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.
Movies
King Kong
Mate Briggs
The Most Dangerous Game
First Mate on Yacht (uncredited)
Blondie Hits the Jackpot
Brophy
The Great Profile
Detective
Armored Car Robbery
Lt. Phillips
Night Passage
Tim Riley
Mannequin
Burly Man (Uncredited)
Nora Prentiss
District Attorney
Nobody Lives Forever
Shake Thomas
Charlie Chan at the Race Track
Detective
Abbott and Costello Go to Mars
First Policeman in Bank
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
Police Detective #1
Desert Fury
Pat Johnson
Destination Murder
Police Lt. Brewster
Alexander's Ragtime Band
Army Captain (uncredited)
Cloak and Dagger
Col. Walsh
The Airmail Mystery
Bob Lee
The Shanghai Cobra
H.R. Jarvis
Hot News
Al Bragg
Footsteps in the Night
Mr. Bradbury
Fingers at the Window
Police Lieutenant Schaeffer
Mighty Joe Young
Schultz
Homicide
Det. Lt. Boylan
In Cold Blood
Clarence Duntz
It Happened on Fifth Avenue
First Policeman (uncredited)
Belle Starr
Sergeant
The Night of January 16th
Policeman Kelly
Man on the Flying Trapeze
Chauffeur (uncredited)
Mr. Wong in Chinatown
Police Sgt. Jerry
Francis in the Haunted House
Police Chief Martin
The Naked Street
Attorney Michael X. Flanders
So Proudly We Hail
Captain O'Brien (Uncredited)
One Touch of Venus
Kerrigan
I Dood It
Federal Agent (uncredited)
The Missing Lady
Police Insp. Cardona
Riot Squad
Det. Mack McCue
Prison Warden
Guard Capt. Peter Butler
Never Say Goodbye
Timmy
Abroad with Two Yanks
Sgt. Wiggins
Hold That Hypnotist
Jake Morgan
Murder on the Waterfront
Cmdr. Kalin
Boys' Ranch
Policeman (uncredited)
The Cisco Kid and the Lady
Sergeant
They All Come Out
Officer (uncredited)
Apache Ambush
Col. Marshall
The Brand of Hate
Holt Larkins
Follow the Sun
Henry Gibbs
We Go Fast
Police Lt. Bardette
Convicts at Large
Detective Sgt. Berkovich
Irish Luck
Fluger
Anchors Aweigh
Radio Cop
Hello, Sister!
Fireman
Lightning Carson Rides Again
Justice Department Agent
While New York Sleeps
2nd Cop
Massacre Canyon
Col. Tarant
The Eddie Cantor Story
Kelly
Oh! Susanna
Capt. Worth
Operation Pacific
SP Commander
A Yank on the Burma Road
Police Dispatcher
The Devil's Pipeline
Dowling
Sleep, My Love
Lieutenant Mitchell
They Met in a Taxi
Policeman
Woman Wanted
Mac - Policeman (uncredited)
My Dear Miss Aldrich
Dr. Spitzy Calahan (uncredited)
Midnight Taxi
Detective McCormick
Live, Love and Learn
Marine Who Likes Painting (uncredited)
Night Spot
Kidnapper
Blondie
Policeman in Accident Car (uncredited)
Tell No Tales
Officer Simmons (uncredited)
Everybody's Doing It
Detective Hayes
According to Mrs. Hoyle
Prosecuting Attorney
Start Cheering
Gas Station Attendant
Broadway Melody of 1940
Clancy (uncredited)
Good Times
Detective Lieutenant
Jesse James
Cavalry Captain (uncredited)
The Ice Follies of 1939
Doorman (Uncredited)
Union Pacific
Paddy (uncredited)
Rose of Washington Square
Guard (uncredited)
They Shall Have Music
Police Sergeant (uncredited)
The Gracie Allen Murder Case
Turnkey
Each Dawn I Die
Policeman (uncredited)
Sergeant Madden
Police Interrogator
The Roaring Twenties
Policeman (uncredited)
Fast and Furious
Policeman Guarding Entrance (uncredited)
The Wild Man of Borneo
Policeman
Lucky Cisco Kid
Ranch Foreman
South of Pago Pago
Cafe Customer
Secrets of Chinatown
Brandhma
The Grapes of Wrath
Guard (uncredited)
Air Force
Maj. A.M. Bagley
You Can't Take It with You
Jailer (uncredited)
Dangerously Yours
Driver
Uncertain Glory
Captain of Mobile Guard
Mildred Pierce
Detective (uncredited)
Treat 'Em Rough
Joe Trosper
Remember the Night
Court Attendant (uncredited)
Sentimental Journey
Detective Sgt. McFarland (uncredited)
The Fighting 69th
Supply Sergeant (uncredited)
Brother Orchid
Parking Attendant at Fat Dutchy's (uncredited)
The Daring Young Man
Informant on Telephone
Hold Back the Dawn
Immigration Guard (uncredited)
Bungalow 13
Lt. Sam Wilson
Dakota Lil
Secret Service Chief
Laura
Det. McEveety (uncredited)
Johnny Apollo
Prison Guard In Library (uncredited)
Everybody's Baby
Police Announcer (uncredited)
Ship of Wanted Men
Frank Busch
Thru Different Eyes
Thomas
When the Daltons Rode
Annabella's Brother
Ride on Vaquero
Officer Johnson
North West Mounted Police
Mountie
Code of the Streets
Doorman
Baby Take a Bow
Flannigan
Gateway
Guard
Easy to Wed
Joe
I Beheld His Glory
Longinus
Francis Gary Powers: The True Story of the U-2 Spy Incident
President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Gentleman Jim
George Corbett (uncredited)
The Long Voyage Home
Dock Policeman
Tin Pan Alley
Army Sergeant (uncredited)
Castle on the Hudson
Death Row Guard (uncredited)
Knute Rockne All American
Army Assistant Coach (uncredited)
It All Came True
Roaring 90's Club Doorman (uncredited)
Florian
Policeman
The Golden Fleecing
Cop (uncredited)
The Ghost Breakers
Hotel Porter (uncredited)
The Way of All Flesh
Policeman
Rhythm on the River
Detective
Women Without Names
Guard
And One Was Beautiful
McRafferty
Girl in 313
Det. Carvin
Angel on My Shoulder
Bellamy
Rock Island Trail
Railroad Workman
Robin Hood Of Texas
Captain Danforth
Chinatown Squad
Detective
La Conga Nights
Grogin
Captain Hurricane
Freighter Officer
Trouble Along the Way
Coach Buck Holman
Tough as They Come
Process Server
Four Mothers
Demolition Man (uncredited)
The Plunderers
Sergeant Major
Western Union
Deputy Sheriff
Ride 'Em Cowboy
Railroad Detective #2 (uncredited)
Texas
Abilene Fight Announcer
Ten Gentlemen from West Point
Capt. Luddy
Star of Texas
Texas Rangers Capt. Sturdivant
Johnny Rocco
Mooney
Shockproof
Policeman in Park (Uncredited)
Big Town Czar
George Mitchell
Big Town Girl
State Trooper
Double Alibi
Patrolman Johnson
New York Town
Recruiting Sergeant (uncredited)
Dangerous Number
Cab Driver
Angel's Holiday
Detective
Shipmates Forever
Lieutenant (uncredited)
I Wake Up Screaming
Detective (uncredited)
Million Dollar Mermaid
Conductor
Fighting Coast Guard
Commander Rogers
Tars and Spars
Chief Bosun Mate Gurney
Once Upon a Time
Man in Subway (uncredited)
Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff
Insp. Wellman
Affectionately Yours
Tomassetti
Song of the Thin Man
Policeman Reardon (uncredited)
Action in the North Atlantic
Merchant Marine School Lieutenant-Commander (uncredited)
Hot Water
Policeman (uncredited)
Corvette K-225
1st Lt. Bill Gardner
The Big Race
Bill Figg
Circumstantial Evidence
Guard
Something to Shout About
Policeman
Heaven Can Wait
Policeman (uncredited)
Mission to Moscow
American Senator (uncredited)
Rendezvous with Annie
Turnkey (uncredited)
I Promise to Pay
Bill Seaver
Murder, He Says
Police Officer (uncredited)
Joe and Ethel Turp Call on the President
Policeman
Strange Affair
Bank Security Guard (Uncredited)
Only Yesterday
Billy (Uncredited)
The Duke of West Point
Plebe Hockey Coach
'G' Men
Agent with Jean (uncredited)
Public Hero Number 1
Flavin - Federal Agent (uncredited)
Hollywood Canteen
Marine Sergeant (uncredited)
Special Agent
Agent Arresting Julie (uncredited)
My Favorite Brunette
Det. Lt. 'Mac' Hennessey (uncredited)
Dishonored Lady
Police Sergeant Patella
Buck Privates
Recruiting Sergeant (uncredited)
It Ain't Hay
Cop (uncredited)
Night in New Orleans
Egan (Uncredited)
Over 21
Captain (uncredited)
Mister Roberts
Military Policeman
The Noose Hangs High
Traffic Cop (uncredited)
Pot o' Gold
Sheriff Bud Connolly
Private Affairs
Doorman (uncredited)
You Only Live Once
State Trooper (uncredited)
Riding High
Train Conductor
The Spider
Officer Johnny Tracy
The Restless Breed
Secret Service Chief
My Man Godfrey
Detective (uncredited)
Joe Palooka in the Knockout
Policeman
Rhubarb
O'Leary, Manhattan Police Chief (uncredited)
Young Widow
Subway Conductor (Uncredited)
Ziegfeld Girl
Buck (Uncredited)
Okay, America!
Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Kid Glove Killer
Keenan - Detective Grilling Eddie (uncredited)
Beloved
Wilcox
Mickey the Kid
Sanders
Queen of the Mob
Third FBI Director
The All-American
Don Lindsay
Swing Shift Maisie
Radio Policeman (Uncredited)
Secret Service Investigator
Police Inspector Thorndyke
The Velvet Touch
Sgt. Oliphant
Nightmare Alley
Hoatley - First Carnival Owner (uncredited)
Step by Step
Woods
Hot Steel
Storm Swenson
Test Pilot
Pilot (uncredited)
South Sea Sinner
Andrews
The Last Hurrah
Police Capt. Michael J. Shanahan (uncredited)
Youth Will Be Served
Buck Miller
My Girl Tisa
Guard (uncredited)
One Way Ticket
Ed
Three Loves Has Nancy
Jack's Friend (uncredited)
The Devil's Henchman
Police Sergeant Briggs
The Savage Horde
Guard
McKenna of the Mounted
Corporal Randall McKenna
Kathleen
Moving Man
Wild Gold
Detective (uncredited)
The Further Adventures of Gallegher
Lt. Flynn
How to Behave
Man in Manhole (uncredited)
Reap the Wild Wind
Girl's Father (uncredited)
Law and Order
Capt. Toomey
Wives Under Suspicion
Jenks - Chauffeur (uncredited)
Girls Can Play
Det. Bill O'Malley
Mississippi Rhythm
Stan Caldwell
The Affairs of Cellini
Palace Guard (uncredited)
Manhattan Heartbeat
Truck Driver
Carrie
Mike - Bartender (uncredited)
I Am the Law
George - Witness (uncredited)
Bedtime Story
Hotel Guest in Room 625 (uncredited)
Unconquered
Villager (uncredited)
Manpower
Orderly About to Give Bath (uncredited)
Confidentially Connie
Harry (uncredited)
Here Come the Marines
Lieutenant-Colonel at End
Wild Is the Wind
Wool Buyer
Cheyenne Autumn
Ft. Robinson Sergeant of the Guard (uncredited)
Born to Be Wild
Striker (uncredited)
Dragonfly Squadron
Doctor
Sailor Beware
Petty Officer (uncredited)
God Is My Co-Pilot
Major at Kweilin Airbase (uncredited)
The Murder Man
Policeman at Merry-Go-Round (uncredited)
Rendezvous
2st Military Policeman (uncredited)
Flamingo Road
O. Henry's Full House
Cop (segment "The Cop and the Anthem") (uncredited)
Pot o' Gold
Sheriff Bud Connolly (uncredited)
Life Begins at Eight-Thirty
Policeman
Back Street
Reporter (uncredited)
Christmas Holiday
Policeman
A Stolen Life
Investigator (uncredited)
When Willie Comes Marching Home
Gen. Brevort (uncredited)
Miracle Money
Cop (uncredited)
Shows
Mister Ed
The Brady Bunch
The Lucy Show
Sergeant Wilcox
General Electric Theater
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Captain Kimble
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Joe Felix
Man with a Camera
Pete and Gladys
Lux Video Theatre
Steve
Climax!
Hogan
Navy Log
Racket Squad
Dr. Kildare
John Dolan
State Trooper
Johnny Midnight
Cavalcade of America
Dangerous Assignment
The Roaring 20's
Cain's Hundred
Arnie Kellwin
Burke's Law
Officer Danny Robin
December Bride
Surfside 6
Sam Benedict
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Richard Diamond, Private Detective
Sam Cooper
The Millionaire
Dan Mulcahy
Matinee Theater
The Pruitts of Southampton
The Rifleman
The Addams Family
Lt. Poston
Mr. Novak
Fire Chief Hawkins
The New Breed
Moose
City Detective
Coronado 9
Public Defender
Letter to Loretta
MacNamara
The Twilight Zone
1962 Policeman
Death Valley Days
Perry
Lux Video Theatre
Heineman
Alcoa Theatre
Gavin Marshall
Letter to Loretta
Deputy Mason
Letter to Loretta
Sgt. Danny Doofle
General Electric Theater
Callahan
Four Star Playhouse
Mr. Swanson
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Tony - The Doorman
Hallmark Hall of Fame
General Charles Lee
I Love Lucy
Immigration Officer
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Dan
The Living Christ
Longinus
The Twilight Zone
Truck Driver