Job Actor
Years active 1916-1965
Top Roles Sharkey, the Loan Shark, Dusty Turner, Oliver Harker, Charlie Halloran, Honey Wiggen
Top GenresComedy, Drama, Musical, Romance, Crime, Sports
Top TopicsBook-Based, Baseball, Christmas
Top Collaborators (Producer), (Director), (Director),
Shares birthday with Madeleine Carroll, Betty Hutton, Jackie Gleason  see more..

Fan Favorites:
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The General Died at Dawn

The General Died at ...

Fan rating: 9.50
Alibi Ike

Alibi Ike

Fan rating: 9.00
Miracle on 34th Street

Miracle on 34th Stre...

Fan rating: 8.58

William Frawley Overview:

Character actor, William Frawley, was born William Clement Frawley on Feb 26, 1887 in Burlington, IA. Frawley died at the age of 79 on Mar 3, 1966 in Hollywood, CA .

MINI BIO:

Lovable, cherubic, American character actor who vies with Allen Jenkins and Jesse White in the memory as cigar-chewing gangsters with tough exteriors and soft centres. Overcame an alcohol problem to become a TV star of the early fifties as the irascible Fred Mertz in I Love Lucy then, in the sixties, as Bub in another long-running TV series, My Three Sons. Died from a heart attack.

(Source: available at Amazon Quinlan's Film Character Actors: an Illustrated Directory).

HONORS and AWARDS:

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He was honored with one star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the category of Motion Pictures. In addition, Frawley was inducted into the TV Hall of Fame .

BlogHub Articles:

By Michele on Jul 22, 2016 From Timeless Hollywood

Most people know as Fred Mertz, the landlord to the Ricardo?s in the long running comedy show I Love Lucy.? However, long before television he got his start in Vaudville. For a time he performed a vaudeville act with his brother Paul.? In 1914 Frawley married Edna Louise Broedt and t... Read full article

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William Frawley Quotes:

Hank Meyers: Here they come now, Grief, Trouble and Worry.

Mike DeBaere: This coal mine is gonna be a nice, peaceful place when you're gone.

[last lines]
Det. Lt. Webb: [over the radio airwaves] Correction please. Until further notice, Action Incorporated is suspending action until a judge has time to take action on a little action of obstructing justice. This is Lt. Webb, now signing off.

read more quotes from William Frawley...



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William Frawley on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame

6322 Hollywood Blvd.


Ceremony Date: Feb 8, 1960
Category: Motion Pictures
See All Walk of Fame Stars >>
William Frawley Facts
Despite the fact that they played husband and wife on "I Love Lucy" (1951), Frawley and Vivian Vance disliked each other intensely. Part of it was the real life age difference between the two (Frawley was 22 years Vance's senior), but essentially it was a clash of two driving, strong personalities. Vance and her fourth husband were dining out when they heard Frawley had died. Upon receiving the news, Vance reportedly shouted, "Champagne for everybody!".
Unable to secure his first choice, Gale Gordon for the role of "Fred Mertz," Desi Arnaz agreed to consider Frawley, who heavily lobbied for the part. Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball had invested everything they had for the pilot and were concerned about Frawley's alcoholism--- which was no secret around Hollywood--- Arnaz made it clear to him that, if he showed up drunk for work more than once, he would not only be fired from the program but blacklisted throughout the entertainment industry. Frawley, despite his lengthy film resume, was virtually unemployable by 1951--- thanks to a combination of his fondness for the bottle, and his disagreeable personality. He readily agreed to Arnaz's condition. He never showed up drunk on the set at all, and, in fact, Arnaz became one of his very few close friends. When Frawley died, Arnaz took out a full-page ad in the trade papers, consisting of Frawley's picture, edged in black, and three words: "Buenas noches, amigo!".
In 1912, he was the first person to sing the classic, 'My Melancholy Baby.' He was appearing at the Mozart Cafe in Denver, Colorado. He happened to visit a pub on Curtis Street, where he knew the proprietor. Knowing Bill was looking for a new song for his act, the proprietor directed him to the pub's back room, where George Norton and Ernie Burnett were in the process of composing 'My Melancholy Baby.' He introduced the song that very night at the Mozart Cafe. In the audience that night was writer Damon Runyan, well-known for his drinking. After he introduced the song, Runyan, drunken and maudlin, called out 'Get Frawley to sing 'Melancholy Baby'!' repeatedly throughout the rest of the evening. Bill sang many encores. The comedy staple of a drunk requesting 'My Melancholy Baby' actually has a basis in fact!.
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Television Hall of Fame

William Frawley


Ceremony # 21
Television Hall of Fame
Also in the Television Hall of Fame

David Susskind


Ceremony # 5
Television Hall of Fame

Bob Hope


Ceremony # 4
Television Hall of Fame
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