Dave O'Brien
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dave O'Brien (born David Poole Fronabarger, May 31, 1912 – November 8, 1969) was an American film actor, director, and writer.
O'Brien was best known to movie audiences in the 1940s as the hero of the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer comedy short film series Pete Smith Specialties narrated by Pete Smith. O'Brien wrote and directed many of these subjects under the name David Barclay. He also appeared in many low-budget Westerns, often billed as Tex O'Brien. In 1942, O'Brien starred in the movie serial Captain Midnight.
Modern audiences perhaps best remember O'Brien as a frantic dope addict in the 1936 low-budget exploitation film Tell Your Children (better known under its reissue title, Reefer Madness).
As a writer for The Red Skelton Show, O'Brien shared an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 1961 and shared a nomination for the same award in 1963.
O'Brien died, aged 57, of a heart attack while competing in a yachting race.
Known for
Is My Face Red?
Chorus Boy (uncredited)
The Arizona Kid
Soldier
The Phantom of 42nd Street
Tony Woolrich
Kiss Me Kate
Ralph
The Sign of the Cross
Christian on Stairway (uncredited)
Madam Satan
Zeppelin Reveler
Down Texas Way
Dave Dodge
Tell Your Children
Ralph
The Whispering Skull
Dave Wyatt
Bowery at Midnight
Det. Pete Crawford
That's Entertainment, Part II
(archive footage)
Spook Town
Tex Wyatt
Isle Of Destiny
Whitey - Navy Radio Man
Fighting Mad
Constable Kelly
The Gunman From Bodie
Joe Martin
East Side Kids
Knuckles Dolan
King of the Stallions
The Man Who Walked Alone
Marion Scott
Rasputin and the Empress
Soldier (uncredited)
The Big Parade of Comedy
Actor in the Pete Smith Shorts (archive footage)
The Secret of Treasure Island
Det. Jameson [Chs. 4-7]
She Married Her Boss
Shopper
The Desperados Are in Town
Dock Lapman / Mr. Brown
The Dawn Patrol
Pilot (uncredited)
The Devil Bat
Johnny Layton
Gift of Gab
Dancer (uncredited)
Murder at the Vanities
Chorus Boy (uncredited)
Murder by Invitation
Michael, the chauffeur
New Frontier
Jason Braddock
Riders of the Sage
Tom Martin
Hot Saturday
Party Guest (Uncredited)
On Your Toes
Man in Audience
Buried Alive
Carson
Spooks Run Wild
Jeff Dixon
Woman Wanted
Steve - Tap Dancer at Baxter's Party (uncredited)
No More Ladies
Party Guest (uncredited)
The Deadly Game
Ralph Spencer
Wonder Bar
Chorus Boy (uncredited)
Crashing Thru
Fred Chambers
Ship Cafe
Young Man (uncredited)
Gangsters of the Frontier
Dave Wyatt
Sheriff of Sage Valley
Jeff
The Rangers Take Over
Tex Wyatt
Enemy of the Law
Dave Wyatt
Gunsmoke Mesa
Tex Wyatt
That Gang of Mine
Knuckles Dolan
Tennessee Champ
Luke MacWade
Whirlwind Horseman
Henchman Slade
Brand of the Devil
Tex Wyatt
College Coach
Student on Tennis Court (uncredited)
Forbidden Trails
Jim Cramer
Pick-up
Party Boy (uncredited)
Student Tour
Student
Starlight Over Texas
Henchman
Flying High
Dancer (uncredited)
Mutiny in the Big House
Daniels
Marked for Murder
Dave Wyatt
'Neath Brooklyn Bridge
Sgt. Phil Lyons
Doubting Thomas
Member of Audience
The Return of the Rangers
Tex Wyatt
The Adventures of Frank Merriwell
George Baldwin
42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
Self (archive footage)
Search for Beauty
Talent Contestant (uncredited)
Brothers of the West
Bart
Flaming Bullets
Dave Wyatt / Steve Carson
Billy the Kid Wanted
Jeff
The Fighting Renegade
Dr. Jerry Leonard
Man's Country
Bat
Undercover Agent
Billiards Player
Daughter of the Tong
Jerry Morgan
The Kettles in the Ozarks
Conductor
Yukon Flight
Constable Kelly
Sky Bandits
Constable Kelly
Seventh Column
Falstaff Pratt the Indestructible Man
Queen of the Yukon
Bob Adams
Three in the Saddle
Dave Wyatt
Boys of the City
Knuckles Dolan
Hold That Woman!
Miles Hanover
Danger Ahead
Corporal Kelly
Frontier Fugitives
Dave Wyatt
Sitting Pretty
Assistant Cameraman (uncredited)
Son of the Navy
Nelson
The Pinto Bandit
Tex Wyatt
Billy the Kid in Santa Fe
Texas Joe
Tomorrow's Children
Interne (uncredited)
Wyoming Outlaw
Acacia Park Game Warden
70,000 Witnesses
Football Player (uncredited)
Million Dollar Racket
Johnny Henessey
The Girl on the Front Page
Nightclub Patron
Boss of Rawhide
Tex Wyatt
West of Texas
Tex Wyatt
Code of the Cactus
Bob Swane
Trail of Terror
Tex Wyatt / Curly Wyatt
Lightnin' Crandall
Tommy Shannon
Where the Buffalo Roam
Jeff Gray
Flaming Lead
Frank Gordon
College Humor
Student
Born to Be Wild
Trucker (uncredited)
On the Spot
Charlie
Trigger Smith
Duke
Tahiti Nights
Jack
Double Trouble
Sparky Barton
Phantom Rancher
Henchman Lucke
T.V. of Tomorrow
Man on TV
Frontier Scout
Steve Norris
Bad Men of Thunder Gap
Tex Wyatt
Outlaws' Paradise
Henchman Meggs
Dead or Alive
Dave Wyatt
One Man's Journey
Dance Extra (uncredited)
The Black Coin
Terry Navarro
Fighting Valley
Tex Wyatt
Consolation Marriage
Man Picking Up Stack of Newspapers (uncredited)
Roar of the Dragon
Submarine Crewman
The Yanks Are Coming
Sgt. Callahan
Utah Trail
Mason - Bookkeeper
Good News
Student
Guns of the Law
Tex Wyatt
The Spider Returns
Jackson, Wentworth's Aide
The Cowboy from Sundown
Steve Davis
The Singing Cowgirl
Dick Williams
Gun Packer
Red Baker - Henchman
Things We Can Do Without
Thaddeus E. Thud III
Murder on the Yukon
Constable Kelly
Welcome Home
Stanley Phillips
Song of the Buckaroo
Tex Alden
Reducing
Man on Bench (uncredited)
Flying Wild
Tom Lawson
Rough Riding Rhythm
Detective Waters
We're Rich Again
Pete (uncredited)
Buzzy and the Phantom Pinto
Jim Dana
Prisoner of Japan
U. S. Marine
Water Rustlers
Bob Lawson
Billy the Kid's Smoking Guns
Jeff
Gun Code
Henchman Gale
Rollin' Westward
Ranch hand Red
I Love My Mother-In-Law But...
The Son-In-Law / Husband
Equestrian Quiz: What's Your I.Q.? No. 11
Horace
The Texas Marshal
Buzz Weston
I Love My Wife BUT!
The Husband
Did'ja Know?
Expectant Father / Greeting Card Shopper / Hospital Patient / Job Applicant
Movie Pests
Feet-in-the-Aisle Pest
The Fall Guy
Himself as Various Characters (archive footage)
Sportsman's Memories
Fabian Tecumseh 'Joe' Funk (uncredited)
Law and Order
Jeff Travis
Border Buckaroos
Tex Wyatt
Captain Midnight
Captain Albright / Captain Midnight
Outlaw Roundup
Tex Wyatt
Ain't It Aggravatin'
Parking Space Hog / Apartment House Manager / Frugal Man / Harry Hollowhead
Do Someone a Favor!
George Dibson
Carry Harry
Arthur - Harry's Friend
Sure Cures
Xavier T. Schneckendorf
Texas Wildcats
Ed Arden
Drifting Westward
Henchman Trigger
Wanted - A Master
Dog's Master (uncredited)
Cash Stashers
A Shmoe Named Joe
Calling All Pa's
Joe Thunderstruck
The Man Around the House
Hugo Hightonsil (uncredited)
I Love My Husband, But!
The Husband
Studio Visit
O'Brien
Safety Sleuth
Careless Man
Let's Cogitate
Oliver T. Aseltafel
I Love Children, But!
The Daddy
What About Daddy?
The Husband
Neighbor Pests
Just Suppose
Husband (uncredited)
Those Good Old Days
Wrong Way Butch
Butch
Treasures from Trash
Alonzo T. Mousebrain
Out for Fun
Businessman Seeking Relaxation
Have You Ever Wondered?
Husband / Driver / Man at Gumball Machine / Toupee Wearer
You Can't Win
Harried Homeowner
A Wife's Life
George T. Hardnose (uncredited)
Just What I Needed
Harry Horseknuckle