Mitchell John "M. J." Frankovich (September 29, 1909 – January 1, 1992), best known as Mike Frankovich, was an American football player turned film actor and producer. Frankovich was the adopted son of actor Joe E. Brown and his wife, Kathryn.

Biography

Frankovich attended Belmont High School in

Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...

. He played football for UCLA and was inducted into UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in 1986. Frankovich served in the Army Air Corps during World War II. After the war, he moved to Europe with his wife. He became managing director of Columbia Pictures in Britain in 1955. Frankovich moved back to Los Angeles in 1963. In 1968 he gave up his position as vice president and became an independent producer at Columbia. He served as president of the

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a mem ...

Commission in the early 1980s, and helped to bring the Los Angeles Raiders football team and

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

to Los Angeles. He received the Academy Awards' Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1983.

Family

A devout Catholic, Frankovich married his first wife, Georgiana (or Georgianna) Feagans, on January 15, 1938. No details are available regarding that marriage or how or when it ended. Known descendants are his fourth cousins, Williamson Frankovich and Haley Frankovich. He married actress Binnie Barnes in 1940. They remained married until his death. He produced some of her late movies, including her last movie in 1973, ''

40 Carats ''Forty Carats'' is a play by Jay Presson Allen. Adapted from the French original by Pierre Barillet and Jean-Pierre Gredy, the comedy revolves around a 40-year-old American divorcee who is assisted by a 22-year-old when her car breaks down dur ...

'', in which she portrayed

Liv Ullman Liv Johanne Ullmann (born 16 December 1938) is a Norwegian actress and film director. Recognised as one of the greatest European actresses of all time, Ullmann is known as the muse and frequent partner of filmmaker Ingmar Bergman. She acted in m ...

's mother.

Death

He died of pneumonia on New Year's Day, 1992.

Producer

Among his more than 30 productions of film and for television were: '' Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1969), '' Cactus Flower'' (1969), '' There's a Girl in My Soup'' (1970), '' Butterflies Are Free'' (1972), '' The 42nd Annual Academy Awards'' (1970), and

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...

's last film, '' The Shootist'' (1976).

Select filmography

* '' Jesse James Rides Again'' (1947) * '' The Black Widow'' (1947) (serial) * ''

G-Men Never Forget ''G-Men Never Forget'' is a 1948 Republic movie serial. The serial was condensed into a feature film in 1966 and re-released under the title ''Code 645''. Plot Escaped criminal Victor Murkland (Roy Barcroft) kidnaps the police commissioner an ...

'' (1948) (serial) * ''

Dangers of the Canadian Mounted ''Dangers of the Canadian Mounted'' is a 1948 Northern Republic film serial. Plot A criminal gang discovers a Genghis Khan treasure ship on the Canada-Alaska border. However, the treasure itself is hidden on land. In their efforts to find the ...

'' (1948) (serial) * '' Fugitive Lady'' (1950) * '' Decameron Nights'' (1953) * '' Malaga'' (1954) * '' Footsteps in the Fog'' (1955) * '' Joe MacBeth'' (1955) * ''

Spin a Dark Web ''Soho Incident'', released in the United States as ''Spin a Dark Web'', is a 1956 British film noir directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Faith Domergue and Lee Patterson.

'' (1956) aka ''Soho Incident'' * '' The War Lover'' (1962) * '' Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1969) * '' Marooned'' (1969) * '' Cactus Flower'' (1969) * '' The Looking Glass War'' (1970) * '' The 42nd Annual Academy Awards'' (1970) (TV special) * '' There's a Girl in My Soup'' (1970) * '' Doctors' Wives'' (1971) * '' The Love Machine'' (1971) * '' $'' (1971) * ''

Stand Up and Be Counted ''Stand Up and Be Counted'' is a 1972 American comedy film directed by Jackie Cooper and starring Jacqueline Bisset and Stella Stevens. It features the recording of "I Am Woman" (1971) by Helen Reddy. Plot Cast * Jacqueline Bisset - Sheila ...

'' (1972) * '' Butterflies Are Free'' (1972) * ''

'' (1973) * '' Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice'' (1973) (TV series) * '' Report to the Commissioner'' (1975) * '' From Noon Till Three'' (1976) * '' State Fair'' (1976) * '' The Shootist'' (1976) * '' Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women'' (1978) * ''All Star Party for Lucille Ball'' (1984) * ''All-Star Party for Clint Eastwood'' (1986) (TV Special)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Frankovich, Mike 1909 births 1992 deaths People from Bisbee, Arizona Sportspeople from Arizona Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award winners 20th-century American businesspeople Deaths from pneumonia in California Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Neurological disease deaths in California Catholics from Arizona Film producers from Arizona United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II