Francis X. Bushman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Francis X. Bushman
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Bushman in 1912
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| Born |
Francis Xavier Bushman
January 10, 1883 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
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| Died | August 23, 1966 (aged 83) |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California |
| Occupation | Actor, director, writer |
| Years active | 1911–1966 |
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) |
| Spouse(s) |
Josephine Fladine Duval
(m. 1902; div. 1918)Beverly Bayne
(m. 1918; div. 1925)Norma Emily Atkin
(m. 1932; died 1956)Iva Millicent Richardson
(m. 1956) |
Francis Xavier Bushman (born January 10, 1883 – died August 23, 1966) was a famous American actor and director. He became a big star in 1911 with his first silent film, His Friend's Wife. People loved his good looks, and he quickly became one of the biggest movie stars of the 1910s and early 1920s. He was especially popular with female fans.
Like many actors of his time, Francis Bushman started his career on stage. He was performing at Broncho Billy Anderson's Essanay Studios in Chicago. There, people noticed his strong, athletic build. He acted in almost 200 films, with more than 175 before 1920. In 1911 alone, his first year, he appeared in 17 movies! He also worked for Vitagraph studio before joining Metro in 1915.
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Life and Career of Francis X. Bushman
Francis Bushman was born in Baltimore, Maryland. When he was young, he joined the Maryland Athletic Club. He started a bodybuilding program that helped him get his famous strong physique. He looked up to Eugen Sandow, a famous bodybuilder, for inspiration.
In 1902, he married Josephine Fladine Duval. By the time he started his film career, they had five children.
Becoming a Silent Film Star
After acting in plays, Bushman was hired by Essanay Studios in Chicago in 1911. This was the start of his amazing film career and his rise to fame. For the next five years, he was often the main actor in over a hundred silent films for the studio.
In 1918, he married his co-star, Beverly Bayne. They later had a son together. Francis Bushman was married four times during his life.
In 1919 and 1920, Bushman and Beverly Bayne starred together in a play called The Master Thief. This play was very successful and toured all over the country.
Playing Messala in Ben-Hur
Francis Bushman hired Harry Reichenbach as his agent. When Bushman wanted to star in the 1925 film, Ben-Hur, Reichenbach came up with a clever plan. He took Bushman to meet studio executives. As they walked, Reichenbach secretly dropped pennies from his pocket onto the street. Many people followed them, picking up the coins. This made it look like a huge crowd was following Bushman, making him seem very popular to the studio bosses.
Because of this, Bushman was cast as Messala, the villain in Ben-Hur. He was worried that playing a bad guy might hurt his career. So, he asked William S. Hart, who had played the role on stage, for advice. Hart told him, "Take it! It's the best part in the play!"
Bushman was very skilled at driving a team of horses and a chariot. This was important because the chariot race scene in Ben-Hur was very dangerous. When Ben-Hur was remade in 1959, Charlton Heston had to learn how to drive a chariot. Heston joked, "The only man in Hollywood who can drive a chariot is Francis X. Bushman—and he's too old!"
At the height of his career, Francis Bushman was called "The Handsomest Man in the World." He was also known as "the King of Photoplay" or "the King of Movies." These titles later became more famous for Clark Gable.
Later Career in Radio and Television
Francis Bushman earned a lot of money during his film career. He even donated the land where Sid Grauman built his famous Chinese Theater. However, he lost his money in the Wall Street Crash of 1929. After this, his career as a movie star slowed down.
Later, Bushman became known on the CBS Radio network. He starred in a long-running radio show called Those We Love from 1938 to 1945. In this show, he played John Marshall.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Bushman made many guest appearances on American television. On February 6, 1958, he and his wife, Iva Millicent Richardson, appeared on the quiz show You Bet Your Life with Groucho Marx. They won $1,000 by answering geography questions correctly. He also appeared on popular TV shows like Burns and Allen, Peter Gunn, Make Room for Daddy, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Perry Mason, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, and Dr. Kildare.
Bushman's last acting role was in 1966. He appeared in a two-part episode of the TV show Batman. He played a wealthy collector of silent films.
Francis X. Bushman is mentioned several times in the first season of The Beverly Hillbillies. A character named Pearl Bodine often talks about him. In one episode, Pearl hopes to meet him when she visits Los Angeles.
Francis X. Bushman passed away from a heart attack at his home in Pacific Palisades, California, on August 23, 1966. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.
Film and Television Roles
Francis X. Bushman appeared in nearly 200 films during his career. You can see a full list of his movies here: Francis X. Bushman filmography.
He also had many roles on television, especially later in his life. Some of his TV appearances included:
- The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse (1954)
- Schlitz Playhouse (1954)
- The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (1958)
- The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1960)
- Perry Mason (1960-1964)
- Dr. Kildare (1965)
- Batman (1966)
- Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1966)
Legacy and Family
Francis Bushman's son, Ralph Everly Bushman (1903–1978), also became an actor. He was tall and handsome, appearing in over 40 films from the 1920s to the 1940s. He often played rich characters or tough gangsters. He was sometimes known as "Francis X. Bushman Jr."
His granddaughter, Barbara Bushman Quine, married actor Harry Morgan. His grandson, Pat Conway (1931–1981), was also an actor. Pat starred in the ABC western TV series Tombstone Territory.
For his important work in the film industry, Francis X. Bushman received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960. His star is located at 1651 Vine Street.
See also
In Spanish: Francis X. Bushman para niños
