Career Highlights: Mystery Man, Battling Butler, Call of the North
First Major Screen Credit: Love's Prisoner (1919)
Biography
Blessed with matinee idol looks, an athletic physique, and a generous supply of talent, Francis J. McDonald entered films in 1912 after brief stage experience. A popular leading man of the teen years, McDonald segued into villainous characterizations in the 1920s, notably as the title character in Buster Keaton's Battling Butler (1926). He remained busy during the talkie era, primarily as a mustachioed heavy in "B" westerns and a featured player in the films of Cecil B. DeMille. Francis J. McDonald was at one time the husband of the "ever popular" Mae Busch. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Francis McDonald (August 22, 1891 – September 18, 1968) was an Americanactor whose career spanned 52 years. Although never really a headlining actor, he made 41 film and television appearances between 1913 and 1965, appearing in films such as The Temptress in 1926 with Greta Garbo. His interment is located in Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery.