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Record #3298
Name :
: Samuel JONES (1898 - 1966)
  aka : Wallace Ford


Father
:
Mother
:
BMD and other details
Date of Birth
: 12 Feb 1898

Marriage (1)
:
Marriage (2)
:

Date of Death
: 11 Jun 1966   Notes : Heart Attack
Abode (1) : Place of BirthEngland, Lancashire, Bolton
Abode (2) : Place of Death / BurialUnited States of America, California, Los Angeles
Sailing Information
Date of Arrival
: 1 Jul 1905
Country
: Canada

Ship
: Southwark

Placement Family
:
Homes / Agencys
Institution (GB)
:

Agency
: Barnardos
NotesIn 1902, Samuel Jones, 3 years of age, was placed in Barnardos Home in London.

In 1905, Samuel Jones, 7, arrived in Quebec, Canada with a group of 163 children (162 boys and 1 girl) en route to Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Placed with a farmer who mistreated him, Samuel ran away. It is not sure when he changed his name, but he became Wallace Ford by the age of 11 when he first set foot on stage, playing in vaudeville and music halls before working his way up to Broadway.

Once there was a film historian who opined that Wallace Ford was in more movies than any other character actor of his prominence. This is unlikely, but Ford was certainly kept busy in roles of all shapes and sizes during his 35-year movie career.

His inauspicious feature-film debut was in Swellhead (1931), a baseball melodrama which lay on the shelf for nearly five years before its release. He went on to play wisecracking leading roles in such "B movies" as Night of Terror (1933), The Nut Farm (1935) and The Mystery of Mr. Wong (1935); the critics paid no heed to these minor efforts, though they always showered Ford with praise for his supporting roles in films like John Ford's The Informer (1935) and Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt (1943). He occasionally took a leave of absence from films to accept a stage role; in 1937, he created the part of George in the original Broadway production of Of Mice and Men (1937). As he grew balder and stockier, he remained in demand for middle-aged character roles, often portraying wistful drunks or philosophical ne'er-do-wells. His filmography included, "The Beast of the City" (1932), "Night of Terror" (1933), "The Informer" (1935) co-starring Victor McLaglen, "The Mummy's Hand" (1940), "The Mummy's Tomb" (1942), Alfred Hitchcock's film "Shadow of a Doubt" (1943) co-starring Joseph Cotton, Hitchcock's film "Spellbound" (1945) co-starring Ingrid Bergman, "The Great John L." (1945) co-starring Linda Darnell, "Dead Reckoning" (1947) co-starring Humphrey Bogart, "Harvey" (1950) co-starring James Stewart, and "The Rainmaker" (1956) co-starring Burt Lancaster.

Samuel/Wallace spent 21 years searching for his biological mother, an unusual occurrence in the 1930's. Despite obstacles and hurdles, Samuel did finally find his mother, Catherine Jones, known locally as "Mam Kit," living in an auto trailer beside the river at Northwich, Cheshire, England. She married to a match seller known as Blind Dan. Without the benefits of DNA back then, Samuel went to visit her and, after talking to her for 5 hours, became convinced she was the mother he had sought for so many years.

Samuel/Wallace began his search while on the Broadway stage in 1915. The only clue he had was her name - Catherine Jones. Through his film connections in 1935, Los Angeles police got in touch with Scotland Yard, which in turn, narrowed the search to Lancashire. A letter from a scrap iron merchant at Northwich, Samuel/Wallace was informed about "Mam Kit". Through an aunt, Mrs. Mary Beddoes of Birkdale, Southport, who placed him in the foundlings home in Liverpool originally, he definitely established the relationship with "Mam". Mrs. Beddoes had not seen his mother for thirty years. Samuel said, upon satisfying himself of Catherine Jones' identity, "I'm glad it is all over. I'm going to get a little house in Northwich where my mother and her husband can spend the rest of their days in peace. She has had a hard life".

Wallace Ford ended his film career with his powerful portrayal of Elizabeth Hartman's vacillating father in A Patch of Blue (1965). Wallace Ford / Samuel Jones died of a heart attack on June 11, 1966, in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California. He is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California. 
ContributorsCreated : 2008-03-07 12:50:07 / From original database

Last Updated : 2009-02-01 10:48:16 /

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Surnames starting with:   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  30 Entries        
Page: [1] 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 744 Entries        
IDNameDOBPlace of birthArrivals & ShipsDest.AgencyFamily links
3004 AARON, Alfred Robert1899ENG, LAN, West Derby, Liverpool Mar 1911 : Sicilian CAN Barnardos  
3003 AARON, John Richard1895ENG, LAN, West Derby, Liverpool Mar 1911 : Sicilian CAN Barnardos  
3014 ABBOTT, Adelaide1872ENG, LAN, Manchester Jul 1876 : Sardinian CAN MacPherson Homes  
3017 ABBOTT, Alexander1879ENG, LAN, Blackburn May 1889 : Polynesian CAN Salford Catholic Protection and Rescue Society  
3018 ABBOTT, John William1877ENG, LAN, Manchester May 1889 : Polynesian CAN Salford Catholic Protection and Rescue Society  
3092 ABRAHAMS, Amy1892ENG, LAN, Toxteth Park Mar 1897 : Numidian CAN Louisa Birt  
3097 ABRAHAMS, Percy1890ENG, LAN, Toxteth Park Mar 1897 : Numidian CAN Louisa Birt  
3121 ACKERLEY, John1888ENG, LAN, Liverpool May 1900 : Vancouver CAN Liverpool Sheltering Home  
3122 ACKERLEY, Thomas William1886ENG, LAN, Liverpool May 1900 : Vancouver CAN Liverpool Sheltering Home  
3163 ADAIR, Millicent1880ENG, LAN, Liverpool Jul 1897 : Parisian CAN Louisa Birt  
13137 ADAMSON, Arthur1893ENG, LAN, Bury May 1905 : Victorian CAN Maria Rye  
8819 ADAMSON, John 1891ENG, LAN, Oldham May 1905 : Victorian CAN Maria Rye  
9868 ADAMSON, John1897ENG, LAN, Liverpool Jun 1906 : Victorian CAN Louisa Birt  
3970 ADDISON, Florence1893ENG, LAN, Liverpool May 1908 : Corsican CAN Louisa Birt  
12851 ADDISON, Gertrude1886ENG, LAN, Manchester May 1899 : Dominion CAN Marchmont Homes (now Barnardos)  
9143 ADDY, Albert William H.1893ENG, LAN, Liverpool Feb 1907 : Victorian CAN Louisa Birt  
17080 ADGEY, Robert Hugh1885ENG, LAN, Liverpool Mar 1902 : Dominion CAN Louisa Birt  
8820 AINDOW, Albert Edward1894ENG, LAN, Formby Jun 1911 : Virginian CAN Sailing Alone  
5658 AINSWORTH, Ellen 1895ENG, LAN, Liverpool Oct 1906 : Dominion CAN Barnardos  
5662 AINSWORTH, Mary1896ENG, LAN, Liverpool Oct 1906 : Dominion CAN Barnardos  
2852 AIRD, Arthur1895ENG, LAN Apr 1911 : Tunisian CAN MacPherson Homes  
17052 ALDRED, Eric Woodman1894ENG, LAN, Manchester  Apr 1910 : Victorian CAN MacPherson Homes  
7961 ALEXANDER, George1913ENG, LAN, Fleetwood Apr 1930 : Letitia CAN Church Army  
26974 ALEXANDER, Reginald Gordon1917ENG, LAN, West Derby Jan 1928 : Barrabool AUS Fairbridge Homes  
5048 ALLAN, Robert 1914ENG, LAN, Liverpool Mar 1930 : Duchess of Richmond CAN Barnardos  
2735 ALLEN, Harry Edward1898ENG, LAN Jul 1908 : Canada CAN National Childrens Home  
20154 ALLEY, Clara Celia1894ENG, LAN, Liverpool May 1911 : Corsican CAN Louisa Birt  
20159 ALLEY, Emma1891ENG, LAN, Liverpool May 1911 : Corsican CAN Louisa Birt  
6312 ALLEY, Henry Herbert1896ENG, LAN, Liverpool May 1910 : Corsican CAN Louisa Birt  
4706 ALMOND, Elizabeth1879ENG, LAN, Newton, Manchester May 1891 : Oregon CAN Boys and Girls Refuge (Manchester)  
IDNameDOBPlace of birthArrivals & ShipsDest.AgencyFamily links
Page: [1] 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 744 Entries        
Surnames starting with:   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  30 Entries