Acting
William Frawley
EN cinema · 116 credits
Born
25 February 1887
Died
3 March 1966 (aged 79)
Birthplace
Burlington, Iowa, USA
Also known as Bill Frawley · William Clement Frawley
William Frawley was born in Burlington, Iowa. As a boy he sang at St. Paul's Catholic Church and played at the Burlington Opera House. His first job was as a stenographer for the Union Pacific Railroad. He did vaudeville with his brother Paul, then joined pianist Franz Rath in an act they took to San Francisco in 1910. Four years later he formed a light comedy act with his new wife Edna Louise Broedt, "Frawley and Louise", touring the Orpheum and Keith circuits until they divorced in 1927. He next moved to Broadway and then, in 1932, to Hollywood with Paramount. By 1951, when he contacted Lucille Ball about a part in her TV show I Love Lucy (1951), he had performed in over 100 films. His Fred Mertz role lasted until the show ended in 1960, after which he did a five-year stint on My Three Sons (1960). Poor health forced his retirement. He collapsed of a heart attack on March 3, 1966, aged 79, walking along Hollywood Boulevard after seeing a movie. He is buried in San Fernando Mission Cemetery.
Known for
Filmography
I Love Lucy Christmas Special
as Fred Mertz
Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy
2000
Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy
as Self (archive footage)
Safe at Home!
as Bill Turner
Lucy's Really Lost Moments
as Fred Mertz
I Love Lucy: The Movie
as Fred Mertz / Self
Rancho Notorious
as Baldy Gunder
The Lemon Drop Kid
as Gloomy Willie
Rhubarb
as Len Sickles
Blondie's Hero
as Marty Greer
Pretty Baby
as Corcoran
Kill the Umpire
as Jimmy O'Brien
Red Light
as Hotel Night Clerk
The Lady Takes a Sailor
as Oliver Harker
The Lone Wolf and His Lady
as Inspector Crane
Chicken Every Sunday
as George Kirby
East Side, West Side
as Bill the Bartender
Home in San Antone
as O'Fleery
The Babe Ruth Story
as Jack Dunn
Good Sam
as Tom
Joe Palooka in Winner Take All
as Knobby Walsh
The Girl from Manhattan
as Mr. Bernouti
Blondie's Anniversary
as Sharkey the Loen Shark
Miracle on 34th Street
as Charlie Halloran
Mother Wore Tights
as Mr. Schneider
My Wild Irish Rose
as William Scanlon
Down to Earth
as Police Lieutenant
I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now
as Jim Mason
Monsieur Verdoux
as Jean La Salle
The Inner Circle
as Det. Lt. Webb
Crime Doctor's Man Hunt
as Police Inspector Harry B. Manning
The Virginian
as Honey Wiggen
Rendezvous with Annie
as General Trent
Lady on a Train
as Desk Sgt. Brennan
Flame of Barbary Coast
as Wolf Wylie
Hitchhike to Happiness
as Sandy Hill
Ziegfeld Follies
as Martin (segment "A Sweepstakes Ticket")
The Fighting Seabees
as Eddie Powers
Going My Way
as Max Dolan, Publisher (uncredited)
Lake Placid Serenade
as Jiggers
Whistling in Brooklyn
as Detective Ramsey
We've Never Been Licked
as Traveling Salesman
Larceny with Music
as Mike Simms
Gentleman Jim
as Billy Delaney
Roxie Hart
as O'Malley
Moonlight in Havana
as Barney Crane
Wildcat
as Oliver Westbrook
Treat 'Em Rough
1942
Treat 'Em Rough
as 'Hotfoot'
It Happened in Flatbush
as Sam Sloan
Give Out, Sisters
as Harrison
Blondie in Society
as Waldo Pincus
Footsteps in the Dark
as Det. 'Hoppy' Hopkins
The Bride Came C.O.D.
as Sheriff McGee
Cracked Nuts
as James Mitchell
Six Lessons From Madame La Zonga
as Chauncey Beheegan
One Night in the Tropics
as Roscoe
Rhythm on the River
as Mr. Westlake
Golden Gloves
as Emory Balzar
Those Were the Days!
as Prisoner
The Farmer's Daughter
as Scoop Trimble
Untamed
as Les Woodbury
The Quarterback
as Coach
Sandy Gets Her Man
as Police Chief J. A. O'Hara
Opened by Mistake
as Matt Kingsley
Rose of Washington Square
as Harry Long
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
as The 'Duke'
Grand Jury Secrets
as Bright Eyes
Stop, Look and Love
as Joe Haller
Ambush
as Inspector J.L. Weber
Persons in Hiding
as Alec Inglis
St. Louis Blues
as Major Martingale
Night Work
as Bruiser Brown
Ex-Champ
as Mushy Harrington
Mad About Music
as Dusty Turner
Professor Beware
as Snoop Donlan
Sons of the Legion
as Uncle Willie Lee
Touchdown, Army
as Jack Heffernan
Double or Nothing
as John Pederson
Something to Sing About
as Hank Mayers
Blossoms On Broadway
as Francis X. Rush
Rose Bowl
as 'Soapy' Moreland
Desire
as Mr. Gibson
Strike Me Pink
as Mr. Copple
Three Married Men
as Bill Mullins
F-Man
as Detective Rogan
The General Died at Dawn
as Brighton
Three Cheers for Love
1936
Three Cheers for Love
as Milton Shakespeare
Roberta
as Bartender (uncredited)
Welcome Home
as Painless
Alibi Ike
as Cap
College Scandal
as Chief of Police Magoun
Car 99
as Training Sgt. Barrel
It's a Great Life
as Lt. McNulty
Harmony Lane
as Edwin P. 'Ed' Christy
Hold 'Em Yale
as Sunshine Joe
Ship Cafe
as Briney O'Brien
The Crime Doctor
as Fraser
Here Is My Heart
as James Smith
Bolero
as Mike DeBaere
Shoot the Works
as Larry Hale
Miss Fane's Baby Is Stolen
as Captain Murphy
The Witching Hour
as Jury Foreman
The Lemon Drop Kid
as William Dunhill aka The Professor
Hell and High Water
1933
Hell and High Water
as Milton J. Bunsey
Ventriloquist
1927
Ventriloquist
as 'Hoak' salesman
Should Husbands Be Watched?
as Beat Cop