Volume III: Biographies

KELSEY, Fred A.

Director (1914-1916)

Thanhouser Career Synopsis: Fred A. Kelsey worked at the Thanhouser studio from about 1914 until 1916 and helped direct various pictures for the Mutual Film Corporation, including a Reliance film released under the Thanhouser name in 1914, and a few Thanhouser films during the first part of 1916.

Biographical Notes: Fred A. Kelsey was born on August 20, 1884 in Sandusky, Ohio. Following a high school education, he became a sailor on the Great Lakes and a worker in a lumber camp. Concurrently, he was interested in the stage, having first appeared in productions in 1895, playing juvenile parts. Later, he went on to play comedians and heavies in many productions, including Secret Service and The House of a Thousand Candles. He may have entered films in 1911 with Nestor (one account says 1909 with Griffith; and his obituary notices mention 1909), later working for Reliance-Majestic, Universal, and Fine Arts. His film credits included Desperate Desmond, Silent Sandy, Arms and the Gringo, Dan Morgan's Way, and others. For Reliance in 1914 he directed The Stronger Man, The Ceremonial Tortoise, and other films.

A biographical sketch in the October 1916 edition of the Motion Picture News Studio Directory noted that Fred A. Kelsey "was director with D.W. Griffith for two years; Thanhouser six months; and has been directing with Universal since June of this year." However, he had been with Universal earlier as well. From about 1914 onward he worked at the Thanhouser studio, but nearly all of his work was for the Reliance brand, including McCarn Plays Fate, released under the Thanhouser label in 1914. He started working with Thanhouser films in late 1915 and directed a number of pictures through late May 1916. During the week of March 27, 1916 he arrived in Jacksonville to work for a while at the Thanhouser studio there. The New Rochelle Pioneer, June 3, 1916, stated that he was among nearly two dozen Thanhouser players, directors, and cameramen whose employment was terminated on Saturday morning, May 27, 1916, when the outlook for the Thanhouser Film Corporation was bleak. He was not featured in Thanhouser publicity early in 1916, and he may have worked as an assistant director rather than a full director.

His recreational activities included baseball and swimming. In 1916 he was at Universal City, California. In 1917 he directed several Universal films under the Bison and Gold Seal labels, including The Outlaw and the Lady, The Wrong Man, and The Honor of an Outlaw. In 1918 his address was 1537 Vista Street, Los Angeles. In 1920 he directed The One-Way Trail for Republic. Among his silent films, he was especially proud of Yellow Dog, The Gorilla, and The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. For the last, which included Rudolph Valentino (and made him famous), Kelsey portrayed four different German officers. In the 1930s he was often cast as a policeman. Among his favorite sound film credits were On Trial and Tenderloin. Fred A. Kelsey remained in films through the mid-1950s and died at the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California on September 2, 1961, following an illness of several months. He was survived by a son and three grandchildren.

Thanhouser Filmography:

1914: McCarn Plays Fate (Reliance film released by Thanhouser 8-18-1914)

1916: The Spirit of '61 (5-4-1916), The Nymph (5-30-1916), Brothers Equal (6-13-1916), The Black Terror (9-29-1916)

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