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Francis DeSales

American actor (1912-1988)

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJun 21, 2026
Entity authorityQ8962247 ↗
Source-derived summary

Francis DeSales (March 23, 1912 – September 25, 1988) was an American actor known for playing Harold Faller in The Big Story, Sheriff Maddox in Two Faces West, and Ralph Dobson in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.

Biography

Born in Philadelphia, DeSales was survived by his wife Doris when he died of cancer at his home in Van Nuys at the age of 76. DeSales is interred in Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Rowland Heights, California.

Film roles

Mr. and Mrs. North (1954, TV Series) - Lieutenant Bill Weigan

Headline Hunters (1955) - Tribune Reporter (uncredited)

Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1956) (Season 2 Episode 9: Crack of Doom") - Card Player

Terror at Midnight (1956) - Police Lieutenant Conway

The Girl He Left Behind (1956) - Army Psychiatrist (uncredited)

Leave It To Beaver (1957) (Season 1 Episode 7) "Water, Anyone?) - Mr. Anderson

All Mine to Give (1957) - Mr. Stephens

The Unholy Wife (1957) - John Hayward, Defense Attorney (uncredited)

Portland Exposé (1957) - Alfred Grey (uncredited)

The Wayward Girl (1957) - Investigator Butler

Jailhouse Rock (1957) - Surgeon (uncredited)

The Hard Man (1957) - Captain Peters (uncredited)

Return to Warbow (1958) - Sheriff (uncredited)

Darby's Rangers (1958) - Captain (uncredited)

Too Much, Too Soon (1958) - Imperial Pictures Executive (uncredited)

The Lineup (1958) - Chester McPhee (uncredited)

The High Cost of Loving (1958) - Charles Blake (uncredited)

No Time for Sergeants (1958) - Sergeant T.C. Payne (uncredited)

Apache Territory (1958) - Sergeant Sheehan

Senior Prom (1958) - Carter Breed

Revolt in the Big House (1958) - Chief of Detectives (uncredited)

Perry Mason (1959) (Season 2, Episode 16: "The Case of the Fraudulent Photo") - George Fairbanks

Up Periscope (1959) - Captain Quinn (uncredited)

Face of a Fugitive (1959) - Deputy Sheriff George Allison

It Started with a Kiss (1959) - Car Company Representative (uncredited)

Operation Petticoat (1959) - Captain Kress (uncredited)

Psycho (1960) - Deputy District Attorney Alan Deats (uncredited)

Sunrise at Campobello (1960) - Riley (uncredited)

Let No Man Write My Epitaph (1960) - Night Court Magistrate

A Fever in the Blood (1961) - Conventioneer (uncredited)

The Police Dog Story (1961) - Captain Dietrich

When the Clock Strikes (1961) - Warden

The Honeymoon Machine (1961) - U.S. Senator (uncredited)

The Flight that Disappeared (1961) - George Manson (uncredited)

A Majority of One (1961) - American Embassy Representative

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1964) (Season 2 Episode 14: "Beyond the Sea of Death") - Lieutenant Farrell

A Global Affair (1964) - U.S. Delegate (uncredited)

Kisses for My President (1964) - Reporter (uncredited)

The Third Day (1965) - Sanford - Board Member (uncredited)

The Plainsman (1966) - Gambler (uncredited)

Sweet November (1968) - Armstrong

The Arrangement (1969) - Presentation Executive (uncredited)

Tora! Tora! Tora!

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Francis DeSales” as american actor (1912-1988). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA useful biographical orientation record, particularly for establishing names, roles and a first chronology. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1912, 1988, 1954, 1955—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1912-03-23. The account is most persuasive where Francis, DeSales and American can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the people & ideas register because the source frames it as american actor (1912-1988). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q8962247. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1912, 1988, 1954 and 1955.

Critical limits

A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Francis DeSales”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Francis DeSales primary sources, Francis DeSales archive and Francis research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Francis DeSales”?
  2. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
  3. Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Francis DeSales” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.