© Copyright Harutyunyan 2024

sunfilm-logo
Home/Frank Silvera
Frank Silvera‌

Gender

Male

Birthday

calendar1914-07-24

Popularity

star6.1

Frank Silvera

Kingston, British West Indies [now Kingston, Jamaica]

Frank Silvera

Kingston, British West Indies [now Kingston, Jamaica]

Gender

Male

Birthday

calendar1914-07-24

Popularity

star6.1

Biography

​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.   Frank Silvera (July 24, 1914 – June 11, 1970) was an American actor and theatrical director. Silvera was born in Kingston, Jamaica the son of a mixed race Jamaican mother, Gertrude Bell and Spanish Jewish father, Alfred Silvera. His family emigrated to the United States when he was six-years old, settling in Boston. Silvera became interested in acting and began performing in amateur theatrical groups and at church. He graduated from English High School of Boston and then studied at Boston University, followed by the Northeastern Law School. Silvera left Northeastern Law School in 1934, when he was cast in Paul Green's production of Roll Sweet Chariot. He next joined the New England Repertory Theatre where he appeared in productions of MacBeth, Othello and The Emperor Jones. He also worked at Federal Theatre and with the New Hampshire Repertory Theatre. In 1940, Silvera made his Broadway debut in a small role in Big White Fog. His career was interrupted in 1942, when he enlisted in the United States Navy during World War II. He was assigned to Camp Robert Smalls, where he and Owen Dodson were in charge of entertainment. Silvera directed and acted in radio programs and appeared in USO shows. Honorably discharged at the war's end in 1945, he joined the cast of Anna Lucasta and became a member of the Actors Studio. In 1952, Silvera made his film debut in the western, The Cimarron Kid. Because of his strongly Latin appearance, he was cast in a variety of ethnic roles in films and television. He was cast as General Huerta in Viva Zapata! which starred Marlon Brando. Silvera also portrayed the role in the stage production, which opened at the Regent Theatre in New York City on February 28, 1952. He appeared in two films directed by Stanley Kubrick, Fear and Desire (1953) and Killer's Kiss (1955). Silvera made guest appearances in numerous television series, mainly dramas and westerns, including Studio One in Hollywood, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Bat Masterson, Thriller, Riverboat, The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, The Untouchables, and Bonanza. In 1962 he portrayed Dr. Koslenko in The Twilight Zone episode "Person or Persons Unknown", opposite Richard Long. That year, he also played Minarii, a Polynesian man in the 1962 film Mutiny on the Bounty, again starring Marlon Brando. In 1963, Silvera was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for playing Monsieur Duval in The Lady of the Camellias. In 1964, Silvera and Vantile Whitfield founded the Theatre of Being, a Los Angeles-based theatre dedicated to providing black actors with non-stereotypical roles. One of their first projects was producing The Amen Corner by African-American writer James Baldwin. Silvera and Whitfield financed the play themselves and with donations from friends. It opened on March 4, 1964 and would gross $200,000 within the year, moving to Broadway in April 1965. Beah Richards won critical acclaim for her performance as the lead. Silvera was killed on June 11, 1970, after accidentally electrocuting himself while repairing a garbage disposal unit in his kitchen sink. Description above from the Wikipedia article Frank Silvera, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Movie Credits

Fear and Desire

Fear and Desire‌
star5.4
calendar 1953

Killer's Kiss

Killer's Kiss‌
star6.3
calendar 1955

Viva Zapata!

Viva Zapata!‌
star6.9
calendar 1952

The Greatest Story Ever Told

The Greatest Story Ever Told‌
star6.4
calendar 1965

Valdez Is Coming

Valdez Is Coming‌
star6.2
calendar 1971

Guns of the Magnificent Seven

Guns of the Magnificent Seven‌
star5.2
calendar 1969

The Appaloosa

The Appaloosa‌
star6.2
calendar 1966

The Lonely Night

The Lonely Night‌
star0.0
calendar 1954

The St. Valentine's Day Massacre

The St. Valentine's Day Massacre‌
star6.3
calendar 1967

Heller in Pink Tights

Heller in Pink Tights‌
star5.7
calendar 1960

The Cimarron Kid

The Cimarron Kid‌
star6.1
calendar 1952

White Mane

White Mane‌
star6.7
calendar 1953

Crime and Punishment USA

Crime and Punishment USA‌
star5.2
calendar 1959

The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima

The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima‌
star5.7
calendar 1952

The Mountain Road

The Mountain Road‌
star6.4
calendar 1960

Uptight

Uptight‌
star6.5
calendar 1968

Toys in the Attic

Toys in the Attic‌
star6.0
calendar 1963

The Fighter

The Fighter‌
star6.0
calendar 1952

A Visit to Picasso

A Visit to Picasso‌
star6.0
calendar 1950

Key Witness

Key Witness‌
star6.9
calendar 1960

Crowded Paradise

Crowded Paradise‌
star0.0
calendar 1956

Beah: A Black Woman Speaks

Beah: A Black Woman Speaks‌
star0.0
calendar 2004

Che!

Che!‌
star5.2
calendar 1969

Death Tide

Death Tide‌
star6.0
calendar 1955

Perilous Voyage

Perilous Voyage‌
star0.0
calendar 1976

The Young Loner

The Young Loner‌
star0.0
calendar 1968

The Stalking Moon

The Stalking Moon‌
star5.9
calendar 1968

Hombre

Hombre‌
star7.0
calendar 1967

Mutiny on the Bounty

Mutiny on the Bounty‌
star7.0
calendar 1962

The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou

The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou‌
star0.0
calendar 1971

Tv Credits

The Great Adventure

The Great Adventure‌
star0.0
calendar 1963

Kraft Suspense Theatre

Kraft Suspense Theatre‌
star5.3
calendar 1963

Hawaii Five-O

Hawaii Five-O‌
star7.1
calendar 1968

Marcus Welby, M.D.

Marcus Welby, M.D.‌
star6.5
calendar 1969

The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters

The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters‌
star5.3
calendar 1963

Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke‌
star6.5
calendar 1955

Studio One

Studio One‌
star4.7
calendar 1948

The Twilight Zone

The Twilight Zone‌
star8.4
calendar 1959

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Alfred Hitchcock Presents‌
star7.7
calendar 1955

The Beachcomber

The Beachcomber‌
star0.0
calendar 1962

Rawhide

Rawhide‌
star7.0
calendar 1959

Run for Your Life

Run for Your Life‌
star7.2
calendar 1965

Daniel Boone

Daniel Boone‌
star6.9
calendar 1964

The High Chaparral

The High Chaparral‌
star6.5
calendar 1967

Thriller

Thriller‌
star6.4
calendar 1960

Profiles in Courage

Profiles in Courage‌
star5.0
calendar 1964

Decoy

Decoy‌
star6.2
calendar 1957

Wanted: Dead or Alive

Wanted: Dead or Alive‌
star6.9
calendar 1958

The Rebel

The Rebel‌
star5.3
calendar 1959

Bat Masterson

Bat Masterson‌
star6.3
calendar 1958

The Rat Patrol

The Rat Patrol‌
star7.2
calendar 1966

Mr. Novak

Mr. Novak‌
star6.5
calendar 1963

Riverboat

Riverboat‌
star6.2
calendar 1959

The New Breed

The New Breed‌
star7.0
calendar 1961

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre‌
star5.5
calendar 1956

Johnny Ringo

Johnny Ringo‌
star5.7
calendar 1959

The Wild Wild West

The Wild Wild West‌
star7.5
calendar 1965

The Defenders

The Defenders‌
star6.2
calendar 1961

Kraft Suspense Theatre

Kraft Suspense Theatre‌
star5.3
calendar 1963

Perry Mason

Perry Mason‌
star7.6
calendar 1957

The Beachcomber

The Beachcomber‌
star0.0
calendar 1962

I Spy

I Spy‌
star6.5
calendar 1965

The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen

The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen‌
star0.0
calendar 1958

Bonanza

Bonanza‌
star7.5
calendar 1959

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour‌
star7.8
calendar 1962