Frank Reicher

{{Infobox person

| name = Frank Reicher

| image = Frank Reicher 01.jpg

| imagesize = 200px

| caption = Reicher as Ferrand in John Galsworthy's
The Pigeon, debut production at the
Little Theatre (1912)

| birth_name = Franz Reichert

| birth_date = {{birth date|1875|12|2|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Munich, Germany

| death_date = {{death date and age|1965|1|19|1875|12|2|mf=y}}

| death_place = Inglewood, California, U.S.

| resting_place =Inglewood Park Cemetery

| occupation = {{hlist|Actor|director|producer}}

| yearsactive = 1899–1951

| spouse = Ella Reicher (m. circa 1899–1948; her death)

| father = Emanuel Reicher

| relatives = Hedwiga Reicher (half-sister)
Ernst Reicher (half-brother)

}}

Frank Reicher (born Franz Reichert;Room, Adrian (2010). [https://books.google.com/books?id=eSIhzKnNUf4C&pg=PA401&dq=%22Frank+Reicher%22+%22Franz+Reichert%22 Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins, 5th ed.]. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 401. {{ISBN|978-0-7864-4373-4}}.Kornberger, Sylvia (2014). [https://books.google.com/books?id=54XaAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA414 Vampire, Monster, irre Wissenschaftler: So viel Europa steckt in Hollywoods goldener Horrorfilmära]. Hamburg: Disserta Verlag. p. 414. {{ISBN|9783954253043}}. December 2, 1875 – January 19, 1965) was a German-born American actor, director and producer. He is best known for playing Captain Englehorn in the 1933 film King Kong.

Early life

Reicher was born in Munich, Germany, the son of actor Emanuel Reichert.Brenner, A. (July 1926). [https://books.google.com/books?id=hKsMAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA353-IA2&dq=%22emanuel+reichert%22 "The Yiddish Theatre Celebrates Its Birthday"]. B'nai B'rith Magazine. Vol. 40, No. 10. pp.353–355. Retrieved August 11, 2024. Reicher's parents divorced in 1881 and his mother died two years later while at Trieste.L'art moderne 1904The Jewish Encyclopedia: Volume 10 edited by Isidore Singer, Cyrus Alder (1905) His half-sister, Hedwiga Reicher, would also become a Hollywood actor. His half-brother Ernst Reicher was popular as gentleman detective Stuart Webbs in the early German cinema of the 1910s. Frank Reicher immigrated to the States in 1899 and became a naturalized American citizen some twelve years later.US Passport Application August 4, 1922

File:He-Who-Gets-Slapped-1922-3.jpg, Frank Reicher and Richard Bennett in the Broadway production of He Who Gets Slapped (1922) ]]

Career

Reicher made his Broadway debut the year he came to America playing Lord Tarquin in Harrison Fiske's production of Becky Sharp, a comedy by Langdon Mitchell based on William Makepeace Thackeray’s Vanity Fair.Famous actresses of the day in America

By Lewis Clinton Strang 1902, pg. 120 His early career was spent in legitimate theater on and off Broadway. He was head of the Brooklyn Stock Company when Jacob P. Adler performed The Merchant of Venice in Yiddish while the rest of the cast remained in English. Reicher was for a number of years affiliated with the Little Theatre on West Forty-Fourth Street as an actor and manager and would remain active on Broadway as actor, director or producer well into the 1920s. On stage, Reicher starred in such plays as the first Broadway production of Georg Kaiser's From Morning to Midnight (as the cashier), the original production of Percy MacKaye's The Scarecrow (in the title role), and the United States premiere of Leonid Andreyev's He Who Gets Slapped.The New York Times January 23, 1965{{Cite web|url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/frank-reicher-15960|title=Frank Reicher – Broadway Cast & Staff | IBDB|website=www.ibdb.com|access-date=October 23, 2020}}

Frank Reicher is probably more familiar to modern audiences as a supporting character actor in films. He began his cinema career with an uncredited role in the 1915 film The Case for Becky and would go on to work in over two hundred motion pictures. He is probably best remembered for playing the character of Captain Englehorn in King Kong and The Son of Kong, and for his work in such films as The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) and Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950). His last Hollywood role was in the very first theatrical Superman movie, Superman and the Mole Men, in 1951.

Marriage

Frank Reicher married his wife Ella sometime around 1899 prior to his coming to America. Ella Reicher, a native of Oldenburg, joined him there the following year. The couple remained together until her death in 1948.California Death Index1920 US Census RecordsThe Los Angeles Times April 4, 1948US Passport Application (Ella Reicher) August 4, 1922

Death

Frank Reicher died at a hospital in Inglewood, California, aged 89. He was survived by his sister and a brother. His interment was at Inglewood Park Cemetery.{{Citation needed |date=August 2024}}

Filmography

=Actor=

The Case of Becky (1915) as One of Dr. Emerson's Patients (uncredited)
Wise Husbands (1921)
Her Man o' War (1926) as Prof. Krantz
Beau Sabreur (1928) as Gen. de Beaujolais
Four Sons (1928) as The Schoolmaster
The Blue Danube (1928) as Baron von Statzen
The Masks of the Devil (1928) as Count Zellner
Napoleon's Barber (1928, Short) as Napoleon's Barber
Someone to Love (1928) as Simmons
Sins of the Fathers (1928) as The Eye Specialist
His Captive Woman (1929) as District Attorney
Strange Cargo (1929) as Dr. Stecker
Black Waters (1929) as Randall
Paris Bound (1929) (uncredited)
Her Private Affair (1929) as State's Attorney
Mister Antonio (1929) as Milton Jorny
The Grand Parade (1930)
Strictly Unconventional (1930) as Duke of Brocklehurst (uncredited)
Billy the Kid (1930) as General Lew Wallace (uncredited)
A Lady's Morals (1930) as Italian Theater Manager (uncredited)
Gentleman's Fate (1931) as Papa Francesco Tomasulo
Beyond Victory (1931) as German Military Hospital Chief
The Sin of Madelon Claudet (1931) as Arresting Detective (uncredited)
Suicide Fleet (1931) as Holtzmann
Mata Hari (1931) as The Cook / Spy, ordered by Andriani to commit suicide for his past failures
A Woman Commands (1932) as The General
The Crooked Circle (1932) as Rankin
Scarlet Dawn (1932) as Plotsky (uncredited)
Flesh (1932) as Warden in Germany (uncredited)
Rasputin and the Empress (1932) as German-Language Teacher (uncredited)
Employees' Entrance (1933) as Garfinkle
Topaze (1933) as Dr. Stegg
King Kong (1933) as Captain Englehorn
A Bedtime Story (1933) as Aristide
Jennie Gerhardt (1933) as Old Weaver (uncredited)
Before Dawn (1933) as Joe Valerie
Captured! (1933) as Herr Hauptman – the Adjutant
After Tonight (1933) as Major-Medical Officer (uncredited)
Ever in My Heart (1933) as Dr. Hoffman (uncredited)
The Son of Kong (1933) as Captain Englehorn
Eight Girls in a Boat (1934) as The Examiner (uncredited)
Hi, Nellie! (1934) as Danny
Journal of a Crime (1934) as Herr Winterstein
No Greater Glory (1934) as Doctor
The Countess of Monte Cristo (1934) as Police Commissioner
The Line-Up (1934) as Abraham Schultz (uncredited)
Let's Talk It Over (1934) as Richards
Little Man, What Now? (1934) as Lehmann
The World Moves On (1934) as Herr Robess (uncredited)
Return of the Terror (1934) as Franz Reinhardt
The Fountain (1934) as Doctor
British Agent (1934) as Mr. X
The Case of the Howling Dog (1934) as Dr. Carl Cooper
I Am a Thief (1934) as Max Bolen
Secret of the Chateau (1934) as Auctioneer
Mills of the Gods (1934) as Barrett
Life Returns (1935) as Dr. James
The Casino Murder Case (1935) as Assistant Coroner (uncredited)
Straight from the Heart (1935) as Coroner (uncredited)
A Dog of Flanders (1935) as Herr Vanderkloot
The Florentine Dagger (1935) as Von Stein
Star of Midnight (1935) as Abe Ohlman (uncredited)
Charlie Chan in Egypt (1935) as Dr. Jaipur
Born to Gamble (1935) as Defense Attorney (uncredited)
Rendezvous (1935) as Dr. R.A. Jackson
Remember Last Night? (1935) as Coroner (uncredited)
The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo (1935) as Second Assistant Director
The Fighting Marines (1935) as Wheeler – M-70 (uncredited)
Kind Lady (1935) as Gustave Roubet
The Great Impersonation (1935) as Doctor Trenk
Magnificent Obsession (1935) as Dr. Rochard (uncredited)
The Lone Wolf Returns (1935) as Coleman (scenes deleted)
The Murder of Dr. Harrigan (1936) as Dr. Coate
The Invisible Ray (1936) as Professor Meiklejohn (Mendelssohn in end credits)
The Story of Louis Pasteur (1936) as Dr. Pfeiffer
Sutter's Gold (1936) as Governor Felipe Vega (uncredited)
The Country Doctor (1936) as Dr. Paul Luke
Till We Meet Again (1936) as Colonel Von Diegel
Murder on a Bridle Path (1936) as Dr. Peters (Gregg's)
Under Two Flags (1936) as French General
The Ex-Mrs. Bradford (1936) as Henry Strand – Summers' Lawyer (uncredited)
Nobody's Fool' (1936) as Chairman (uncredited)
The Devil-Doll (1936) as Doctor (uncredited)
Anthony Adverse (1936) as Coach Driver to Paris
Girls' Dormitory (1936) as Dr. Hoffenreich
Second Wife (1936) as Headmaster
Star for a Night' (1936) as Doctor Heimkin
The Gorgeous Hussy (1936) as Commander of U.S.S. Constitution (uncredited)
Old Hutch (1936) as District Attorney (uncredited)
Along Came Love (1936) as Planetarium Lecturer
Laughing at Trouble (1936) as Dr. Larson
Camille (1936) as Creditor Agent (uncredited)
Sinner Take All (1936) as Theo Drukker (uncredited)
Under Cover of Night (1937) as Rudolph Brehmer
The Mighty Treve (1937) as Eben McClelland
Man of the People (1937) as Professor Robinson – Geologist (uncredited)
Stolen Holiday (1937) as Rainer
The Great O'Malley (1937) as Dr. Larson
Espionage (1937) as Von Cram
Night Key (1937) as Carl
King of Gamblers' (1937) as Herman (uncredited)
The Road Back (1937) as Ernst's Father
The Devil Is Driving (1937) as District Attorney (uncredited)
The Emperor's Candlesticks (1937) as Pavloff
Midnight Madonna (1937) as Vincent Long II
West Bound Limited (1937) as Pop Martin
The Life of Emile Zola (1937) as M. Perrenx (uncredited)
On Such a Night (1937) as Horace Darwin
Fit for a King (1937) as Kurtz
Stage Door (1937) as Stage Director
Lancer Spy (1937) as Admiral
Heidi (1937) as Police Lieutenant (uncredited)
45 Fathers (1937) as Prentiss (uncredited)
Beg, Borrow or Steal (1937) as Monsieur Debillon (uncredited)
Prescription for Romance (1937) as Jozeph
Prison Nurse (1938) as Doctor Hartman
Rascals (1938) as Dr. C.M. Garvey
Three Comrades (1938) as Major – Young Soldier's Father (uncredited)
City Streets (1938) as Dr. Ferenc Waller
The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse (1938) as Professor O.J. Ludwig (uncredited)
I'll Give a Million (1938) as Prefect of Police
Letter of Introduction' (1938) as 2nd Doctor – Midtown Hospital (uncredited)
Suez (1938) as General Changarnier
The Storm (1938) as Officer (uncredited)
Torchy Gets Her Man (1938) as The Professor
The Girl Downstairs (1938) as Police Sergeant (uncredited)
Devil's Island (1939) as President of Assize Court
Woman Doctor (1939) as Dr. Mathews
Society Smugglers (1939) as Jones
Mystery of the White Room (1939) as Dr. Amos Thornton
Never Say Die (1939) as Man in Charge of Duel (uncredited)
Juarez (1939) as Duc de Morny (uncredited)
Unexpected Father (1939) as Adoption Hearing Referee (uncredited)
The Magnificent Fraud (1939) as Mendietta Garcia
Nurse Edith Cavell (1939) as Baron Von Bissing
Rio (1939) as Paris Banker (uncredited)
The Escape (1939) as Dr. Shumaker
Sabotage (1939) as George Wallner—Head of Saboteurs (uncredited)
Ninotchka (1939) as Soviet Lawyer (uncredited)
Our Neighbors – The Carters (1939) as Dr. Proser
South of the Border (1939) as Don Diego Mendoza
Everything Happens at Night (1939) as Pharmacist
Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet (1940) as Old Man (uncredited)
Dr. Cyclops (1940) as Professor Kendall
Typhoon (1940) as Doctor
All This, and Heaven Too (1940) as Police Official (uncredited)
The Lady in Question (1940) as President
South to Karanga (1940) as Dr. Greenleaf
The Man I Married (1940) as Friehof
Sky Murder (1940) as Dr. Crattan
Four Mothers (1941) as Festival Committee Member (uncredited)
The Face Behind the Mask (1941) as Dr. Ronald Cheever (uncredited)
Flight from Destiny (1941) as Edvaard Kreindling
They Dare Not Love (1941) as German Captain (uncredited)
The Nurse's Secret (1941) as Mr. Henderson
Shining Victory (1941) as Dr. Esterhazy
Underground (1941) as Professor Baumer
Father Takes a Wife (1941) as Captain of the 'SS Leslie C.' (uncredited)
One Foot in Heaven (1941) as Board Member (uncredited)
Dangerously They Live (1941) as Jarvis
Nazi Agent (1942) as Fritz
To Be or Not to Be (1942) as Polish Official (uncredited)
The Mystery of Marie Roget (1942) as Magistrate
Beyond the Blue Horizon (1942) as Sneath
I Married an Angel (1942) as Driver (uncredited)
The Gay Sisters (1942) as Dr. Thomas Bigelow
Secret Enemies (1942) as Henry Bremmer
Night Monster (1942) as Dr. Timmons
The Mummy's Tomb (1942) as Professor Matthew Norman
Scattergood Survives a Murder (1942) as Thaddeus Quentin
The Purple V (1943) as Bit Role (uncredited)
Hangmen Also Die! (1943) as Interpreter (uncredited)
Mission to Moscow (1943) as General von Koestrich – German ambassador (uncredited)
Above Suspicion (1943) as Colonel Gerold (uncredited)
Yanks Ahoy (1943) as German (uncredited)
Background to Danger (1943) as Rudick – the Assassin (uncredited)
Bomber's Moon (1943) as Dr. Hartman
Watch on the Rhine (1943) as Admiral (uncredited)
The Song of Bernadette (1943) as Dr. St. Cyr (uncredited)
Tornado (1943) as Old Man Linden (uncredited)
Captain America (1944, Serial) as Lyman [Ch. 1]
In Our Time (1944) as Baron Jarski (uncredited)
Address Unknown (1944) as Professor Schmidt
The Hitler Gang (1944) as The Justizminister (uncredited)
The Adventures of Mark Twain (1944) as Doctor in Elmira (uncredited)
Gildersleeve's Ghost (1944) as Dr. John Wells
The Mummy's Ghost (1944) as Professor Matthew Norman
The Conspirators (1944) as Casino Attendant (uncredited)
House of Frankenstein (1944) as Ullman
The Big Bonanza (1944) as Dr. Ballou
The Jade Mask (1945) as Harper
Hotel Berlin (1945) as Fritz (uncredited)
A Medal for Benny (1945) as Father Bly (uncredited)
Blonde Ransom (1945) as Judge
Rhapsody in Blue (1945) as Guest (uncredited)
Voice of the Whistler (1945) as Dr. Rose (uncredited)
The Tiger Woman (1945) as Coroner
The Strange Mr. Gregory (1945) as Riker, the Butler
A Guy Could Change (1946) as Doctor (uncredited)
The Shadow Returns (1946) as Michael Hasdon
Song of Arizona (1946) as Doctor (uncredited)
My Pal Trigger (1946) as Judge J.E. Ellis (uncredited)
Sister Kenny (1946) as Dr. Chuter (uncredited)
Home in Oklahoma (1946) as Jason Cragmyle
Mr. District Attorney (1947) as Peter Lantz (uncredited)
Yankee Fakir (1947) as Banker H.W. Randall
Monsieur Verdoux (1947) as Doctor (uncredited)
Violence (1947) as Pop
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) as Karl Maasdam
Song of Love (1947) as Mr. Fuerbach (uncredited)
Escape Me Never (1947) as The Minister
Joe Palooka in Fighting Mad (1948) as Dr. MacKenzie
Carson City Raiders (1948) as Razor the Barber
I, Jane Doe (1948) as Doctor (uncredited)
The Gallant Blade (1948) as Major (uncredited)
Barbary Pirate (1949) as Cathcart
Samson and Delilah (1949) as Village Barber
The Arizona Cowboy (1950) as Major Sheridan
Cargo to Capetown (1950) as Judge Van Meeger (uncredited)
Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950) as 'Doc' Darius Green
The Lady and the Bandit (1951) as Count Eckhardt
Superman and the Mole Men (1951) as Hospital Superintendent (final film role)