| Frankie Thomas | |
| Birth Name: | Frank Marion Thomas Jr. |
| Birth Date: | April 9, 1921 |
| Birth Place: | New York City, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Sherman Oaks, California, U.S. |
| Other Names: | Frankie Thomas Jr. Frank M. Thomas Jr. |
| Years Active: | 1932–1955 |
Frank Marion Thomas Jr. (April 9, 1921 - May 11, 2006), was an American actor, author and bridge-strategy expert who played both lead and supporting roles on Broadway, in films, in post-World War II radio, and in early television. He was best known for his starring role in Tom Corbett, Space Cadet.[1] [2]
Thomas was born in New York City to actors Frank M. Thomas and Mona Bruns. His uncle, Calvin Thomas, was also an actor.[3]
Thomas portrayed a Kiowan youth in the Broadway play Carry Nation (1932). He appeared in six other Broadway plays between 1932 and 1936, including Little Ol' Boy, Thunder on the Left, Wednesday's Child, The First Legion, Remember the Day, and Seen But Not Heard.[4]
Thomas's last "A" film was Boys' Town (1938) with Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney. Thomas was Freddy Fuller, Boys' Town's mayor, and was not asked to appear in the sequel, Men of Boys' Town (1941). He then appeared in a string of "B" films such as Little Tough Guys in Society and Nancy Drew... Detective (both 1938), Nancy Drew... Reporter, Code of the Streets, Nancy Drew… Trouble Shooter, The Angels Wash Their Faces, Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase, On Dress Parade and Invisible Stripes (all 1939).
In the summer of 1940, Thomas acted with the Guy Palmerton Players.[5]
In 1941 he had small parts in Flying Cadets and One Foot in Heaven. His last film roles were small roles in Always in My Heart and The Major and the Minor (1942), where he played a military school cadet who flirted with Ginger Rogers' character.
Thomas died in 2006 at age 85 at a Sherman Oaks, California, hospital of respiratory failure, following a stroke. At his request, he was buried in his Space Cadet uniform. His wife, Virginia, had preceded him in death in 1997.[6]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1934 | Wednesday's Child | Bobby Phillips | |
| 1935 | A Dog of Flanders | Nello Daas | |
| 1937 | Tim Tyler's Luck | Tim Tyler | Serial |
| 1938 | Boys' Town | Freddie Fuller | |
| Little Tough Guys in Society | Danny | ||
| 1939 | Nancy Drew... Detective | Ted Nickerson | |
| Nancy Drew... Reporter | |||
| Code of the Streets | Bob Lewis | ||
| Nancy Drew… Trouble Shooter | Ted Nickerson | ||
| The Angels Wash Their Faces | Gabe Ryan | ||
| Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase | Ted Nickerson | ||
| On Dress Parade | Cadet Lt. Murphy | ||
| Invisible Stripes | Tommy | ||
| 1941 | One Foot in Heaven | Hartzell Spence | |
| Flying Cadets | Newton R. Adams / Ames | ||
| 1942 | Always in My Heart | Martin Scott | |
| The Major and the Minor | Cadet Osborne |