- John Ford Stock Company
The John Ford Stock Company is the name given to the large collection of actors used repeatedly in the films of American director
John Ford . Most famous among these wasJohn Wayne , who appeared in twenty-four films and three television episodes for the director. Other members of the "stock company" include:Jack Pennick - 41 films, 1 TV episode
Francis Ford (the director's brother) - 32 filmsHarry Carey - 27 filmsWard Bond - 24 films, 2 TV episodesHarry Tenbrook - 26 filmsJ. Farrell MacDonald - 25 filmsVester Pegg - 23 filmsMae Marsh - 17 films, 1 TV episode
Frank Baker - 17 filmsDuke Lee - 16 films
Joe Harris - 14 filmsDanny Borzage - 13 filmsHoot Gibson - 13 filmsWillis Bouchey - 9 films, 3 TV episodesJohn Carradine - 11 films, 1 TV episodeKen Curtis - 11 films, 1 TV episode
William Henry - 11 films, 1 TV episodeVictor McLaglen - 12 films
George O'Brien - 12 films
Molly Malone - 11 filmsHarry Carey Jr. - 9 films, 1 TV episode
Sam Harris - 10 filmsRobert Homans - 10 films
Cliff Lyons - 9 films, 1 TV episodeRobert Parrish - 10 filmsChuck Roberson - 9 films, 1 TV episode
Russell Simpson - 10 films
William Steele - 10 filmsPatrick Wayne - 8 films, 2 TV episodesHenry Fonda - 9 films
Ed Jones - 9 filmsJohn Qualen - 9 filmsMickey Simpson - 9 filmsPat Somerset - 9 filmsHank Worden - 8 films, 1 TV episodeAnna Lee - 8 films, 1 TV episodeRuth Clifford - 8 films
Mary Gordon - 8 filmsJames Flavin - 8 films
Ben Hall - 8 filmsChuck Hayward (as actor) - 7 films, 1 TV episodeHarry Strang - 8 filmsCarleton Young - 6 films, 2 TV episodesBrandon Hurst - 7 filmsFred Libby - 7 filmsJane Darwell - 7 filmsSteve Pendleton - 7 filmsCharles Seel - 5 films, 2 TV episodesCharles Trowbridge - 7 films
Jack Woods - 7 filmsFrank Albertson - 6 filmsMimi Doyle - 6 filmsEarle Foxe - 6 filmsSi Jenks - 6 films
Robert Lowery - 6 filmsJames A. Marcus - 6 filmsPaul McVey - 6 filmsLionel Pape - 6 filmsArthur Shields - 6 filmsCharles Tannen - 6 filmsHarry Tyler - 5 films, 1 TV episodeTom Tyler - 6 filmsJack Walters - 6 filmsScores of actors appeared repeatedly for Ford up to five times. Among the best known of these are
Chief John Big Tree (5),Berton Churchill (5),Donald Crisp (5),Andy Devine (5),Stepin Fetchit (5),Shug Fisher (5),Barry Fitzgerald (5),Wallace Ford (5), Ben Johnson (5),Joe Sawyer (5), James Stewart (5),O.Z. Whitehead (5),Maureen O'Hara (5),Grant Withers (5),Charley Grapewin (4),Donald Meek (4),Woody Strode (4),Vera Miles (4),Slim Summerville (4),Mildred Natwick (4),Olive Carey (3),Pedro Armendáriz (3),Dan Dailey (3),Paul Fix (3),Preston Foster (3),Jeffrey Hunter (3),Mike Mazurki (3), Thomas Mitchell (3),Denver Pyle (3),Will Rogers (3),C. Aubrey Smith (3),Spencer Tracy (3), andRichard Widmark (3). ["John Ford", by Peter Bogdanovich]Membership in the John Ford Stock Company did not necessitate membership in Ford's social circle, and indeed many of the actors in the Stock Company never encountered Ford outside of work situations. ["Pappy: The Life of John Ford", by Dan Ford]
References
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