied in Paris with
Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher and conductor. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. From a ...
and
Marcel Dupré Marcel Jean-Jules Dupré () (3 May 1886 – 30 May 1971) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue. Biography Born in Rouen into a wealthy musical family, Marcel Dupré was a child prodigy. His father Aimable Albert Dupré was titular o ...
."Beatrice Fraser, Author and Music Teacher". ''Buffalo Evening News''. July 9, 1992


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Ferrin 1903 births 1969 deaths Writers from New York (state) American radio writers American children's writers Columbia University alumni Children's non-fiction writers 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers