James Flavin
Known for Acting · 321 credits
- Born
- 1906-05-14
- Died
- 1976-04-23
- Place of birth
- Portland, Maine, USA
- Also known as
- James William Flavin Jr. · James Flaven · Jim Flavin
Biography
American character actor whose career lasted nearly half a century. James Wilson Flavin Jr. was the son of a hotel waiter of Canadian-English extraction and a mother, Katherine, whose father was an Irish immigrant. (Thus Flavin, well-known in Hollywood as an "Irish" type, was only one-quarter Irish.) Flavin was born and raised in Portland, Maine (a fact that may have enrichened his later working relationship with director John Ford, also a Portland native). He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, but (contrary to some sources) did not graduate. Instead he dropped out and returned to Portland where he drove a taxi. Then as now, summer stock companies flocked to Maine each year, and in 1929 he was asked to fill in for an actor. He did well with the part and the company manager offered him $150 per week to go with the troupe back to New York. Flavin accepted and by the spring of 1930 was living in a rooming house at 108 W. 87th Street in Manhattan. Flavin didn't manage to crack Broadway at this time (his Broadway debut would not occur for another thirty-nine years, in the 1971 revival of "The Front Page," in which Flavin played Murphy and briefly took over the lead role of Walter Burns from star Robert Ryan). He worked his way across the country in stock productions and tours, arriving in Los Angeles around 1932. He quickly made the transition to movies, landing the lead in his very first film, a Universal serial, The Airmail Mystery (1932). He also landed his leading lady, marrying the serial's female star Lucile Browne that same year. However, the serial marked virtually the last time that Flavin would play the lead in a film. Thereafter, he was restricted almost exclusively to supporting characters, many of them without so much as a name. He specialized in uniformed cops and hard-bitten detectives, but played chauffeurs, cabbies, and even a 16th-century palace guard with aplomb. Flavin appeared in nearly four hundred films between 1932 and 1971, and in almost a hundred television episodes before his final appearance, as President Dwight D. Eisenhower in Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident (1976). Flavin died of a heart ailment at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on April 23, 1976. His widow Lucile died seventeen days later. They were survived by their son, William James Flavin, subsequently a professor at the United States Army War College. James and Lucile Brown Flavin were buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.
Known For
TV Shows (44)
The Rifleman
1958
Climax!
1954
as Hogan
The Twilight Zone
1959
as 1962 Policeman / Truck Driver
Matinee Theater
1955
Dr. Kildare
1961
as John Dolan
I Love Lucy
1951
as Immigration Officer
The Lucy Show
1962
as Sergeant Wilcox
Four Star Playhouse
1952
as Mr. Swanson
Burke's Law
1963
as Officer Danny Robin
The Addams Family
1964
as Lt. Poston
Mister Ed
1961
Surfside 6
1960
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1955
as Joe Felix / Tony - The Doorman / Dan
The Millionaire
1955
as Dan Mulcahy
The Brady Bunch
1969
Richard Diamond, Private Detective
1957
as Sam Cooper
It Takes a Thief
1968
as Gen. Levin
Navy Log
1955
as Col. Flynn
Public Defender
1954
December Bride
1954
The Abbott and Costello Show
1952
as Joe Kelly
Alcoa Theatre
1957
as Gavin Marshall
Lux Video Theatre
1950
as Steve / Heineman / Detective
Mr. Novak
1963
as Fire Chief Hawkins
Cavalcade of America
1952
State Trooper
1956
as Police Capt. Daniel Box
Cain's Hundred
1961
as Arnie Kellwin
The New Breed
1961
as Moose
Pete and Gladys
1960
Sam Benedict
1962
The Roaring 20's
1960
as Robert Howard
Racket Squad
1951
City Detective
1953
Dangerous Assignment
1952
Letter to Loretta
1953
as MacNamara / Sgt. Danny Doofle / Deputy Mason
Coronado 9
1960
Man with a Camera
1958
The Pruitts of Southampton
1966
Death Valley Days
1952
as Perry
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951
as Captain Kimble / General Charles Lee
Johnny Midnight
1960
The Living Christ
1951
as Longinus
General Electric Theater
1953
as Callahan
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
1951
Movies (277)
King Kong
1933
as Mate Briggs
Laura
1944
as Det. McEveety (uncredited)
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
1963
as Patrolman (uncredited)
The Strawberry Blonde
1941
as Ticket Inspector on Boat (uncredited)
The Grapes of Wrath
1940
as Guard (uncredited)
Mister Roberts
1955
as Military Policeman
Mildred Pierce
1945
as Detective (uncredited)
Unconquered
1947
as Villager (uncredited)
North West Mounted Police
1940
as Mountie
Operation Pacific
1951
as SP Commander
Saboteur
1942
as Motorcycle Cop (voice) (uncredited)
In Cold Blood
1967
as Clarence Duntz
Angel on My Shoulder
1946
as Dan Bellamy
Nightmare Alley
1947
as Hoatley / First Carnival Owner (uncredited)
'G' Men
1935
as Agent with Jean (uncredited)
You Can't Take It with You
1938
as Jailer (uncredited)
Desert Fury
1947
as Pat Johnson
The Roaring Twenties
1939
as Policeman (uncredited)
Cheyenne Autumn
1964
as Ft. Robinson Sergeant of the Guard (uncredited)
Buck Privates
1941
as Recruiting Sergeant (uncredited)
Start Cheering
1938
as Gas Station Attendant
Mighty Joe Young
1949
as Schultz
Jesse James
1939
as Cavalry Captain (uncredited)
Anchors Aweigh
1945
as Radio Cop
The Most Dangerous Game
1932
as First Mate on Yacht (uncredited)
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
1946
as Police Detective #1
Special Agent
1935
as Agent Arresting Julie (uncredited)
My Man Godfrey
1936
as Detective (uncredited)
Reap the Wild Wind
1942
as Girl's Father (uncredited)
Heaven Can Wait
1943
as Policeman (uncredited)
Western Union
1941
as Deputy Sheriff
Step by Step
1946
as Woods
The Devil's Henchmen
1949
as Police Sergeant Briggs
Ziegfeld Girl
1941
as Buck (uncredited)
Carrie
1952
as Mike - Bartender (uncredited)
Kathleen
1941
as Moving Man
Sailor Beware
1952
as Petty Officer (uncredited)
The Plunderers
1948
as Sergeant Major
Blondie
1938
as Policeman in Accident Car (uncredited)
God Is My Co-Pilot
1945
as Major at Kweilin Airbase (uncredited)
Johnny Apollo
1940
as Prison Guard In Library (uncredited)
Christmas Holiday
1944
as Policeman (uncredited)
Johnny Rocco
1958
as Mooney
Three Loves Has Nancy
1938
as Jack's Friend (uncredited)
Johnny Angel
1945
as Flavin, Mate of the Quincy (uncredited)
Night Passage
1957
as Tim Riley
Chinatown Squad
1935
as Detective
Bedtime Story
1941
as Hotel Guest in Room 625 (uncredited)
Test Pilot
1938
as Pilot (uncredited)
Dishonored Lady
1947
as Police Sergeant Patella
Belle Starr
1941
as Sergeant
Boys' Ranch
1946
as Policeman (uncredited)
Shockproof
1949
as Policeman in Park (Uncredited)
The Shanghai Cobra
1945
as H.R. Jarvis
The Fighting 69th
1940
as Supply Sergeant (uncredited)
Brother Orchid
1940
as Parking Attendant at Fat Dutchy's (uncredited)
Woman Wanted
1935
as Mac - Policeman (uncredited)
Cloak and Dagger
1946
as Col. Walsh
Secrets of Chinatown
1935
as Brandhma
Private Affairs
1940
as Doorman (uncredited)
Gentleman Jim
1942
as George Corbett (uncredited)
Action in the North Atlantic
1943
as Merchant Marine School Lieutenant-Commander (uncredited)
The Long Voyage Home
1940
as Dock Policeman
Never Say Goodbye
1956
as Timmy
Uncertain Glory
1944
as Captain of Mobile Guard
You Only Live Once
1937
as State Trooper (uncredited)
It Happened on Fifth Avenue
1947
as First Policeman (uncredited)
Captain Hurricane
1935
as Freighter Officer
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff
1949
as Insp. Wellman
Too Hot to Handle
1938
as Young Reporter (uncredited)
O. Henry's Full House
1952
as Cop (segment "The Cop and the Anthem") (uncredited)
Tell No Tales
1939
as Officer Simmons (uncredited)
Remember the Night
1940
as Court Attendant (uncredited)
Manpower
1941
as Orderly About to Give Bath (uncredited)
Hollywood Canteen
1944
as Marine Sergeant (uncredited)
Affectionately Yours
1941
as Tomassetti
A Stolen Life
1946
as Investigator (uncredited)
Texas
1941
as Abilene Fight Announcer
Rhythm on the River
1940
as Detective
Alexander's Ragtime Band
1938
as Army Captain (uncredited)
Dangerously Yours
1937
as Driver
Only Yesterday
1933
as Billy (Uncredited)
Critic's Choice
1963
as Security Guard (uncredited)
Union Pacific
1939
as Paddy (uncredited)
Gateway
1938
as Guard
The Ghost Breakers
1940
as Hotel Porter (uncredited)
Song of the Thin Man
1947
as Policeman Reardon (uncredited)
Wild Is the Wind
1957
as Wool Buyer
The All-American
1932
as Don Lindsay
Hot News
1953
as Al Bragg
Mr. Winkle Goes to War
1944
Shipmates Forever
1935
as Lieutenant (uncredited)
The Restless Breed
1957
as Secret Service Chief
Fast and Furious
1939
as Policeman Guarding Entrance (uncredited)
Rhubarb
1951
as O'Leary, Manhattan Police Chief (uncredited)
Man on the Flying Trapeze
1935
as Chauffeur (uncredited)
When Tomorrow Comes
1939
as Coard Guard Man on Road (uncredited)
Destination Murder
1950
as Police Lt. Brewster
Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident
1976
as President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Rendezvous
1935
as 2st Military Policeman (uncredited)
Trouble Along the Way
1953
as Coach Buck Holman
Knute Rockne All American
1940
as Army Assistant Coach (uncredited)
Nora Prentiss
1947
as District Attorney
Abbott and Costello Go to Mars
1953
as First Policeman in Bank
Once Upon a Time
1944
as Man in Subway (uncredited)
So Proudly We Hail
1943
as Captain O'Brien (Uncredited)
Million Dollar Mermaid
1952
as Conductor
Big Town Girl
1937
as State Trooper
Pot o' Gold
1941
as Sheriff Bud Connolly (uncredited)
Mannequin
1938
as Burly Man (Uncredited)
Mission to Moscow
1943
as American Senator (uncredited)
I Wake Up Screaming
1941
as Detective (uncredited)
Air Force
1943
as Maj. A.M. Bagley
Sleep, My Love
1948
as Lieutenant Mitchell
The Affairs of Cellini
1934
as Palace Guard (uncredited)
Florian
1940
as Policeman
One Touch of Venus
1948
as Kerrigan
Here Come the Marines
1952
as Lieutenant-Colonel at End
Rose of Washington Square
1939
as Guard (uncredited)
The Ice Follies of 1939
1939
as Doorman (uncredited)
About James Flavin
American character actor whose career lasted nearly half a century. James Wilson Flavin Jr. was the son of a hotel waiter of Canadian-English extraction and a mother, Katherine, whose father was an Irish immigrant. (Thus Flavin, well-known in Hollywood as an "Irish" type, was only one-quarter Irish.) Flavin was born and raised in Portland, Maine (a fact that may have enrichened his later working relationship with director John Ford, also a Portland native). He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, but (contrary to some sou… With 321 credits spanning from 1932 to 2005, James Flavin has appeared in 277 films and 44 TV shows.
Fans searching for James Flavin movies, James Flavin filmography, or the latest projects starring James Flavin can stream many of these titles on HinFlix, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular James Flavin Movies
- King Kong (1933) — as Mate Briggs
- Laura (1944) — as Det. McEveety (uncredited)
- It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) — as Patrolman (uncredited)
- The Strawberry Blonde (1941) — as Ticket Inspector on Boat (uncredited)
- The Grapes of Wrath (1940) — as Guard (uncredited)
Where to Watch James Flavin Films
Most James Flavin movies and series are available to stream on HinFlix in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring James Flavin, check our movies catalogue and browse page.