Donald Gallaher (June 25, 1895 – August 14, 1961) was an American actor who appeared in 25 films between 1903 and 1949. He also directed five films, including '' Temple Tower'' (1930). His name is sometimes misspelled "Gallagher".

Early years

Gallaher was born in

Quincy, Illinois Quincy ( ), known as Illinois's "Gem City", is a city in and the county seat of Adams County, Illinois, United States, located on the Mississippi River. The 2020 census counted a population of 39,463 in the city itself, down from 40,633 in 2010. ...

. After moving to New York City as a child with his mother, he began acting in productions such as ''A Royal Family''. He had 10 roles in plays before he reached age 12.

Career

When he was four years old, Gallaher debuted as an actor portraying Rip in

Sol Smith Russell Solomon Smith Russell (1848–1902) was a 19th-century United States, American comedic stage actor who began performing as a boy during the American Civil War. Early life Russell was born at Brunswick, Missouri, the eldest of two sons and a dau ...

's production of ''Poor Relations''. When he was 15, he ceased acting for two years and pitched in semi-professional baseball on Long Island. He returned to the stage at age 17. He appeared in the silent film '' The Great Train Robbery'' (1903), and a bit part in the 23-chapter serial ''

The Million Dollar Mystery ''The Million Dollar Mystery'' is a 23-chapter film serial released in 1914, directed by Howell Hansel, and starring Florence La Badie and James Cruze. It is presumed lost. Plot A prologue for ''The Million Dollar Mystery'' introduced the cha ...

'' (1914). He co-starred with

Louis Wolheim Louis Robert Wolheim (March 28, 1880 – February 18, 1931) was an American actor, of both stage and screen, whose rough physical appearance relegated him to roles mostly of thugs or villains in the movies, but whose talent allowed him to fl ...

and Una Merkel in the two-reeler ''

Love's Old Sweet Song "Love's Old Sweet Song" is a Victorian parlour song published in 1884 by composer James Lynam Molloy and lyricist Graham Clifton Bingham. The first line of the chorus is "Just a song at twilight", and its title is sometimes misidentified as suc ...

'' (1923) filmed in

Lee De Forest Lee de Forest (August 26, 1873 – June 30, 1961) was an American inventor and a fundamentally important early pioneer in electronics. He invented the first electronic device for controlling current flow; the three-element " Audion" triode v ...

Phonofilm Phonofilm is an optical sound-on-film system developed by inventors Lee de Forest and Theodore Case in the early 1920s. Introduction In 1919 and 1920, Lee De Forest, inventor of the audion tube, filed his first patents on a sound-on-film proce ...

sound-on-film process. Later in life, he produced

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

plays and directed films, including '' Temple Tower'' (1930), ''June First'' (1931), and ''The Hot Spot'' (1931). In 1949, using the name Don Gallagher, he served as narrator of the '' ABC Television Players'', a short-lived dramatic anthology series broadcast from Chicago.

Personal life

On April 13, 1917, Gallaher married actress Beatrice Noyes. They had a son, Donald Gallaher Jr., and divorced on April 1, 1921. On December 1, 1923, Gallaher married Adele Wormser in Boston. The wedding came shortly after his divorce from Grace Martin Hannon became final.

Selected filmography

* '' The Great Train Robbery'' (1903) * '' Eye for Eye'' (1918) * ''

'' (1923) * ''

Married in Hollywood ''Married in Hollywood'' (1929) is an American musical film. The only footage known to survive is the final reel, filmed in Multicolor, held by the UCLA Film and Television Archive. The film is based on two Oscar Straus operettas. Plot A showg ...

'' (1929) * ''

Nix on Dames Nix or NIX may refer to: Places * Nix, Alabama, an unincorporated community, United States * Nix, Texas, a ghost town in southwestern Lampasas County, Texas, United States * Nix (moon), a moon of Pluto People * Nix (surname), listing people wit ...

'' (1929) (director) * ''

Pleasure Crazed ''Pleasure Crazed'' is a 1929 American drama film directed by Donald Gallaher and Charles Klein and written by Douglas Z. Doty and Clare Kummer. The film stars Marguerite Churchill, Kenneth MacKenna, Dorothy Burgess, Campbell Gullan, Douglas Gi ...

'' (1929) * '' Temple Tower'' (1930) (director) * ''

Six-Gun Trail ''Six-Gun Trail'' is a 1938 American Western film directed by Sam Newfield.Engald, Jerry., 2008. Reel Cowboys of the Santa Susanas. Echo Press. pg 143 Cast *Tim McCoy as Capt. William 'Lightning Bill' Carson *Nora Lane as Midge *Ben Corbett as ...

'' (1938) * '' Outlaws' Paradise'' (1939) * '' The Magnificent Fraud'' (1939) * '' Code of the Fearless'' (1939)

References

External links

* 1895 births 1961 deaths 20th-century American male actors Actors from Quincy, Illinois American male child actors American male silent film actors Film directors from Illinois Male actors from Illinois Male actors from New York City Broadway theatre producers {{US-film-director-1890s-stub