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Weldon Heyburn

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Name
  
Weldon Heyburn


Role
  
Character actor


Died
  
May 18, 1951, Los Angeles, California, United States

Spouse
  
Virginia Haggard (m. 1939), Greta Nissen (m. 1932–1936), Jane Eichelberger

Movies
  
The 13th Man, Sea Racketeers, Code of the Prairie, Call Her Savage, Atlantic Flight

Similar People
  
Greta Nissen, William Nigh, Cecil B DeMille, John Francis Dillon, Lesley Selander

Weldon heyburn


Weldon Heyburn (September 19, 1903 – May 18, 1951) was an American character actor and bit player.

Contents

1938 ROMANTIC COMEDY ~ beautiful Anne Nagel, talented Harry Davenport, Black White Classic TCM


Early years

The son of United States Army Col. Wyatt G. Franks, Heyburn was born Weldon Heyburn Franks September 19, 1903, in Washington, D.C. (Another source says he was born in Selma, Alabama.)

Heyburn attended Central High School and Emerson Institute in Washington, D.C., before attending the University of Alabama.

In the 1920s, Heyburn represented himself as "the son of Charles Heyburn, judge of the United States Supreme Court" and "the nephew of Weldon Heyburn, the late Senator of Iowa." The senator's niece denied any kinship, saying in 1925 that Heyburn was "an impostor if he persists in his claims," with other members of the family supporting her assertion.

Stage

In the mid-1920s, Heyburn was the "leading man in a Lansing, Mich., stock company." His Broadway credits include The Mystery Man (1927), Troyka (1930, Good Men and True (1935), and I Want a Policeman (1936).

Film

In 1931, Heyburn ventured into film. An August 31, 1931, newspaper article reported, "After playing leading man for such stage stars as Jeanne Eagels, Lenore Ulric and Mary Boland, he has given up the stage to become a feature screen player like his roommate and fellow gridiron player, John Mack Brown."

Military Service

During World War II, Heyburn served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps.

Personal life

In 1924, Heyburn married actress Phyllis Connard. They divorced October 15, 1926.

Heyburn married Norwegian star Greta Nissen March 30, 1932, in Tijuana, Mexico. They met when they appeared together in The Silent Witness (1932), she as the female lead, he as an unbilled player. On October 19, 1935, Nissen went to court to have the marriage annulled, "charging their marriage ... was illegal and violated legal witness and residence requirements." The annulment was granted April 30, 1936.

Heyburn married Jane Eichelberger ("prominent socially in New York and Cleveland") on May 5, 1936, at Heyburn's home in Brentwood, California.

Death

A drinking problem effectively ended his career in the mid-40's and his health rapidly declined. He entered the Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles suffering from cancer of the mouth, right adrenal and kidney and died there of pneumonia.

Filmography

Heyburn appeared in about 65 films from 1930 through 1950. They include:

References

Weldon Heyburn Wikipedia


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