Frankie Mann (actress) explained

Frankie Mann
Other Names:Frances H. Johnson
Birth Name:Frances Hampton Mann
Birth Date:13 June 1892
Birth Place:Mill Hall, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Death Place:New York City, U.S.
Occupation:Actress
Spouse(S):Donald Hall (actor), Gardiner P. Johnson
Relatives:Alice Mann (sister)

Frances "Frankie" Mann (June 13, 1892[1] – June 23, 1969) was an American actress, who appeared in over forty silent films between 1913 and 1925.

Early life

Frances Hampton Mann was born in Mill Hall, Pennsylvania,[2] and raised in Massachusetts, the daughter of Robert Mann Jr. and Alice Eloise Mann. Her grandfather, Robert Mann Sr., founded an axe company, the Mann Edge Tool Company.[3] Her father, a financier, lost his fortune in the economic Panic of 1907, and died in 1910.[4] [5]

Career

Mann was an actress and appeared in over forty silent films made between 1913 and 1925, with various studios. She was often cast as a "vamp", or temptress character. "Time after time she turned to the camera to register a vampire's sneery smile, and believe me this was awful," reported one reviewer in 1916. "Once or twice would have been enough to have 'queered' her, but she did it all through the film."[6]

Among Mann's film credits were roles in The Battle of Shiloh (1913), Through Fire to Fortune (1914), The Wolf (1914), The House Next Door (1914),[7] The Road o' Strife (1915), The Sporting Duchess (1915), Anselo Lee (1915), The Climbers (1915),[8] The Great Ruby (1915),[9] The Shielding Shadow (1916), Her Surrender (1916),[10] The Sex Lure (1916),[11] The Girl Who Did Not Care (1917),[12] Fortune's Child (1919), The Root of Evil (1919), Fruits of Passion (1919), Trailed by Three (1920),[13] The Place of Honeymoons (1920), The Passionate Pilgrim (1921),[14] Shadows of the Sea (1922), Unconquered Woman (1922), John Smith (1922), On Time (1924),[15] The Fortieth Door (1924), and Barriers Burned Away (1925).[16] Mann also had a stage career, mainly in Philadelphia.

Personal life

Mann married British actor Donald Hall in 1915. She married Gardiner P. Johnson in the 1923, and had two children. She died in 1969, aged 77 years, in Florida.

Notes and References

  1. Many sources, such as IMDB, give July 3, 1892 as her birthdate. Her Social Security application (on Ancestry) gives June 13, 1892 instead.
  2. News: 1917-02-15 . Frankie Mann, Movie Star, Receives Fans at Strand . 7 . Altoona Tribune . 2022-04-12 . Newspapers.com.
  3. The Autobiography of Robert Mann (Lippincott 1897).
  4. October 14, 1916 . Frankie Mann, the New Ivan Vampire . The Moving Picture World . 30 . 252.
  5. February 12, 1916 . Frankie Mann is Impressive . Motography . 15 . 364 . Internet Archive.
  6. October 26, 1916 . Overacting and Impossible Plot Make Beauty Spots Useless . Wid's . 1056 . Internet Archive.
  7. September 5, 1914 . Lubin Films 'The House Next Door' Has Strong Theme . Motography . 12 . 325 . Internet Archive.
  8. News: 1915-08-12 . The Grand . 7 . Lancaster New Era . 2022-04-12 . Newspapers.com.
  9. September 18, 1915 . The Great Ruby . The Photo-Play Review . 17 . Internet Archive.
  10. October 7, 1916 . Her Surrender . Motography . 835–836 . Internet Archive.
  11. Book: De Grazia, Edward . Banned films : movies, censors, and the First Amendment . 1982 . New York : Bowker . Internet Archive . 978-0-8352-1509-1 . 191–192.
  12. News: 1917-05-11 . Unusual Theme in Gayety Film . 7 . The Muscatine Journal . 2022-04-12 . Newspapers.com.
  13. News: 1920-05-08 . Frankie Mann is Shoe Fan . 10 . Los Angeles Evening Post-Record . 2022-04-12 . Newspapers.com.
  14. News: 1921-05-28 . At the Strand . 9 . The Times-Tribune . 2022-04-12 . Newspapers.com.
  15. Book: Lentz, Harris M. . Science fiction, horror & fantasy film and television credits : over 10,000 actors, actresses, directors ... . 1983 . Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland . Internet Archive . 978-0-89950-071-3 . 1020.
  16. February 27, 1925 . Barriers Burned Away . Photoplay . 27 . 121 . Internet Archive.