Nicholas Benton "Ben" Alexander III (June 27, 1911 – July 5, 1969) was an American motion picture actor, who started out as a

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage or in movies or television. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associated t ...

in 1916. He is best remembered for his role as Officer Frank Smith in the ''Dragnet'' franchise.

Life and career

Ben Alexander was born in Goldfield, Nevada, and raised in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. Alexander made his screen debut at age of five in ''Every Pearl a Tear''. He went on to portray

Lillian Gish Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893February 27, 1993) was an American actress, director, and screenwriter. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was called the "First Lady of American Cinema" ...

's young brother in

D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the na ...

's '' Hearts of the World''. After a number of silent films, he retired from screen work, but came back for the

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

classic, ''

All Quiet on the Western Front ''All Quiet on the Western Front'' (german: Im Westen nichts Neues, lit=Nothing New in the West) is a novel by Erich Maria Remarque, a German veteran of World War I. The book describes the German soldiers' extreme physical and mental trauma d ...

'' (1930), in which Alexander received good notices as an adult actor as "Kemmerick", the tragic amputation victim. He played lead and second lead roles in many low-budget films throughout the 1930s. He found a new career as a successful

radio announcer An announcer is a voice artist who relays information to the audience of a broadcast media programme or live event. Television and other media Some announcers work in television production, radio or filmmaking, usually providing narration ...

in the late 1940s, including a stint on '' The Martin and Lewis Show''. Alexander also acted on radio, playing Philip West in the 1939–40 soap opera ''Brenthouse'' on the

Blue Network The Blue Network (previously known as the NBC Blue Network) was the on-air name of a now defunct American radio network, which broadcast from 1927 through 1945. Beginning as one of the two radio networks owned by the National Broadcasting Com ...

. In 1952,

Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, director, and screenwriter, who is most famous for his role as Sgt. Joe Friday in the ''Dragnet'' franchise, which he created. He was a ...

, actor-producer-director of '' Dragnet'', needed a replacement for

Barton Yarborough William Barton Yarborough (October 2, 1900 – December 19, 1951) was an American actor who worked extensively in radio drama, primarily on the NBC Radio Network. He is famous for his roles in the Carlton E. Morse productions '' I Love a M ...

, who had played Detective Romero opposite Webb's Sgt. Joe Friday. Webb selected Alexander, but had to wait until he was available. A few actors filled in as Friday's partners until Alexander appeared in the newly created role of Officer Frank Smith, first in the radio series, then reprised the role in film and on television. The popular series ran until 1959. When Webb revived it in 1966, he wanted Alexander to rejoin him, but Alexander had just signed to play the role of Sgt. Dan Briggs on the weekly ABC series ''

Felony Squad ''The Felony Squad'' is a half-hour television crime drama originally broadcast on the ABC network from September 12, 1966, to January 31, 1969, a span encompassing seventy-three episodes. Overview The program starred Howard Duff (as Sergeant S ...

''. In 1969, Alexander was found dead of heart attack in his

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 ...

home when his wife and children returned from a camping trip. He was cremated. For his contribution to the entertainment industry, Ben Alexander was awarded three stars on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...

for television, radio, and movies.

Other

Alexander owned and operated the Ben Alexander Ford car dealership in the Highland Park neighborhood of northeast Los Angeles, from around 1953 until his death in 1969, and a San Francisco branch was formed in 1959. In the mid-1950s, Ben Alexander's Dream House Motel was located at 1815 North Cahuenga Blvd. in Hollywood. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Alexander ran a talent show for young people out of

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. ''The Ben Alexander Talent Show'' was broadcast on Oakland's

KTVU KTVU (channel 2) is a television station licensed to Oakland, California, United States, serving as the San Francisco Bay Area's Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network outlet. It is owned-and-operated station, owned and operated by the network's ...

TV, a local station in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

. In 1960, he was a semi-regular panelist on

Ernie Kovacs Ernest Edward Kovacs (January 23, 1919 – January 13, 1962) was a Hungarian-American comedian, actor, and writer. Kovacs's visually experimental and often spontaneous comedic style influenced numerous television comedy programs for years afte ...

' offbeat game show, '' Take a Good Look'', as well as hosting his own daytime audience-participation show, '' About Faces'', both airing on ABC.

Filmography

* '' Each Pearl a Tear'' (1916) * ''

The Little American ''The Little American'' is a 1917 American silent film, silent romance film, romantic war film, war drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille. The film stars Mary Pickford (who also served as producer) as an American woman who is in love with bot ...

'' (1917) - Bobby Moore * ''

What Money Can't Buy ''What Money Can't Buy'' is a 1917 American drama silent film directed by Lou Tellegen and starring Jack Pickford, Louise Huff, Theodore Roberts, Hobart Bosworth, Raymond Hatton and James Cruze. It was written by George Broadhurst and Beulah Mari ...

'' (1918) - Child * '' Hearts of the World'' (1918) - The Boy's Littlest Brother * ''

The Lady of the Dugout ''The Lady of the Dugout'' is a 1918 American silent Western film directed by W.S. Van Dyke and starring Al J. Jennings, Frank Jennings and Corinne Grant.Connelly, p. 371. Cast * Al J. Jennings as Al Jennings * Frank Jennings as Frank Jen ...

'' (1918) - The Lady's Son * ''The Heart of Rachael'' (1918) - Jim * ''The One Woman'' (1918) - Boy * ''Little Orphant Annie'' (1918) - Orphan * '' The Turn in the Road'' (1919) - Bob * '' The White Heather'' (1919) - Donald Cameron * '' Josselyn's Wife'' (1919) - Tommy Josselyn * ''The Hushed Hour'' (1919) - Gondy * ''The Mayor of Filbert'' (1919) - Carroll * ''Tangled Threads'' (1919) - 'Sonny Boy' Wayne * '' The Better Wife'' (1919) - Little Dick * ''The Triflers'' (1920) - Rupert Holbrook * '' The Family Honor'' (1920) - Little Ben Tucker * ''

The Notorious Mrs. Sands ''The Notorious Mrs. Sands'' is a lost 1920 American silent drama film directed by Christy Cabanne and produced by and starring Bessie Barriscale. Plot As described in a film magazine, Mary Ware (Barriscale) and Ronald Cliffe (Stanley) become e ...

'' (1920) - Child * ''

Through Eyes of Men ''Through Eyes of Men'', also occasionally stylized as ''Thru Eyes of Men'', is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Charles A. Taylor and starring Frank Mayo, Prudence Lyle, and George Gebhardt. It was released in June 1920. Cast lis ...

'' (1920) - Little Billy * '' Blue Streak McCoy'' (1920) * '' The Heart Line'' (1921) - The Child * '' In the Name of the Law'' (1922) - Harry O'Hara - age 9, prologue * ''Penrod and Sam'' (1923) - Penrod Schofield * ''The Yankee Spirit'' (1923, Short) * '' Jealous Husbands'' (1923) - Bobbie (later called Spud) * '' Boy of Mine'' (1923) - Bill Latimer * ''Barnum Junior'' (1924, Short) * ''Junior Partner'' (1924, Short) * '' A Self-Made Failure'' (1924) - Sonny * ''Dirty Hand'' (1924, Short) * ''

Flaming Love ''Flaming Love'', also known as ''Frivolous Sal'', is a 1925 American silent Western film directed by Victor Schertzinger for First National Pictures. The film involves a female saloon owner in the Old West, her weak-willed new actor husband, a ...

'' (1925) - Benny Keene * '' Pampered Youth'' (1925) - George Minafer, as a child * ''Wildcat Willie'' (1925, Short) * ''

The Shining Adventure ''The Shining Adventure'' is a 1925 American silent drama film directed by Hugo Ballin and starring Percy Marmont, Mabel Ballin Mabel Ballin (née Croft; January 1, 1885 – July 24, 1958), was an American motion-picture actress of the silen ...

'' (1925) - Benny * '' The Highbinders'' (1926) - Roy Marshall * ''Scotty of the Scouts'' (1926) - Scotty Smith * ''Fighting for Fame'' (1927) - Danny Ryan * ''Two to One'' (1927) * '' The Divine Lady'' (1929) - Young Lieutenant (uncredited) * ''The Lunkhead'' (1929, Short) - Ben - Billy's Chum * ''

'' (1930) - Franz Kemmerich * '' Many a Slip'' (1931) - Ted Coster * '' It's a Wise Child'' (1931) - Bill Stanton * '' Are These Our Children?'' (1931) - Nicholas 'Nick' Crosby * ''

Suicide Fleet ''Suicide Fleet'' is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by Albert S. Rogell, written by Lew Lipton and F. McGrew Willis, and starring William Boyd, Robert Armstrong, James Gleason, and Ginger Rogers. It was released on November 20, 1 ...

'' (1931) - Kid * ''A Wise Child'' (1931) * ''Mystery Ship'' (1931) * ''

High Pressure In science and engineering the study of high pressure examines its effects on materials and the design and construction of devices, such as a diamond anvil cell, which can create high pressure. By ''high pressure'' is usually meant pressures of th ...

'' (1932) - Geoffrey Weston * ''

The Wet Parade ''The Wet Parade'' is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Robert Young, Myrna Loy, Walter Huston, Lewis Stone and Jimmy Durante. It is based on the 1931 novel by Upton Sinclair. The film shows how two fa ...

'' (1932) - Evelyn's Friend (uncredited) * '' Tom Brown of Culver'' (1932) - Cpl. John Clarke * '' The Vanishing Frontier'' (1932) - Lucien Winfield * ''Alias the Professor'' (1933, Short) * '' Mister Mugg'' (1933, Short) * ''Roadhouse Queen'' (1933, Short) - Junior Knox * ''Daddy Knows Best'' (1933, Short) - Billy Todd * ''

What Price Innocence? ''What Price Innocence?'' is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film written and directed by, and co-starring, Willard Mack. Produced on a low budget for Columbia Pictures, it has been classed as an exploitation film and " sex hygiene film" because ...

'' (1933) - Tommy Harrow * '' This Day and Age'' (1933) - Morry Dover * '' Stage Mother'' (1933) - Francis Nolan * '' Once to Every Woman'' (1934) - Joe * '' The Most Precious Thing in Life'' (1934) - Gideon 'Gubby' Gerhart * '' The Life of Vergie Winters'' (1934) - Barry Preston * '' Flirtation'' (1934) - Dudley * '' Grand Old Girl'' (1935) - Tom Miller * '' Born to Gamble'' (1935) - Paul Mathews * ''

Reckless Roads ''Reckless Roads'' is a 1935 American drama film directed by Burt P. Lynwood and starring Judith Allen, Regis Toomey and Lloyd Hughes.Palmer p.462 Cast * Judith Allen as Edith Adams * Regis Toomey as Speed Demming * Lloyd Hughes as F ...

'' (1935) - Wade Adams * '' Annapolis Farewell'' (1935) - Adams * ''

Splendor Splendor or splendour (see spelling differences) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Splendor (game), a card-based board game published in 2014 by Marc André * ''Splendour'' (play), a 2000 play by Abi Morgan * '' Splendor: A Luxe Novel'', a ...

'' (1935) - Western Union Messenger (uncredited) * '' The Fire Trap'' (1935) - Bob Fender * ''

Hearts in Bondage ''Hearts in Bondage'' is a 1936 American black-and-white war drama film directed by Lew Ayres for Republic Pictures. Set during the American Civil War, the film depicts the Union Navy's deliberate sinking of , the Confederate States Navy's salva ...

'' (1936) - Eggleston * '' Red Lights Ahead'' (1936) - George Wallace * ''

Shall We Dance Shall We Dance may refer to: Films * ''Shall We Dance'' (1937 film), a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers musical * ''Shall We Dance?'' (1996 film), a Japanese film about ballroom dancing * ''Shall We Dance?'' (2004 film), an American remake of the ...

'' (1937) - Evans - a Bandleader (uncredited) * '' The Legion of Missing Men'' (1937) - Don Carter * ''

The Outer Gate ''The Outer Gate'' is a 1937 American film directed by actor/screenwriter Raymond Cannon. The screenplay concerns a man who organizes a revenge plot after being sent to prison for a crime he did not commit. Plot summary Bob Terry works for Joh ...

'' (1937) - Bob Terry * ''

Western Gold ''Western Gold'' is a 1937 American Western film directed by Howard Bretherton and written by Earle Snell and Forrest Barnes. The film stars Smith Ballew, Heather Angel, LeRoy Mason, Howard Hickman, Ben Alexander, Frank McGlynn, Sr. and Otis ...

'' (1937) - Bart * '' The Life of the Party'' (1937) - Orchestra Leader (uncredited) * '' The Spy Ring'' (1938) - Capt. Don Mayhew * ''Russian Dressing'' (1938, Short) - Band Leader Bill Farraday * ''

Mr. Doodle Kicks Off ''Mr. Doodle Kicks Off'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Leslie Goodwins and written by Bert Granet. The film stars Joe Penner, June Travis, Richard Lane, Ben Alexander and Billy Gilbert. The film was released on October 7, 1938, by R ...

'' (1938) - Larry Weldon * '' Convict's Code'' (1939) - Jeff Palmer * ''Buried Alive'' (1939) - Riley * ''The Leather Pushers'' (1940) - Dan Brown, Announcer * '' Criminals Within'' (1941) - Sgt. Paul, the Traitor * '' Dragnet'' (1954) - Officer Frank Smith * '' Man in the Shadow'' (1957) - Ab Begley

Television

* ''

The Joseph Cotten Show ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', also known as ''On Trial'' (1 episode, 1957) * '' The Ford Show, Starring Tennessee Ernie Ford'' (January 24, 1957) * '' Dragnet'' (regular, 1952–1959) - Officer Frank Smith * '' Take A Good Look'' (Semi-regular 1959–1960) - Himself / Panelist * '' About Faces'' (1960–1961) - Himself - Host * ''

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book '' Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939 ...

'' (1 episode, 1966) - Detective Beside Trash Can * ''

'' (Unknown episodes, 1966–1969) - Desk Sgt. Dan Briggs * '' Judd, for the Defense'' (1 episode, 1969)

Writer

* ''Dragnet'' (Co-writer, 6 episodes)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Ben American male film actors American male television actors 1911 births 1969 deaths American male child actors American male silent film actors American male radio actors Male actors from Nevada People from Goldfield, Nevada 20th-century American male actors