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Francis Condie Baxter (May 4, 1896 – January 18, 1982) was an American scholar and
television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...
. An authority on Shakespeare with a doctorate in literature from
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...
, he was a highly popular professor of English Literature at the
University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...
who brought literature, science, and the arts to millions in the
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via television and film. Baxter hosted the Emmy Award-winning
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
series ''Shakespeare on TV'' beginning in 1954, as well as the
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
drama series ''
Telephone Time ''Telephone Time'' is an American anthology drama series that aired on CBS in 1956, and on ABC from 1957 to 1958. The series features plays by John Nesbitt who hosted the first season. Frank C. Baxter hosted the 1957 and 1958 seasons. The prog ...
'' in 1957 and 1958, the US broadcast of the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's 15-part presentation of
Shakespeare's William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
history plays, ''
An Age of Kings ''An Age of Kings'' is a fifteen-part serial adaptation of the eight sequential history plays of William Shakespeare (''Richard II'', '' 1 Henry IV'', '' 2 Henry IV'', ''Henry V'', '' 1 Henry VI'', '' 2 Henry VI'', '' 3 Henry VI'' and ''Richar ...
'', in 1961, and
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
's ''The Bell Telephone Hour'' throughout the 1960s. Additional Baxter television series for
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
included ''Renaissance on TV'' (1956–57), devoted to classical philosophy, literature, and art, and ''Now and Then'' (1954–55), which enlightened viewers on subjects ranging from Altimira cave drawings to Elizabethan naval battles. Baxter's Emmy Award-winning ''Harvest'' on
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
in the mid-1950s highlighted great achievements in art, literature, public affairs, and science. In 1966, Baxter hosted a popular TV series called ''The Four Winds to Adventure'', featuring filmmakers exploring little-known areas of the world, crossing continents and oceans to explore the histories and customs of local people or the animals unique to a particular region. ''The Written Word'', a 15-part series on the history of books and printing featuring Baxter as presenter, aired nationwide in 1958 on both educational and commercial networks including
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
. Baxter was a frequent guest star on TV shows in the 1950s and 60s, often portraying himself since he was so well known throughout America. His TV acting credits included ''
The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', sometimes called ''The Burns and Allen Show'', was a half-hour television situation comedy broadcast from 1950 to 1958 on CBS. It starred George Burns and Gracie Allen, one of the most enduring acts in ...
'', '' Playhouse 90'', ''
The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show ''The Ford Show'' (also known as ''The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford'' and ''The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show'') is an American variety program, starring singer and folk humorist Tennessee Ernie Ford, which aired on NBC on Thursday eveni ...
'', '' Mr. Novak'', and more than a dozen others. Baxter is best known for his role as "Dr. Research" in
The Bell System Science Series ''The Bell System Science Series'' consists of nine television specials made for the AT&T Corporation that were originally broadcast in color between 1956 and 1964. Marcel LaFollette has described them as "specials that combined clever story line ...
. The programs were first broadcast on national television and subsequently distributed, free of charge, to schools across the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. The films were later released on
home video Home video is prerecorded media sold or rented for home viewing. The term originates from the VHS and Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotapes, but has carried over to optical disc formats such as DVD, Blu-ray and streaming me ...
and
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. Over the more than 30 years they were in popular use, Baxter biographer Eric Niderost estimates, the films were seen by some 200 million students.


Biography

Born in Newbold, New Jersey, Baxter served as a medical corpsman in the American Expeditionary Force in France under General
John Pershing General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was a senior United States Army officer. He served most famously as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) on the Wes ...
during World War I. Following his war service, Baxter enrolled in the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
, where he studied zoology and archeology, graduating ''summa cum laude'' in 1923. Two years later he earned a master's degree in English from the same institution, simultaneously performing teaching duties that he had first undertaken as an undergraduate. Beginning in 1926, he took on part-time work as a lecturer at Swarthmore College and as a radio broadcaster on
WOO Woo, WoO, WOO, W.O.O. and variants may refer to: People Woo or Wu, romanization of several East Asian names: * Hu (surname): 胡, 瓠, 護, 戶, 扈, 虎, 呼, 忽, 斛 * Wu (surname): 吳, 伍, 武, 仵, 烏, 鄔, 巫 * Ng (name): 吳, 伍 * ...
in Philadelphia, regaling listeners (according to his self-deprecating description) with narratives about "split infinitives and the simple life." In 1927, Baxter married Lydia Morris, who had been his student at Penn and would be his wife for 55 years until he died. That same year, he and his new bride sailed to England, where he would begin work on his doctorate in English Literature at
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
,
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...
. With his coursework for the degree completed, but dissertation still in progress, he returned to America in 1929 and began teaching at the University of California - Berkeley. Almost immediately he was recruited to Los Angeles by the
University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...
, where he began teaching in 1930. Following the completion of his dissertation titled "Criticism and Appreciation of the Elizabethan Drama, 1642-1892" and the award of his doctorate from Cambridge in 1932, he was promoted to assistant professor of English Literature. USC would be his home for over 30 years, until his retirement in 1961. At USC, Baxter became an enormously popular teacher and lecturer. Beginning in the 1930s, he began an annual tradition of public readings at Christmas time, delivered to an oversubscribed 1,500-seat auditorium in USC's Founders Hall that spilled out to include an audience of hundreds more on the lawn outside, who listened via loudspeaker. By 1949 these dramatic readings were nationally famous, prompting ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' magazine to send a reporter to cover the event. ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' expressed amazement that even though it was raining for the 1949 performance, the overflow crowds were still there to fill the lawn outside. The USC campus newspaper, the
Daily Trojan The ''Daily Trojan'', or "DT," is the student newspaper of the University of Southern California. The newspaper is a forum for student expression and is written, edited, and managed by university students. The paper is intended to inform USC st ...
, reported that a student poll voted Baxter as the professor who should "teach all the classes in the university." The newspaper opined, "If you haven't taken Dr. Baxter, you haven't been to college." Baxter is best remembered for his nationally televised appearances from 1956 to 1962 as "Dr. Research" in
The Bell System Science Series ''The Bell System Science Series'' consists of nine television specials made for the AT&T Corporation that were originally broadcast in color between 1956 and 1964. Marcel LaFollette has described them as "specials that combined clever story line ...
. Starring Baxter alongside such well-known actors as
Eddie Albert Edward Albert Heimberger (April 22, 1906 – May 26, 2005) was an American actor and activist. He was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor; the first nomination came in 1954 for his performance in ''Roman Holiday'', ...
, Lionel Barrymore, Richard Carlson, Mel Blanc,
Hans Conried Hans Georg Conried Jr. (April 15, 1917 – January 5, 1982) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for providing the voices of George Darling and Captain Hook in Walt Disney's ''Peter Pan'' (1953), Snidely Whiplash in Jay Ward's '' Dud ...
, and Richard Deacon, the films were directed by Hollywood legends Frank Capra and Jack Warner and featured a star-studded roster of academic advisors including renowned
Caltech The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
physicist
Richard Feynman Richard Phillips Feynman (; May 11, 1918 – February 15, 1988) was an American theoretical physicist, known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of quantum electrodynamics, the physics of the superfl ...
. Following nationwide broadcast in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, these films were distributed without charge to schools, becoming a staple in American classrooms from the 1960s through the 1980s. The programs combined scientific footage, live actors, and animation to convey scientific concepts and history in a lively, entertaining way, with the bald, bespectacled, and affable Baxter playing the role of the omniscient scientist who both explains and discovers along with the audience. As a result of the films, Baxter (who in real life was a USC English professor and had not been a scientist since the early days of his academic career at the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
) became an almost universally-known scientific icon among
Baby Boomers Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the Western demographic cohort following the Silent Generation and preceding Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964, during the mid-20th century baby boom. ...
. All of Baxter's films in
The Bell System Science Series ''The Bell System Science Series'' consists of nine television specials made for the AT&T Corporation that were originally broadcast in color between 1956 and 1964. Marcel LaFollette has described them as "specials that combined clever story line ...
have been released on VHS and
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
and continue to reach new audiences. As a result of their broad distribution throughout the world and across several decades, the films have reached hundreds of millions of people, both students and adults. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Baxter not only hosted several nationally televised series, but also played cameo roles in numerous dramas and comedies, in each case designed to play off of his persona as a celebrity academic. For example, on
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
's Peabody Award-winning drama series '' Mr. Novak'', based upon an idealistic English teacher in Los Angeles who often became involved in the lives of his students and fellow faculty, Baxter played an industrialist giving out a scholarship. On the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
afternoon game show '' You Don't Say'', he was a guest panelist alongside
Dr. Joyce Brothers Joyce Diane Brothers (October 20, 1927 – May 13, 2013) was an American psychologist, television personality, advice columnist, and writer. She first became famous in 1955 for winning the top prize on the American game show '' The $64,000 Ques ...
. Baxter's mass media credits also include one feature film, a science fiction-horror romp of the sort popular in the 1950s in which he appeared as himself, presumably to lend credibility to the incredible plot. ''
The Mole People ''The Mole People'' is a 1956 American science fiction adventure film distributed by Universal International, which was produced by William Alland, directed by Virgil W. Vogel, and stars John Agar, Hugh Beaumont, and Cynthia Patrick. The st ...
'', released in theaters nationwide in 1956, is premised upon the discovery of a race of albino beings who shun light, and rely upon mutant mole men as their slaves. In a deliberately stilted professorial presentation, Baxter presents a brief history of theories of life beneath the surface of the earth. In the ensuing decades the film has earned cult status, enjoying successive reincarnations on VHS,
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
, and in 2019,
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...
. After retiring from teaching in 1961 at the age of 65, Baxter continued to perform in starring roles in made-for-television documentaries, as well as in cameo roles on television dramas, comedies, and variety shows. He maintained his old office at USC, where for eight years he had been Chairman of the English Department and President of the Faculty Senate, and even into his 80s he continued to hold court on campus as "Reader in Residence." His famed Noon Readings, occasional lectures, and annual Christmas presentations in Bovard Hall were so popular they were news items in the
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
, announced with headlines such as "Dr. Frank Baxter Will Visit USC." Baxter's success as an educator, both on the individual student level and before mass audiences, was summed up in a
Daily Trojan The ''Daily Trojan'', or "DT," is the student newspaper of the University of Southern California. The newspaper is a forum for student expression and is written, edited, and managed by university students. The paper is intended to inform USC st ...
editorial at the time of his retirement. "Dr. Baxter works so well with the student mind," the editors wrote, "because he is part scholar, part teacher, and part actor." While many academics can claim success as both scholars and teachers, few combine it with genuine acting talent — and it was this extra ingredient that so impressed his loyal following. "Dr. Baxter is most certainly a fine actor," the
Daily Trojan The ''Daily Trojan'', or "DT," is the student newspaper of the University of Southern California. The newspaper is a forum for student expression and is written, edited, and managed by university students. The paper is intended to inform USC st ...
opined, who "can make plays come to life — whether they be Shakespeare, Shaw, or Arthur Miller — by merely recreating a scene. He can give a character meaning — whether it be Falstaff or Henry Higgins or Willy Loman — with a simple gesture of his hands. And he can create almost any emotion, from laughter to tears, simply by the reading of a single line." Baxter died in 1982 in Pasadena, California; he was 85.


Awards

* Baxter won seven Emmy Awards, including in 1954 for Outstanding Male Performer, and in 1960 for Outstanding Male Personality. * * Baxter has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. * * In 1959, Baxter won the inaugural Golden Gavel award of
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. * * Baxter won the Peabody Award in 1956. * * In 1955, Baxter was awarded an honorary degree from the
University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...
.


Selected filmography

Except as noted, this filmography is based on the credits listed at the Internet Movie Database. *''Shakespeare on TV'' (television series - 1953) *''
The Mole People ''The Mole People'' is a 1956 American science fiction adventure film distributed by Universal International, which was produced by William Alland, directed by Virgil W. Vogel, and stars John Agar, Hugh Beaumont, and Cynthia Patrick. The st ...
'' (1956) *''
The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', sometimes called ''The Burns and Allen Show'', was a half-hour television situation comedy broadcast from 1950 to 1958 on CBS. It starred George Burns and Gracie Allen, one of the most enduring acts in ...
'' (TV series) - a 1956 episode titled ''The Shakespeare Paper'' *'' Our Mr. Sun'' (1956) *'' Hemo the Magnificent'' (1957) *''
Telephone Time ''Telephone Time'' is an American anthology drama series that aired on CBS in 1956, and on ABC from 1957 to 1958. The series features plays by John Nesbitt who hosted the first season. Frank C. Baxter hosted the 1957 and 1958 seasons. The prog ...
'' (host for 28 episodes of a weekly television series - 1957,1958) *'' The Strange Case of the Cosmic Rays'' (1957) *'' Meteora: The Unchained Goddess'' (1958) *'' Gateways to the Mind'' (1958) *'' The Alphabet Conspiracy'' (1959) *'' Thread of Life'' (1960) * ''
An Age of Kings ''An Age of Kings'' is a fifteen-part serial adaptation of the eight sequential history plays of William Shakespeare (''Richard II'', '' 1 Henry IV'', '' 2 Henry IV'', ''Henry V'', '' 1 Henry VI'', '' 2 Henry VI'', '' 3 Henry VI'' and ''Richar ...
'' (commentary for a 1961 Shakespeare series)An Age of Kings: An Import Becomes Public TV’s First Hit
David Stewart, Current, December 21, 1998. *'' About Time'' (1962) *''Four Winds to Adventure'' (host for 39 episodes of a weekly television series - 1966)


References


Further reading

* * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baxter, Frank C. 1896 births 1982 deaths University of Southern California faculty Television personalities from Los Angeles People from Camden, New Jersey Academics from New Jersey Alumni of the University of Cambridge American expatriates in the United Kingdom United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army Medical Corps officers Military personnel from New Jersey