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Ben Alexander (actor)

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Ben Alexander
Alexander in 1959
Born
Nicholas Benton Alexander III

(1911-06-27)June 27, 1911
Goldfield, Nevada, U.S.
DiedJuly 5, 1969(1969-07-05) (aged 58)
Westchester, California, U.S.
EducationStanford University
OccupationActor
Years active1916–1969
SpouseLesley Smith (1950-1969) (his death) (2 children)[1][2]

Nicholas Benton Alexander III[3] (June 27, 1911 – July 5, 1969) was an American motion picture actor, who started out as a child actor in 1916. He is best remembered for his role as Officer Frank Smith in the Dragnet franchise.

Early life and career

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Ben Alexander as a child actor

A native of Goldfield, Nevada,[4] Alexander was the son of Nicholas Benton Alexander Jr. and Elizabeth Hinkley.[5][6]

After a number of silent films, he retired from screen work, but came back for the World War I classic, All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), in which Alexander received good notices as an adult actor as "Kemmerich", the tragic amputation victim.[7] Earnings from the film allowed him to attend Stanford University; however, three years later, in the midst of the Great Depression, he was forced to leave school for lack of funds.[8]

He found a new career as a successful radio announcer in the late 1940s, including a stint on The Martin and Lewis Show. Alexander also acted on radio, playing Philip West in the 1939–40 soap opera Brenthouse on the Blue Network.[9][10]

From October 1950 to January 1951, Alexander hosted Party Time at Club Roma, a nightly late-night television show on NBC described as "part Truth or Consequences-type stunt show and part talent contest".[11]

In 1952, Jack Webb, actor-producer-director of Dragnet, needed a replacement for Barton Yarborough, who had played Detective Romero opposite Webb's Sgt. Joe Friday. Webb selected Alexander, but had to wait until he was available. A few actors filled in as Friday's partners until Alexander appeared in the newly created role of Officer Frank Smith, first in the radio series, then reprised the role in film and on television. The popular series ran until 1959. When Webb revived it in 1966, he wanted Alexander to rejoin him, but Alexander had just signed to play the role of Sgt. Dan Briggs on the weekly ABC series Felony Squad.[10][12]

Other

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Alexander and his family in 1961, pictured are his daughter, Lesley, his son, Bradford, and his wife, Lesley.

Alexander owned and operated the Ben Alexander Ford car dealership in the Highland Park neighborhood of northeast Los Angeles, from around 1953 until his death in 1969, along with the Ben Alexander Ford car dealership in San Francisco, which was formed in 1959.[13]

In the mid-1950s, Ben Alexander's Dream House Motel was located in Hollywood, near the corner of Yucca Street and Cahuenga Boulevard.[14]

Ben Alexander in 1925

In 1960, Alexander was a semi-regular panelist on Ernie Kovacs' offbeat game show Take a Good Look, which he affectionately dubbed "as unrigged and unrehearsed and un-produced a show as ever hit the air.'"[15] On April 19, 1960, and for roughly four years thereafter, he produced and hosted The Ben Alexander Show, a talent show airing on Oakland's KTVU TV.[16][17] What made this program especially noteworthy—and profitable for its creator/host—was the fact that Alexander was also the sponsor, via his auto dealership. Broadcast Magazine highlighted this seeming anomaly in its August 29 issue, exactly four months after the show's debut.

When a successful actor is also a successful businessman, that's unusual. When, as a businessman, he sponsors himself as a tv performer, that's rare. And when, the day after the opening broadcast, his business does three times its normal volume, that's news.[18]

Death

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On July 5, 1969, Alexander was found dead as the result of a massive heart attack in his Los Angeles home when his wife and children returned from a camping trip.[12]

He was cremated.[19]

For his contributions to the entertainment industry, Ben Alexander was awarded three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for television, radio, and movies.[7][10]

Filmography

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Television

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Writer

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  • Dragnet (Co-writer, 6 episodes)

References

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  1. ^ "Ben Alexanders Have Son". The New York Times. October 19, 1956.
  2. ^ "Silent Era : People".
  3. ^ "The Final Curtain: Births". The Billboard. October 3, 1942. p. 28. ProQuest 1032291273. A Son, Nicholas Benton Alexander IV, to Mr. and Mrs. Ben Alexander at Santa Monica (Calif.) Hospital September 13. Mother is former Elizabeth Robb, Charlie McCarthy script girl, and father is NBC commentator-announcer.
  4. ^ "Tidbits: Did You Know...". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. September 10, 2004. p. 38. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  5. ^ "Nevada County Birth and Death Records, 1871-1992", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLH8-D9NK : Sat Mar 09 19:04:58 UTC 2024), Entry for Nicholas Benton Alexander and N B Alexander, 26 May 1911.
  6. ^ "Film Lad's Mother Was a Bristol Girl; Mother of Little Ben Alexander Was Miss Elizabeth Hinkley". Bristol Herald Courier. October 5, 1918. p. 3. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Williford, Stanley O. (July 6, 1969). "Ben Alexander". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
  8. ^ Hayde, Michael J. (2001). My Name's Friday: The Unauthorized But True Story of Dragnet and the Films of Jack Webb. Nashville, TN: Cumberland House. pp. 53–54. ISBN 1-58182-190-5.
  9. ^ Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 118. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  10. ^ a b c "Ben Alexander". Hollywood Walk of Fame. Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. n.d. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
  11. ^ Shreve, Ivan (May 26, 2017). "Happy Birthday, Ben Alexander!". Radio Spirits. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  12. ^ a b "TV Actor Found Dead". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. July 7, 1969. p. 29. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
  13. ^ "Ben Alexander Ford, Inc. of San Francisco". Business Profiles. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  14. ^ "Alexander's Interest in Autos Is Natural". The Highland Park News-Herald. June 4, 1956. p. 4. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  15. ^ Hawver, Walter (May 7, 1960). "Officer Smith Has It Made: TV Is His Oyster". The Binghamton Press. p. 18. ProQuest 043491390. Ben Alexander is in an enviable position. If a station wants to cancel one of his shows, it has to ask his permission first. [...] The one show i which he is involved but has no personal financial interest is Take a Good Look, the zany panel quiz headed by Ernie Kovacs. 'I do that one for kicks,' he said. 'It's as unrigged and unrehearsed and un-produced a show as ever hit the air.'
  16. ^ "Viewing Tips". The San Mateo Times. April 29, 1960. p. 22. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  17. ^ "Trojan Hi-Lites: Trojan to Sponsor Turnabout Dance". Petaluma Argus-Courier. April 4, 1964. p. 6. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  18. ^ "TV Amateur Show Sells Cars; 'Dragnet' actor sponsors himself on TV". Broadcasting. August 29, 1960. p. 44. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  19. ^ Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14000 Famous Persons by Scott Wilson

Further reading

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  • Hayde, Michael J. (2001). My Name's Friday: The Unauthorized but True Story of Dragnet. Cumberland House. ISBN 978-1581821901.
  • Holmstrom, John. The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995, Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, pp. 49–51.
  • Dye, David. Child and Youth Actors: Filmography of Their Entire Careers, 1914-1985. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 1988, p. 4.
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