LeRoy Franklin Mason (July 2, 1903 – October 13, 1947) was an American film actor who worked primarily in Westerns in both the silent and sound film eras. Mason was born in Larimore, North Dakota, on July 2, 1903.[1]

LeRoy Mason
Mason in Western Mail (1942)
Born
LeRoy Franklin Mason

(1903-07-02)July 2, 1903
DiedOctober 13, 1947(1947-10-13) (aged 44)
OccupationActor
Years active1924–1947
Spouse(s)
(m. 1928; div. 1936)
[citation needed]
Bo Ling (m. 1937–his death)

Career

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1920s

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Mason's first film was Hit and Run opposite Hoot Gibson (1924).[2] He was officially credited in Born to Battle (1926) opposite Tom Tyler and Jean Arthur.[2] In 1926, Mason starred in The Arizona Streak opposite Tom Tyler, Frankie Darro, and Ada Mae Vaughn.[2] Also in 1926, he starred in Lightning Hutch opposite Charles Hutchison and Edith Thornton.[2] Mason starred opposite Tom Tyler, Doris Hill, and Frankie Darro in Tom and His Pals (1926). He starred opposite William Fairbanks, Alice Calhoun, and Frank Rice in Flying High (1926).[3] He starred in Closed Gates (1928) opposite John Harron, Jane Novak, and Lucy Beaumont. Mason starred in Golden Shackles (1928) opposite Grant Withers and Priscilla Bonner. He starred in The Avenging Shadow (1928) opposite Margaret Morris. Mason starred in The Law's Lash (1928) opposite Robert Ellis and Mary Mayberry. He starred in Hit of the Show (1928), originally a silent film, opposite Joe E. Brown, Gertrude Olmstead, and William Bailey. Mason starred in Revenge (1928) Dolores del Río, James A. Marcus, and Rita Carewe.[4][5] He starred in The Viking (1928) opposite Pauline Starke and Donald Crisp.[6][7] Mason starred in Bride of the Desert (1929) opposite Alice Calhoun and Ethan Laidlaw. He starred in The Woman Who Was Forgotten (1930) opposite Belle Bennett and Jack Mower.[8]

1930s

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Mason starred opposite of Lon Chaney Jr. in The Last Frontier (1932).[9] He starred opposite Ray "Crash" Corrigan in The Painted Stallion (1937).[9] Mason starred opposite John Wayne in Wyoming Outlaw (1939)[10] and New Frontier (1939).[11]

1940s

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Mason starred opposite David Sharpe in Silver Stallion (1941).[12] He starred opposite Wild Bill Elliott in Hidden Valley Outlaws (1944). In the film, Mason and John James sings the song Oh Susanna.[13]

Personal life and death

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Mason married Rita Carewe in 1928 and divorced her in 1936. He was married to actress Bo Ling; they had no children and eventually separated.[14] A shooting accident on a film set in the 1930s caused him to lose sight in his right eye.[2]

On October 13, 1947, Mason died of "acute myocardial infarction due to coronary thrombosis" in the Birmingham Veterans Administration Hospital in Van Nuys, California. He had been there for 31 days after suffering a heart attack on the set of California Firebrand.[2] An Associated Press news story published October 14, 1947, says that Mason "collapsed on a Republic Studio set Monday and died a few hours later of a heart ailment."[15]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Director (s) Notes
1924 Hit and Run Spectator Edward Sedgwick
1926 Born to Battle Daley Robert De Lacey Silent western film
The Arizona Streak Velvet Hamilton
Lightning Hutch Frank Proctor Charles Hutchison Silent action film
Tom and His Pals Courtney Robert De Lacey Silent western film
Flying High Lester Swope Charles Hutchison Silent action film
1927 Closed Gates Harvey Newell Phil Rosen Silent melodrama film
1928 Golden Shackles Herbert Fordyce Dallas M. Fitzgerald Silent drama film
The Avenging Shadow George Brooks, Deputy Warden Ray Taylor Silent action film
The Law's Lash Pete Rogan - Henchman Noel M. Smith
Hit of the Show Woody Ralph Ince
Revenge Jorga Edwin Carewe Silent drama film
The Viking Alwin Roy William Neill
1929 Bride of the Desert Fugitive Duke Worne Western film
1930 The Woman Who Was Forgotten Richard Atwell Richard Thomas
The Climax Dr. Gardoni Renaud Hoffman Thriller film
See America Thirst Attorney William James Craft
1932 Texas Pioneers Mark Collins Harry L. Fraser
Shopworn Toby Nick Grinde
Mason of the Mounted Calhoun Harry Fraser
Merrily We Go to Hell Party Guest Dorothy Arzner Uncredited
The Last Frontier Buck Spencer Gordon Bennet Serial
1933 The Monkey's Paw Afghan Wesley Ruggles Uncredited
Luxury Liner Ship Passenger at Bar Lothar Mendes Uncredited
King Kong New York Theatergoer Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack Uncredited
The Phantom of the Air Mortimer Crome Ray Taylor Serial
Life in the Raw Lamson's Henchman Louis King Uncredited
The Last Trail Withers, Henchman James Tinling Uncredited
I Loved a Woman Martha's Coachman Alfred E. Green Uncredited
Smoky Lefty Eugene Forde
Maizie Paul Barnes Dallas M. Fitzgerald
1934 Are We Civilized? Paul Franklin Jr. Edwin Carewe
The Dude Ranger Dale Hyslip Edward F. Cline
Redhead Pretty Boy Melville W. Brown
The Fighting Trooper Andre La Farge Ray Taylor
When a Man Sees Red Dick Brady Alan James
1935 Texas Terror Joe Dickson Robert N. Bradbury With John Wayne
Northern Frontier Stone Sam Newfield
The Mystery Man The Eel, Gangster Ray McCarey
Rainbow Valley Rogers Robert N. Bradbury With John Wayne
Men of Action Jim Denton - Construction Engineer Alan James
Call of the Wild Pimp in Mary's Room William A. Wellman Uncredited
Valley of Wanted Men Larry Doyle Alan James
1936 Black Gold Henry 'Hank' Langford Russell Hopton
Comin' Round the Mountain Matt Ford Mack V. Wright
Go-Get-'Em, Haines Tony Marchetti Sam Newfield
The Border Patrolman Courtney Maybrook David Howard
Ghost-Town Gold Dirk Barrington Joseph Kane
Fury Below Fred Johnson Harry Fraser

The following were with John Wayne:

Other films:

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Katchmer 2009, p. 236.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Mayer 2017, p. 205.
  3. ^ Munden 1997, p. 256.
  4. ^ Curtis, James (2015). William Cameron Menzies: The Shape of Films to Come (1st ed.). New York City: Pantheon Books. ISBN 978-0375424724.
  5. ^ Goble 2011, p. 928.
  6. ^ Klepper 1999, p. 493.
  7. ^ Matheson 2011, p. 302.
  8. ^ Paietta 2007, p. 220.
  9. ^ a b Cline 2000, p. 125.
  10. ^ Reid 2005a, p. 212.
  11. ^ Davis, Ronald L. (1998). Duke: The Life and Image of John Wayne. Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 978-0806130156.
  12. ^ Holland 1989, p. 173.
  13. ^ Blottner 2011, p. 64.
  14. ^ Cho & The Chinese Historical Society of Southern California 2013, p. 30.
  15. ^ "Film Actor Leroy Mason Dies from Heart Attack". Winnipeg Tribune. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada: Southam Newspapers. Associated Press. October 14, 1947. p. 2. Retrieved October 20, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
  16. ^ Usai 2018, p. 61.
  17. ^ Helgason 2017, p. 155.
  18. ^ Reid 2005b, p. 237.

Sources

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