Frank Morgan
"Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain," exclaimed beloved character actor Frank Morgan during a key moment in "The Wizard of Oz" (1939) and his beautifully conveyed expression of embarrassment and desperation perfectly exemplified the capacity he displayed in so much of his work. He first established himself on stage, making regular appearances on Broadway in such major productions as "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" (1926-27) and "The Band Wagon" (1931-32). Morgan was already featured in movies by that point, but really hit his stride in the 1930s, earning an Academy Award nomination for "The Affairs of Cellini" (1934) and distinguishing himself in notable pictures like "The Good Fairy" (1935) and "The Great Ziegfeld" (1936). His most famous screen credit, however, was the musical/fantasy classic "The Wizard of Oz" (1939), where he was wonderfully memorable in no less than five roles. He displayed excellent dramatic form in "The Shop Around the Corner" (1940) and "The Mortal Storm" (1940), and a second Oscar nomination followed for "Tortilla Flat" (1942). MGM was so pleased with the consistency of Morgan's vibrant and delightful performances that he was with the company from the early 1930s right up until his premature death in 1949. Specializing in characters that were usually a bit befuddled and flustered, but motivated by honorable intentions, Morgan endeared himself to audiences everywhere and remained one of Hollywood's most beloved supporting players long after his passing.
Photos
Frank Morgan
Filmography
Movies
Credit | |||||
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No Score Yet |
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Key to the City | Fire Chief Duggan (Character) | - | 1950 |
14% |
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Any Number Can Play | Jim Kurstyn (Character) | - | 1949 |
89% |
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The Stratton Story | Barney Wile (Character) | - | 1949 |
No Score Yet |
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The Great Sinner | Aristide Pitard (Character) | - | 1949 |
75% |
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The Three Musketeers | King Louis XIII (Character) | - | 1948 |
71% |
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Summer Holiday | Uncle Sid (Character) | - | 1948 |
No Score Yet |
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Green Dolphin Street | Dr. Edmond Ozanne (Character) | - | 1947 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Great Morgan | Frank Morgan (Character) | - | 1946 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Lady Luck | William Audrey (Character) | - | 1946 |
No Score Yet |
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Courage of Lassie | Harry MacBain (Character) | - | 1946 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Cockeyed Miracle | Sam Griggs (Character) | - | 1946 |
80% |
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Yolanda and the Thief | Victor Budlow Trout (Character) | - | 1945 |
80% |
|
The White Cliffs of Dover | Hiram Porter Dunn (Character) | - | 1944 |
No Score Yet |
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Casanova Brown | Mr. Ferris (Character) | - | 1944 |
100% |
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The Human Comedy | Willie Grogan (Character) | - | 1943 |
No Score Yet |
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A Stranger in Town | John Josephus Grant (Character) | - | 1943 |
No Score Yet |
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White Cargo | The Doctor (Character) | - | 1942 |
No Score Yet |
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Tortilla Flat | The Pirate (Character) | - | 1942 |
No Score Yet |
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Honky Tonk | Judge Cotton (Character) | - | 1941 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Vanishing Virginian | Robert Yancey (Character) | - | 1941 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Washington Melodrama | Calvin Claymore (Character) | - | 1941 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Wild Man of Borneo | J. Daniel `'Dan'` Thompson (Character) | - | 1941 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Hullabaloo | Frankie Merriweather (Character) | - | 1940 |
100% |
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The Mortal Storm | Prof. Viktor Roth (Character) | - | 1940 |
No Score Yet |
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Boom Town | Luther Aldrich (Character) | - | 1940 |
80% |
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Broadway Melody of 1940 | Bob Casey (Character) | - | 1940 |
99% |
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The Shop Around the Corner | Hugo Matuschek (Character) | - | 1940 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Ghost Comes Home | Vernon `'Vern'` Adams (Character) | - | 1940 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Keeping Company | Harry C. Thomas (Character) | - | 1940 |
No Score Yet |
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Balalaika | Ivan Danchenoff (Character) | - | 1939 |
98% |
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The Wizard of Oz |
Professor Marvel/ |
$5.5M | 1939 |
No Score Yet |
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Broadway Serenade | Cornelius Collier, Jr. (Character) | - | 1939 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Henry Goes Arizona | Henry Conroy (Character) | - | 1939 |
No Score Yet |
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Sweethearts | Felix Lehman (Character) | - | 1938 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Crowd Roars | Brian McCoy (Character) | - | 1938 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Paradise for Three | Rudolph Tobler (Character) | - | 1938 |
No Score Yet |
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Rosalie | King Fredrick Romanikov (Character) | - | 1937 |
No Score Yet |
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Saratoga | Jesse Kiffmeyer (Character) | - | 1937 |
No Score Yet |
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The Last of Mrs. Cheyney | Lord Francis Kelton (Character) | - | 1937 |
No Score Yet |
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The Emperor's Candlesticks | Colonel Baron Suroff (Character) | - | 1937 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Beg, Borrow or Steal | Ingraham Steward (Character) | - | 1937 |
No Score Yet |
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Piccadilly Jim |
James Crocker, Sr./ |
- | 1936 |
72% |
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The Great Ziegfeld | Jack Billings (Character) | - | 1936 |
No Score Yet |
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Dimples | Prof. Eustace Appleby (Character) | - | 1936 |
No Score Yet |
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Dancing Pirate | Mayor Don Emilio Perena (Character) | - | 1936 |
No Score Yet |
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Trouble for Two | Col. Geraldine (Character) | - | 1936 |
56% |
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Naughty Marietta | Governor d'Annard (Character) | - | 1935 |
88% |
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The Good Fairy | Konrad (Character) | - | 1935 |
40% |
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I Live My Life | G.P. Bentley (Character) | - | 1935 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Escapade | Karl (Character) | - | 1935 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | By Your Leave | Henry Smith (Character) | - | 1935 |
No Score Yet |
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Enchanted April | Mellersh Wilkins (Character) | - | 1935 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Perfect Gentleman | Major Horatio Chatteris (Character) | - | 1935 |
80% |
|
The Affairs of Cellini | Alessandro (Character) | - | 1934 |
No Score Yet |
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The Cat and the Fiddle | Daudet (Character) | - | 1934 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | A Lost Lady | Forrester (Character) | - | 1934 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Success at Any Price | Raymond Merritt (Character) | - | 1934 |
88% |
|
Hallelujah, I'm a Bum | Mayor John Hastings (Character) | - | 1933 |
90% |
|
Bombshell | Pops Burns (Character) | - | 1933 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Billion Dollar Scandal | John Dudley Masterson (Character) | - | 1933 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Reunion in Vienna | Dr. Anton Krug (Character) | - | 1933 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Nuisance | Dr. Buchanan Prescott (Character) | - | 1933 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Broadway to Hollywood | Ted Hackett (Character) | - | 1933 |
No Score Yet |
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When Ladies Meet | Rogers Woodruf (Character) | - | 1933 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Secrets of the French Police | François St. Cyr (Character) | - | 1932 |
No Score Yet |
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Laughter | C. Mortimer Gibson (Character) | - | 1930 |
No Score Yet |
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Fast and Loose | Bronson Lenox (Character) | - | 1930 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Manhandled | Arno Riccardi (Character) | - | 1924 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Golden Shower | Lester (Character) | - | 1919 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | The Gray Towers Mystery | Billy Durland (Character) | - | 1919 |