Hamilton MacFadden

Hamilton MacFadden (April 26, 1901 – January 1, 1977) was an American actor, screenwriter and film director.

Early years MacFadden's parents were Rev. Robert A. MacFadden and Edith Hamilton MacFadden. His father died in 1909, leaving his mother to support herself and four children. In 1928, she became the first woman to file papers to run for governor of Massachusetts.

Career MacFadden was a 1925 graduate of Harvard University. Soon after graduating, he became producer of the American Theatre Company, which presented plays for 10 weeks in the Boston area. The project was backed by Michael Strange, a writer who made her professional stage debut in the productions. He also served as director of the Community Arts Association in Santa Barbara, California, and the Theatre Guild School of Acting in New York.

Plays that MacFadden produced on Broadway included Gods of the Lightning and La Gringa. He was released from his Fox contract following the 1934 merger with Twentieth Century Pictures. Thereafter he mixed occasional directing jobs with a number of small supporting appearances in films.

Later in his career, MacFadden was associate chief of the United States Department of State's international motion picture division. She obtained a divorce from him on September 20, 1933. On September 29, 1934, he married actress Ruth Channing in Santa Barbara, California; they were divorced in 1949. He married actress Vada Roberts Ward on October 29, 1949, in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Selected filmography

Director Harmony at Home (1930) Crazy That Way (1930) Oh, For a Man! (1930) Are You There? (1930) Charlie Chan Carries On (1931) The Black Camel (1931) Riders of the Purple Sage (1931) Charlie Chan's Greatest Case (1933) As Husbands Go (1934) Stand Up and Cheer! (1934) Sea Racketeers (1937) The Legion of Missing Men (1937) Escape by Night (1937) It Can't Last Forever (1937) Three Legionnaires (1937) Inside the Law (1942)

Actor

The Black Camel (1931) - Val Martino (uncredited) Keep Smiling (1938) - Director (uncredited) Time Out for Murder (1938) - One of the Reporters (uncredited) Touchdown, Army (1938) - Coach Shelby (uncredited) Five of a Kind (1938) - Andrew Gordon Tarnished Angel (1938) - Reverend Summers Sharpshooters (1938) - Bowman While New York Sleeps (1938) - Pete - Reporter (uncredited) Pardon Our Nerve (1939) - Announcer (uncredited) Unmarried (1939) - Assistant Coach (uncredited) Charlie Chan in Reno (1939) - Night Clerk The Jones Family in Hollywood (1939) - Townsend - Director Chicken Wagon Family (1939) - Auctioneer Shooting High (1940) - J. Wallace Rutledge The Lady in Question (1940) - Guard (uncredited) Pier 13 (1940) - Reporter (uncredited) Yesterday's Heroes (1940) - Reporter (uncredited) Michael Shayne, Private Detective (1940) - Reporter (uncredited) The Reluctant Dragon (1941) - Himself Ride, Kelly, Ride (1941) - Race Track Steward Sleepers West (1941) - Conductor Meyers Dressed to Kill (1941) - Reporter Charlie Chan in Rio (1941) - Bill Kellogg Young America (1942) - Jim Benson Wilson (1944) - Minor Role (uncredited) (final film role)