Coleman Francis

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Coleman Francis
BeastofYuccaFlatts005.jpg
Coleman Francis in a cameo in his film The Beast of Yucca Flats
Born
Coleman C. Francis

(1919-01-24)January 24, 1919
Greer County, Oklahoma, U.S.
DiedJanuary 15, 1973(1973-01-15) (aged 53)
Hollywood, California, U.S.
Resting placeWestwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
Other namesColey
Years active1948–1973
Spouse(s)Barbara Francis
Children2

Coleman C. Francis (January 24, 1919 – January 15, 1973) was an American actor, writer, producer and director. He was best known for his film trilogy consisting of The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961), The Skydivers (1963) and Red Zone Cuba (1966),[1] all three of which were filmed in the general vicinity of Santa Clarita, California.

Early life[]

Francis in 1937.

Francis was born in Greer County, Oklahoma in 1919. He was the son of William F. Francis and Scytha Estes. During the Great Depression, he moved to Texas.

Career[]

In the 1940s, Francis headed for Hollywood to start an acting career. He played minor parts in several films from the late 1940s to early 1970s, often without credit, including Blondie's Reward, Scarlet Angel, The Girl in White, This Island Earth, She Couldn't Say No, Twilight for the Gods, P. J. and Motorpsycho. 1958 brought his first credited role, Stakeout on Dope Street, where he played a detective. His last notable work in the film industry was in 1970, when he played a drunk in Russ Meyer's Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.[2]

In 1959, Francis formed a partnership with Anthony "Tony" Cardoza, a welder by trade, and together they created three films: The Beast of Yucca Flats (1961), The Skydivers (1963) and Red Zone Cuba (1966). Francis wrote and directed the films, while Cardoza handled production duties.

Personal life[]

Francis married Barbara Francis, and while the two had divorced prior to the filming of The Beast of Yucca Flats,[3] she was cast as Lois Radcliffe in Beast and appeared as the wife of a spectator (played by Coleman) in its follow-up, The Skydivers. They had two sons, Alan and Ronald, who appeared as Art and Randy Radcliffe in The Beast of Yucca Flats and the spectator's sons in The Skydivers.

Death[]

Francis died in California on January 15, 1973 at the age of 53. Though arteriosclerosis is listed as the official cause of death, Cardoza says Francis' body was found in the back of a station wagon at the Vine Street Ranch Market with "a plastic bag over his head and a tube going into his mouth or around his throat".[4] Francis is interred at the Columbarium of Remembrance in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Legacy[]

After fading into obscurity for decades, Francis' three directed films gained cult status after being featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000[5][6] in the mid-1990s,[7] where they became infamous for their poor production values, repetitive plot devices, meandering and incomprehensible storylines, and stilted acting. Some critics have characterized Francis as being the worst director of all-time, even suggesting that he may surpass Ed Wood in terms of ineptitude. Hallmarks of Francis' films include preoccupation with light aircraft and parachuting,[8] coffee or cigarettes serving as props or centers of conversation and vigilante-style gunning down of suspects without trial at the films' conclusions.[9][10]

Coleman Francis uses edits like blunt instruments. He uses blunt instruments like blunt instruments. His major themes are death, hatefulness, death, pain, and death. He looks like Curly Howard possessed by demons from Hell. He tried to pass off Lake Mead as the Caribbean Sea. His films have the moral compass of David Berkowitz.

— Kevin Murphy; Mystery Science Theater 3000[11]

He was also the subject on the 2021 James J O'Meara book Passing the Buck: Coleman Francis and Other Cinematic Metaphysicians.[12]

Filmography[]

Actor (films)[]

Actor (television)[]

  • Sergeant Preston of the Yukon (4 episodes, 1955–1957)
  • Highway Patrol (1 episode, 1959)
  • Dragnet (3 episodes, 1957–1959)
  • M Squad (1 episode, 1960)
  • Tales of Wells Fargo (1 episode, 1961)

Director[]

References[]

  1. ^ TV Guide
  2. ^ BFI
  3. ^ Weaver, Tom. "Anthony Cardoza's Tor of the Desert". bmonster.com.
  4. ^ Weaver, Tom. "Anthony Cardoza Recalls the Fallout From Yucca Flats". bmonster.com.
  5. ^ Mystery Science Theater 3000: Red Zone Cuba - DVD Talk
  6. ^ Our 10 Favorite 'Mystery Science Theater 3000' Episodes - Flavorwire
  7. ^ Mystery Science Theater 3000 Revisited|Cedar Mill & Bethany Community Libraries
  8. ^ The 19 Worst Movies Mystery Science Theater 3000 Ever Riffed |Gizmodo
  9. ^ Coleman Francis: The Real Worst Director in Film History - Paste
  10. ^ In the Peanut Gallery with Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Google Books (pg.62)
  11. ^ The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Amazing Colossal Episode Guide. Bantam Books. 1996. p. 134. ISBN 978-0553377835.
  12. ^ Amazon.com:Passing the Buck: Coleman Francis and Other Cinematic Metaphysicians

See also[]

External links[]

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