Frankie Darro (born Frank Johnson, Jr.; December 22, 1917 â€" December
25, 1976) was an American actor and later in his career a stuntman. He
began his career as a child actor in silent films, progressed to lead
roles and co-starring roles in adventure, western, dramatic, and
comedy films, and later became a character actor and voice-over
artist. He is perhaps best known for his role as Lampwick, the unlucky
boy who turns into a donkey in Walt Disney's second animated feature,
Pinocchio (1940). In early credits, his last name was spelled
Darrow.Frankie Darro was born on Saturday, December 22, 1917, in
Chicago, Illinois, as Frank Johnson, Jr. His parents, Frank Johnson,
Sr. and his wife Ada, were known as The Flying Johnsons, a flying
circus act with the Sells Floto Circus; it was a profession that his
father attempted to train him in, and he cured Frankie's fear of
heights by having him walk on a length of wire, gradually raising the
height of it until his son had mastered the trick.In 1922, while the
circus was in California, his parents divorced, and their circus act
ended along with their marriage. The growing film industry, however,
found a use for a small child who could do his own stunts, and the
young Johnson, renamed "Frankie Darro," appeared in his first film at
the age of six.As a child actor, he appeared in many silent adventure,
western, and serial pictures of the 1920s. His visual appeal and his
obvious comfort before the cameras kept him steadily employed. Darro
remained popular in serials as the star or co-star; he appeared in the
serial The Phantom Empire, opposite the new cowboy star Gene Autry.
25, 1976) was an American actor and later in his career a stuntman. He
began his career as a child actor in silent films, progressed to lead
roles and co-starring roles in adventure, western, dramatic, and
comedy films, and later became a character actor and voice-over
artist. He is perhaps best known for his role as Lampwick, the unlucky
boy who turns into a donkey in Walt Disney's second animated feature,
Pinocchio (1940). In early credits, his last name was spelled
Darrow.Frankie Darro was born on Saturday, December 22, 1917, in
Chicago, Illinois, as Frank Johnson, Jr. His parents, Frank Johnson,
Sr. and his wife Ada, were known as The Flying Johnsons, a flying
circus act with the Sells Floto Circus; it was a profession that his
father attempted to train him in, and he cured Frankie's fear of
heights by having him walk on a length of wire, gradually raising the
height of it until his son had mastered the trick.In 1922, while the
circus was in California, his parents divorced, and their circus act
ended along with their marriage. The growing film industry, however,
found a use for a small child who could do his own stunts, and the
young Johnson, renamed "Frankie Darro," appeared in his first film at
the age of six.As a child actor, he appeared in many silent adventure,
western, and serial pictures of the 1920s. His visual appeal and his
obvious comfort before the cameras kept him steadily employed. Darro
remained popular in serials as the star or co-star; he appeared in the
serial The Phantom Empire, opposite the new cowboy star Gene Autry.
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