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 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 populou ...

. 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 comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957). Starting their career as a duo ...

films, including '' Beau Hunks'' (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 televisi ...

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'' (1948), and '' The Girl from Jones Beach'' (1949). He died in Los Angeles at age 73 from a stroke.

Biography

O'Farrell was born July 13, 1882 in

, and where he was a regular performer with the Baker Stock Company beginning at age 14. He appeared in various stage productions in Portland and the Pacific Northwest, including theatrical productions in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

. He began his film career in 1920 during the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, 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) ...

, appearing in locally-produced films such as the early serial short titled ''And Women Must Weep'', in which he appeared opposite Mayo Methot. 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 '' Beau Hunks'' (1931). He supporting roles in numerous films, including '' No More Orchids'' (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 ...

, '' The World Accuses'' (1934), and the Western '' The Law of the 45's'' (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 Cla ...

'' (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 actress ...

; the aviation adventure film ''

Blaze of Noon ''Blaze of Noon'' is a 1947 aviation adventure film directed by John Farrow and based on writer and aviator Ernest K. Gann's best-selling novel ''Blaze of Noon'' (1946), a story about early air mail operations. The screenplay was from well-known w ...

'' (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 wor ...

on September 2, 1955, of complications from a stroke. He was survived by his two children, and his second wife, Loretta Fitzpatrick. He was interred at the San Fernando Mission Cemetery.

Select filmography

References

Sources

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External links

*
Broderick O'Farrell
at AFI Catalog of Feature Films * {{DEFAULTSORT:O'Farrell, Broderick 1882 births 1955 deaths American film actors American male stage actors Catholics from Oregon Male actors from Portland, Oregon