Fred Toones facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Fred Toones
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Toones in Black Gold (1936)
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| Born | January 5, 1906 North Carolina, U.S.
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| Died | February 13, 1962 (aged 56) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Other names | Snowflake |
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| Years active | 1928–1951 |
Fred "Snowflake" Toones (born January 5, 1906 – died February 13, 1962) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his friendly, high-pitched voice and appearing in over 200 films! He often played characters who were helpful workers, like porters or shoeshine men.
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Fred Toones' Acting Career
Fred Toones acted in more than 200 films between 1928 and 1951. That's a lot of movies in 23 years! He often played a kind, middle-aged man with a unique, high-pitched voice. People knew him best by his nickname, "Snowflake." He even used "Snowflake" as his acting name in many films, and it was often the name of his character too.
Snowflake appeared in many different types of movies. He was in action films like Hawk of the Wilderness (1938) and Daredevils of the Red Circle (1939). He also acted in "B" westerns, which were popular cowboy movies, such as The Lawless Nineties (1936) with John Wayne.
Famous Film Appearances
Fred Toones was also in short comedy films with famous groups like The Three Stooges. He appeared with them in Woman Haters (1934) and Sock-a-Bye Baby (1942). He even had a small part in the classic Laurel and Hardy movie Way Out West (1937).
He was a familiar face in four comedies directed by Preston Sturges: 20th Century (1934), Remember the Night (1940), Christmas in July (1940), and The Palm Beach Story (1942).
Playing Many Roles
Toones often played characters who worked in service jobs. He was a porter (someone who helps travelers) in over 50 films! He also played stable grooms, janitors, elevator operators, valets, cooks, bellhops, doormen, butlers, and bartenders.
He played a shoeshine man in at least six movies. The film director William Witney even said that Fred Toones actually ran the shoeshine stand at Republic Studios, where many movies were made!
Because he often played smaller, funny roles, his name wasn't always shown in the movie credits. Out of 210 films he was in, he was credited in 73 of them.
Fred Toones passed away on February 13, 1962, in Los Angeles, California.
Partial Filmography
- Ladies' Night in a Turkish Bath (1928) (uncredited)
- Shanghaied Love (1931)
- Mark of the Spur (1932)
- The Arm of the Law (1932)
- Police Court (1932)
- Single-Handed Sanders (1932)
- The County Fair (1932)
- I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932) (uncredited)
- Out of Singapore (1932)
- Human Targets (1932)
- Before Midnight (1933)
- Central Airport (1933) (uncredited)
- Golddiggers of 1933 (1933) (uncredited)
- Palooka (1934)
- Woman Haters (1934; first Three Stooges short) (uncredited)
- Twentieth Century (1934) (uncredited)
- Murder in the Private Car (1934)
- Valley of Wanted Men (1935)
- Speed Limited (1935)
- Frontier Justice (1935)
- Come and Get It (1936)
- Hell-Ship Morgan (1936)
- The Lawless Nineties (1936)
- Desert Justice (1936)
- Hair-Trigger Casey (1936)
- The Lonely Trail (1936)
- Oh, Susanna! (1936)
- Racing Blood (1936)
- Born to Fight (1936)
- A Star Is Born (1937) (uncredited)
- Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge (1937)
- Range Defenders (1937)
- Under the Big Top (1938)
- Hawk of the Wilderness (1938 serial)
- Dodge City (1939) (uncredited)
- Daredevils of the Red Circle (1939 serial)
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) (uncredited)
- Remember the Night (1940)
- Christmas in July (1940)
- The Biscuit Eater (1940)
- The Great American Broadcast (1941) (uncredited)
- The Great Man's Lady (1942)
- Give Out, Sisters (1942)
- The Palm Beach Story (1942)
- Haunted Ranch (1943)
- Land of Hunted Men (1943)
- The Lost Weekend (1945) (uncredited)
- Fool's Gold (1947)
- Bells of San Angelo (1947)
See also
- Willie Best (billed in five films as "Sleep 'n' Eat")
- Stepin Fetchit
- Mantan Moreland
