Frankie Darro

Date of Birth: 22nd December 1917
Details of Death: 25th December 1976
Country of Birth: USA

Biography

Coming from a showbusiness family, Darro started out in films early - the first film in which he starred was released barely two weeks after Darro's sixth birthday. He was incredibly prolific, and by 1930 he had starred in dozens of westerns and other pictures. He was always an enchanting young actor, with an attractively feral quality and a certain 'seen-it-all' demeanour. Darro adapted himself to the coming of talking pictures with ease, outclassing his older co-stars in his first speaking roles. Indeed, perhaps his finest roles came in the early 30s, in movies such as "The Mayor of Hell" (1933), "Wild Boys of the Road" (1933), "No Greater Glory" (1934) and "Little Men" (1934). In later life, Darro himself considered the pre-Code "Wild Boys of the Road" (from which the Profile picture on this page is taken) to have been his best film. Darro's diminutive stature and boyish looks allowed him to continue to play teenagers when he was well into his twenties. In fact, he continued to act into the 1970s. He was also the (uncredited) operator inside the Robby the Robot walking screen prop in the classic 1956 sci-fi movie "Forbidden Planet". One of the true Greats of the cinema of the 20s and 30s, the filmography on this page represents only a sample of his film work.

Notes

• Read John Gloske's biography, "Tough Kid: The Life and Films of Frankie Darro", for more information.