Frank Ross (producer)
Encyclopedia
Frank Ross was a film producer, writer, and actor.
A graduate of Princeton University
, Ross began acting (in an uncredited role) in 1929's The Saturday Night Kid
, starring Clara Bow
and Jean Arthur
, whom he married in 1932. He only appeared in two more films. He began working behind the screen at Hal Roach Studios. His first (associate) producing credit was for the 1939 version of Of Mice and Men
. Other notable productions include the comedies The Devil and Miss Jones
(1941) and The More the Merrier
(1943), both starring his wife, and Biblical epics The Robe
(1953) and Demetrius and the Gladiators
(1954).
Ross and Jean Arthur divorced in 1949. The following year, he married another actress, Joan Caulfield
. She had large roles in two Ross-produced films, The Lady Says No (1952) and The Rains of Ranchipur
(1955), and starred in her husband's TV series, the short-lived Sally and the more successful My Favorite Husband
. The couple had one son before divorcing in 1960.
On February 8, 1990, Ross died at the age of 85 of complications arising from brain surgery. His two ex-wives would die within 24 hours of one another the following year.
Ross shared an honorary Academy Award for the short film The House I Live In
, starring Frank Sinatra
, and was nominated another three times: Best Picture
for producing The Robe, and Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) and Best Story
, both for The More the Merrier.
A graduate of Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Ross began acting (in an uncredited role) in 1929's The Saturday Night Kid
The Saturday Night Kid
The Saturday Night Kid is an early talking romantic comedy film about two sisters and the man they both want. It stars Clara Bow, Jean Arthur, and James Hall. The film was based on the play Love 'Em and Leave 'Em by George Abbott and John V. A. Weaver...
, starring Clara Bow
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow was an American actress who rose to stardom in the silent film era of the 1920s. It was her appearance as a spunky shopgirl in the film It that brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl." Bow came to personify the roaring twenties and is described as its leading sex...
and Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur was an American actress and a major film star of the 1930s and 1940s. She remains arguably the epitome of the female screwball comedy actress. As James Harvey wrote in his recounting of the era, "No one was more closely identified with the screwball comedy than Jean Arthur...
, whom he married in 1932. He only appeared in two more films. He began working behind the screen at Hal Roach Studios. His first (associate) producing credit was for the 1939 version of Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men (1939 film)
Of Mice and Men is a 1939 film based on the novella of the same title by American author John Steinbeck. It stars Burgess Meredith, Betty Field, Lon Chaney, Jr., Charles Bickford, Roman Bohnen, Bob Steele and Noah Beery, Jr...
. Other notable productions include the comedies The Devil and Miss Jones
The Devil and Miss Jones
The Devil and Miss Jones is a 1941 comedy film starring Jean Arthur and Charles Coburn. Directed by Sam Wood and scripted by Norman Krasna, the film was the product of an independent collaboration between Krasna and producer Frank Ross...
(1941) and The More the Merrier
The More the Merrier
The More the Merrier is a 1943 American comedy film made by Columbia Pictures which makes fun of the housing shortage during World War II, especially in Washington, D.C.. The picture stars Jean Arthur, Joel McCrea, Charles Coburn, Stanley Clements and Richard Gaines. The movie was directed by...
(1943), both starring his wife, and Biblical epics The Robe
The Robe (film)
The Robe is a 1953 American Biblical epic film that tells the story of a Roman military tribune who commands the unit that crucifies Jesus. The film was made by 20th Century Fox and is notable for being the first film released in the widescreen process CinemaScope.It was directed by Henry Koster...
(1953) and Demetrius and the Gladiators
Demetrius and the Gladiators
Demetrius and the Gladiators is a 1954 sword and sandal drama film and a sequel to The Robe. It was made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Delmer Daves and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was by Philip Dunne based on characters created by Lloyd C...
(1954).
Ross and Jean Arthur divorced in 1949. The following year, he married another actress, Joan Caulfield
Joan Caulfield
Joan Caulfield was an American actress and former fashion model. After being discovered by Broadway producers, she began a stage career in 1943 that eventually led to signing as an actress with Paramount Pictures....
. She had large roles in two Ross-produced films, The Lady Says No (1952) and The Rains of Ranchipur
The Rains of Ranchipur
The Rains of Ranchipur is a 1955 film drama made by 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Jean Negulesco and produced by Frank Ross from a screenplay by Merle Miller, based on the novel The Rains Came by Louis Bromfield. The music score was by Hugo Friedhofer and the cinematography by Milton R...
(1955), and starred in her husband's TV series, the short-lived Sally and the more successful My Favorite Husband
My Favorite Husband
My Favorite Husband is the name of an American radio program and network television series. The original radio show, co-starring Lucille Ball, was the initial basis for what evolved into the groundbreaking TV sitcom I Love Lucy. The series was based on the novel Mr. and Mrs...
. The couple had one son before divorcing in 1960.
On February 8, 1990, Ross died at the age of 85 of complications arising from brain surgery. His two ex-wives would die within 24 hours of one another the following year.
Ross shared an honorary Academy Award for the short film The House I Live In
The House I Live In
The House I Live In is a ten-minute short film written by Albert Maltz, produced by Frank Ross and Mervyn LeRoy, and starring Frank Sinatra...
, starring Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, and was nominated another three times: Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
for producing The Robe, and Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) and Best Story
Academy Award for Best Story
The Academy Award for Best Story was an Academy Award given from the beginning of the Academy Awards until 1957, when it was eliminated in favor of the Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay, which had been introduced in 1940.-1920s:...
, both for The More the Merrier.
As producer
- Of Mice and MenOf Mice and Men (1939 film)Of Mice and Men is a 1939 film based on the novella of the same title by American author John Steinbeck. It stars Burgess Meredith, Betty Field, Lon Chaney, Jr., Charles Bickford, Roman Bohnen, Bob Steele and Noah Beery, Jr...
(1939) (associate producer) - The Devil and Miss JonesThe Devil and Miss JonesThe Devil and Miss Jones is a 1941 comedy film starring Jean Arthur and Charles Coburn. Directed by Sam Wood and scripted by Norman Krasna, the film was the product of an independent collaboration between Krasna and producer Frank Ross...
(1941) (producer) - A Lady Takes a ChanceA Lady Takes a ChanceA Lady Takes a Chance is a 1943 romantic comedy film starring Jean Arthur and John Wayne.-Cast:* Jean Arthur - Molly J. Truesdale* John Wayne - Duke Hudkins* Charles Winninger - Waco* Phil Silvers - Smiley Lambert...
(1943) (producer) - The House I Live InThe House I Live InThe House I Live In is a ten-minute short film written by Albert Maltz, produced by Frank Ross and Mervyn LeRoy, and starring Frank Sinatra...
(1945) (producer) - The Flame and the ArrowThe Flame and the ArrowThe Flame and the Arrow is a 1950 American adventure film made by Warner Bros. and starring Burt Lancaster, Virginia Mayo and Nick Cravat. It was directed by Jacques Tourneur and produced by Harold Hecht and Frank Ross from a screenplay by Waldo Salt. The music score was by Max Steiner and the...
(1950) (producer) - The Lady Says No (1952) (director and producer)
- My Favorite HusbandMy Favorite HusbandMy Favorite Husband is the name of an American radio program and network television series. The original radio show, co-starring Lucille Ball, was the initial basis for what evolved into the groundbreaking TV sitcom I Love Lucy. The series was based on the novel Mr. and Mrs...
(1953) (executive producer, TV series) - The RobeThe Robe (film)The Robe is a 1953 American Biblical epic film that tells the story of a Roman military tribune who commands the unit that crucifies Jesus. The film was made by 20th Century Fox and is notable for being the first film released in the widescreen process CinemaScope.It was directed by Henry Koster...
(1953) (producer) - Demetrius and the GladiatorsDemetrius and the GladiatorsDemetrius and the Gladiators is a 1954 sword and sandal drama film and a sequel to The Robe. It was made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Delmer Daves and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was by Philip Dunne based on characters created by Lloyd C...
(1954) (producer) - The Rains of RanchipurThe Rains of RanchipurThe Rains of Ranchipur is a 1955 film drama made by 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Jean Negulesco and produced by Frank Ross from a screenplay by Merle Miller, based on the novel The Rains Came by Louis Bromfield. The music score was by Hugo Friedhofer and the cinematography by Milton R...
(1955) (producer) - Sally (1957) (producer, TV series)
- Kings Go ForthKings Go ForthKings Go Forth is a 1958 black-and-white World War II film starring Frank Sinatra, Tony Curtis, and Natalie Wood. The screenplay was written by Merle Miller from the novel of the same name by Joe David Brown, and the film was directed by Delmer Daves...
(1958) (producer) - One Man's Way (1964) (producer)
- Mister MosesMister MosesMister Moses is an adventure film about a conman blackmailed into persuading an entire African village into relocating for their own safety. It stars Robert Mitchum and Carroll Baker. It was based on the novel of the same name by Max Catto...
(1965) (producer) - Where It's At (1969) (producer)
- MaurieMaurieMaurie is a 1973 American semi-biographical feature film directed by Daniel Mann. Distributed by National General Pictures, the film covers the lives and relationship of two NBA Hall of fame basketball players, the forward Jack Twyman, and his teammate the forward Maurice Stokes.-Plot summary:The...
(1973) (producer)
As actor
- The Saturday Night KidThe Saturday Night KidThe Saturday Night Kid is an early talking romantic comedy film about two sisters and the man they both want. It stars Clara Bow, Jean Arthur, and James Hall. The film was based on the play Love 'Em and Leave 'Em by George Abbott and John V. A. Weaver...
(1929) (uncredited) - Sweetie (1929) (uncredited)
- Young Eagles (1930)
As writer
- The More the MerrierThe More the MerrierThe More the Merrier is a 1943 American comedy film made by Columbia Pictures which makes fun of the housing shortage during World War II, especially in Washington, D.C.. The picture stars Jean Arthur, Joel McCrea, Charles Coburn, Stanley Clements and Richard Gaines. The movie was directed by...
(1943) (screenplay and story) - Walk Don't RunWalk Don't RunWalk, Don't Run is a 1966 comedy film set in Tokyo during the Olympic Games in 1964. The movie marked the last appearance by Cary Grant in a feature film, and is a remake of the 1943 film The More the Merrier.-Plot:...
(1966) (story)