Frankie Darro
| Frankie Darro | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Frank Johnson, Jr. December 22, 1917 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | December 25, 1976 (aged 59) Huntington Beach, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Resting place | Ashes scattered in the Pacific Ocean |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1924–1976 |
| Notable work | Voice of Romeo "Lampwick" in Disney's Pinocchio (1940) Eddie Smith in Wild Boys of the Road (1933) |
| Spouse(s) | Aloha Wray (divorced) Betty Marie (1943–51; divorced) Dorothy Carroll (1951-76; his death) |
| Children | Darlene Ada Darro (b. 1946) |
| Parent(s) | The Flying Johnsons |
Frankie Darro (born Frank Johnson, Jr. December 22, 1917 – December 25, 1976) was an American actor and later in his career a stuntman. He began his career as a child actor in silent films, progressed to lead roles and co-starring roles in adventure, western, dramatic, and comedy films, and later became a character actor and voice-over artist. He is known for his role as Lampwick, the unlucky boy turned into a donkey in Walt Disney's 2nd animated feature, Pinocchio, which was originally released in February 1940.
Frankie Darro was born on Saturday, December 22, 1917 in Chicago, Illinois as Frank Johnson, Jr. His parents, Frank Johnson, Sr. and his wife Ada were known as The Flying Johnsons, a flying circus act with the Sells Floto Circus; it was a profession that his father attempted to train him in, and he cured Frankie's fear of heights by having him walk on a length of wire, and then gradually raised the height of it until his son had mastered the trick.
In 1922, while the circus was in California, his parents divorced, and their circus act ended along with their marriage. The growing film industry, however, found a use for a small child who could do his own stunts and the young Johnson, renamed "Frankie Darro", appeared in his first film at the age of six.
As a child actor, he appeared in many silent adventure, western, and serial pictures of the 1920s, becoming a very prolific actor as an adolescent. His convincing delivery of dialogue and his obvious comfort before the cameras kept him steadily employed. His most important role during the 1930s was the lead actor in Wild Boys of the Road, director William Wellman's indictment of aimless teens vagabonding across America during the Depression; he appeared in Mervyn LeRoy's Three on a Match in 1932, and was the principal character in the James Cagney feature The Mayor of Hell (1933). Darro remained popular in serials, and co-starred with Gene Autry in Autry's first starring role in the serial, The Phantom Empire.
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