Fred Kelsey
Acting • Born 1884-08-20 – Died 1961-09-02
Biography
Frederick Alvin Kelsey (August 20, 1884 – September 2, 1961) was an American actor, film director, and screenwriter. Kelsey directed one- and two-reel films for Universal Film Manufacturing Company. He appeared in more than 400 films between 1911 and 1958, often playing policemen or detectives. He also directed 37 films between 1914 and 1920. Kelsey was caricatured as the detective in the 1943 MGM cartoon Who Killed Who? directed by Tex Avery. He was born in Sandusky, Ohio and died at the Motion Picture Country Home in Hollywood, California, aged 77.
Filmography
289 credits
She Got What She Wanted
Movie • 1930
The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady
Movie • 1942
Policeman (uncredited)
Revenue Agent
Movie • 1950
Sgt. Wallace
Love Is News
Movie • 1937
Cop (uncredited)
That's My Baby
Movie • 1926
Murphy
Twentieth Century
Movie • 1934
Train Detective (uncredited)
Soft Cushions
Movie • 1927
The Police
The Yankee Consul
Movie • 1924
Agent John J. Doyle
Flamingo Road
Movie • 1949
Train Conductor (uncredited)
Subway Express
Movie • 1931
Detective Kearney
The Donovan Affair
Movie • 1929
Carney
Lights Out
Movie • 1923
Decker
One Frightened Night
Movie • 1935
Sheriff Jenks
Moving Vanities
Movie • 1939
Police Officer (uncredited)
Alias Jimmy Valentine
Movie • 1920
Bit Part (uncredited)
The Empty Cab
Movie • 1918
The Detective
Friendly Enemies
Movie • 1925
The Iceman's Ball
Movie • 1932
Police Sergeant
Frontier Days
Movie • 1945
Mayor Stone (uncredited)
Deserted at the Altar
Movie • 1922
The Other Man
Hans Christian Andersen
Movie • 1952
First Gendarme
One Clear Call
Movie • 1922
Starnes
Lovebound
Movie • 1923
Detective Hahn
Jewish Prudence
Movie • 1927
Rent Collector
The Crime Doctor
Movie • 1934
Bloodgood
Counter-Espionage
Movie • 1942
Dickens
So You Want a Raise
Movie • 1950
Roaring Guns
Movie • 1944
Trial by Trigger
Movie • 1944
Jerry (uncredited)
Storm Warning
Movie • 1951
Townsman (uncredited)
Hiss and Yell
Movie • 1946
Policeman (uncredited)
The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance
Movie • 1941
Detective Dickens
Tall Man Riding
Movie • 1955
Townsman (uncredited)
Northern Pursuit
Movie • 1943
Train Conductor (uncredited)
Springfield Rifle
Movie • 1952
Barfly (uncredited)
The Silver Chalice
Movie • 1954
Silversmith (uncredited)
Saratoga Trunk
Movie • 1945
Train Conductor (uncredited)
Manslaughter
Movie • 1922
Member of the Jury (uncredited)
Colorado Territory
Movie • 1949
Train Engineer (uncredited)
The Last Card
Movie • 1921
Detective (uncredited)
The Honor of an Outlaw
Movie • 1917
The Deputy
So You Think You're Not Guilty
Movie • 1950
Police Turnkey (uncredited)
If a Body Meets a Body
Movie • 1945
Detective
If I Had a Million
Movie • 1932
Prison Jailer (uncredited)
Discarded Lovers
Movie • 1932
Delaney
Murder in the Big House
Movie • 1942
"Screw"
Secrets of the Lone Wolf
Movie • 1941
Wesley Dickens
Seven Keys to Baldpate
Movie • 1925
Super-Sleuth
Movie • 1937
Jailer
That I May Live
Movie • 1937
Abner Jenkins
Danger Ahead
Movie • 1935
Detective O'Brien
Scarlet Pages
Movie • 1930
Murphy
The Moth
Movie • 1934
Detective Blake
Lightning Strikes Twice
Movie • 1934
Dugan
Arms and the Gringo
Movie • 1914
Murder on the Waterfront
Movie • 1943
Capt. Beal
To Catch a Thief
Movie • 1955
Party Guest (uncredited)
Lucky Me
Movie • 1954
Passerby on Street (uncredited)
Christmas in Connecticut
Movie • 1945
Harper (uncredited)
The Little Red Schoolhouse
Movie • 1936
First Detective
Say It with Babies
Movie • 1926
Policeman
The Wright Idea
Movie • 1928
M. T. Flatt
Backfire
Movie • 1950
Fight Fan (uncredited)
Illegal
Movie • 1955
Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Side Show
Movie • 1931
Sheriff Hornsby
The Crime of the Century
Movie • 1933
Police Guard (uncredited)
Love in High Gear
Movie • 1932
Detective Duffy
Atlantic Adventure
Movie • 1935
Police Officer Riley
Strictly Fresh Yeggs
Movie • 1934
Policeman
Ladies' Night in a Turkish Bath
Movie • 1928
Detective
The Woman Racket
Movie • 1930
Police Captain
My Favorite Blonde
Movie • 1942
Sam - Policeman
A Notorious Gentleman
Movie • 1935
Detective
A Gem of a Jam
Movie • 1943
Police Chief
Wide Open
Movie • 1930
Detective
The Girl Said No
Movie • 1930
Policeman
Road to Paradise
Movie • 1930
Casey
Don't Shoot
Movie • 1922
Police Officer
Guilty as Hell
Movie • 1932
Detective Duffy
Westbound
Movie • 1959
Townsman (uncredited)
Silent Sandy
Movie • 1914
Silent Sandy
Death Flies East
Movie • 1935
Police Lieutenant O'Brien
Andy Plays Hookey
Movie • 1946
Policeman
Lady Gangster
Movie • 1942
Policeman (uncredited)
The Silk Lined Burglar
Movie • 1919
Capt. von Hoffmeier
Tiny Troubles
Movie • 1939
Judge
Larceny, Inc.
Movie • 1942
Bronson
There Are No Villains
Movie • 1921
Dugall
The Yellow Dog
Movie • 1918
Max Kummich
Bullet Scars
Movie • 1942
Police Chief Hansen
The Faker
Movie • 1929
Police Detective
Tenderloin
Movie • 1928
Detective Simpson
Hot Money
Movie • 1935
Police Officer Kelsey (as Fred A. Kelsey)
Harold Teen
Movie • 1928
Mr. Lovewell
X Marks the Spot
Movie • 1942
Police Officer Martin
At Sea Ashore
Movie • 1936
Cop (uncredited)
Souls for Sale
Movie • 1923
Detective Quinn (uncredited)
Red Haired Alibi
Movie • 1932
Corcoran
Detour to Danger
Movie • 1946
Det. Kelsey
Room for One More
Movie • 1952
The Night Hawk
Movie • 1924
I'll Be Suing You
Movie • 1934
Insurance Adjustor
Love and Hisses
Movie • 1937
Officer
Josette
Movie • 1938
Hotel Detective
I'll Tell the World
Movie • 1934
Sergeant at Border
Night Spot
Movie • 1938
Police Band Leader
While the City Sleeps
Movie • 1928
Detective in Shadow Box
Tell No Tales
Movie • 1939
Policeman at School (uncredited)
Everybody's Doing It
Movie • 1938
Police Sergeant
The Enforcer
Movie • 1951
Scandal Sheet
Movie • 1931
Detective Sgt. Vincent Molloy
Going Wild
Movie • 1930
The Conductor
Captain Fly-by-Night
Movie • 1922
Gomez
The Gorilla
Movie • 1927
Mulligan
A Star Is Born
Movie • 1954
Audience Member (uncredited)
The Laurel-Hardy Murder Case
Movie • 1930
Chief of Detectives (uncredited)
Only Saps Work
Movie • 1930
Murphy (uncredited)
King of the Jungle
Movie • 1933
Cop (uncredited)
The Eleventh Hour
Movie • 1923
The Submarine Commander
Rough Riders' Round-up
Movie • 1939
Agitator
Charlie Chan in Reno
Movie • 1939
Reno Desk Sergeant (uncredited)
The Lady Escapes
Movie • 1937
Man on telephone (uncredited)
Heaven with a Barbed Wire Fence
Movie • 1939
Pete - Railroad Detective
Chicken Wagon Family
Movie • 1939
Policeman
Charlie Chan at Treasure Island
Movie • 1939
Detective - in Cab and at Theatre
Quiet Please!
Movie • 1933
Train Conductor
The Uneasy Three
Movie • 1925
O. Henry's Full House
Movie • 1952
Mr. Schultz (segment "The Gift of the Magi")
A Stolen Life
Movie • 1946
Bartender (uncredited)
The Lone Wolf Keeps a Date
Movie • 1940
Dickens
The Lone Wolf Strikes
Movie • 1940
Dickens
The Lone Wolf Meets a Lady
Movie • 1940
Dickens
Mutiny in the County
Movie • 1940
Policeman
Outlaw's Son
Movie • 1954
The Man Who Wouldn't Talk
Movie • 1940
Bailiff
Crime Wave
Movie • 1953
Old Man Crossing Street (uncredited)
Mildred Pierce
Movie • 1945
Bumped First Night Diner (uncredited)
Here Comes Mr. Zerk
Movie • 1943
Policeman
Little Annie Rooney
Movie • 1925
Desk Sergeant (uncredited)
Snooper Service
Movie • 1945
Crime by Night
Movie • 1944
Dad Martin (uncredited)
Sailor's Luck
Movie • 1933
Cop
High Tension
Movie • 1936
Desk Sergeant
Time Out for Romance
Movie • 1937
Policeman
Rough Necking
Movie • 1934
Joe Cuttlehammer Sr.
Atta Boy
Movie • 1926
Detective
Wrong Again
Movie • 1929
Deadwood Dick
Movie • 1940
Bottles
Auntie Mame
Movie • 1958
Front Row Audience at Play (uncredited)
Huddle
Movie • 1932
Policeman (uncredited)
Misbehaving Husbands
Movie • 1940
Sgt. Murphy
Horses' Collars
Movie • 1935
Detective Hyden Zeke (uncredited)
One Mile from Heaven
Movie • 1937
Smitty - Policeman
Gentleman Jim
Movie • 1942
Sutro (uncredited)
The Golden Fleecing
Movie • 1940
Cop (uncredited)
Mr. Skeffington
Movie • 1944
Cop in Raid (uncredited)
The Green Archer
Movie • 1940
Capt. Thompson
At the Stroke of Twelve
Movie • 1941
Police Sergeant
So You Want to Hold Your Husband
Movie • 1950
Lamb - Curry's Partner
Thank Your Lucky Stars
Movie • 1943
Pub Waiter in Errol Flynn Number (uncredited)
Yoo-Hoo
Movie • 1932
Detective
Paths to Paradise
Movie • 1925
Confederate
The Damned Don't Cry
Movie • 1950
Man on Dock (uncredited)
Never Say Goodbye
Movie • 1946
Policeman (uncredited)
Big Business
Movie • 1937
Oil Man at Well
Diamond Jim
Movie • 1935
Horsley's Secretary
The Witness Chair
Movie • 1936
Detective Costigan
Seven Sinners
Movie • 1925
Policeman
Invisible Ghost
Movie • 1941
Detective Ryan
Bromo and Juliet
Movie • 1926
The Detective (uncredited)
Carnival
Movie • 1935
Bit Part
Crazy Like a Fox
Movie • 1926
Man with Badge on Train (uncredited)
Wild Bill Hickok Rides
Movie • 1942
Jailer
They Died with Their Boots On
Movie • 1941
Ft. Lincoln Bartender (uncredited)
On Trial
Movie • 1928
Clerk
Naughty Baby
Movie • 1928
Dugan
How DOooo You Do
Movie • 1945
Detective
Food and Magic
Movie • 1943
Slave Ship
Movie • 1937
Seaman at Auction
Straight, Place and Show
Movie • 1938
Cop at Racetrack
Mexican Spitfire Out West
Movie • 1940
Jim - Detective
Angel's Holiday
Movie • 1937
Conductor
Clock Wise
Movie • 1939
Landlord
Mr. District Attorney
Movie • 1941
Officer McCloskey
Pacific Blackout
Movie • 1941
Cop
High School
Movie • 1940
Junk Man
Spy Ship
Movie • 1942
Night Watchman
I Was Framed
Movie • 1942
Drunk
The Last Warning
Movie • 1928
Inspector
Young Donovan's Kid
Movie • 1931
Collins
Berth Quakes
Movie • 1938
Train Conductor
Dear! Deer!
Movie • 1942
Policeman
One Dangerous Night
Movie • 1943
Detective Dickens
Action in the North Atlantic
Movie • 1943
Joe (uncredited)
So You Think You're a Nervous Wreck
Movie • 1946
Fred
A Woman of Affairs
Movie • 1928
Detective (uncredited)
Borrowing Trouble
Movie • 1937
Policeman
Safety in Numbers
Movie • 1938
Cop
Down on the Farm
Movie • 1938
Bit Role
Too Busy to Work
Movie • 1939
Hank Fidler
True to Life
Movie • 1943
Cop (uncredited)
Old Acquaintance
Movie • 1943
Train Conductor / Man at Radio Broadcast (uncredited)
The Unfaithful
Movie • 1947
Courtroom Spectator
Three Strangers
Movie • 1946
Man on the Street / Man in Pub (uncredited)
The Opposite Sex
Movie • 1956
Club Patron (uncredited)
Boys Will Be Boys
Movie • 1932
Doorman
A Society Sensation
Movie • 1918
JIm Cox
The Inspector General
Movie • 1949
Villager (uncredited)
So You Want to Play the Horses
Movie • 1946
Detective (uncredited)
Among the Missing
Movie • 1934
Police Sgt. Murphy
Make Your Own Bed
Movie • 1944
Turnkey
The Third Degree
Movie • 1926
Assistant Chief of Detectives
Dancing in the Dark
Movie • 1949
Deputy
The Thirteenth Hour
Movie • 1927
Det. Shaw
Homicide
Movie • 1949
Officer O'Brien
The Fountainhead
Movie • 1949
Old Watchman (uncredited)
The Song of Life
Movie • 1922
Police Inspector
My Six Convicts
Movie • 1952
Store Detective
The Naughty Flirt
Movie • 1931
Policeman (uncredited)
She Had to Eat
Movie • 1937
Police Officer Tracy (uncredited)
The Noose Hangs High
Movie • 1948
Cop (uncredited)
The 13th Juror
Movie • 1927
The Detective
The Man Who Came to Dinner
Movie • 1941
Detective (uncredited)
Serenade
Movie • 1956
Opera Attendee (uncredited)
Puppets of Fate
Movie • 1921
Bobs
So You Want to Know Your Relatives
Movie • 1954
Mr. Watson (uncredited)
School for Girls
Movie • 1934
Detective
The Light of Victory
Movie • 1919
Captain Eric von Prohme
Goodbye, My Fancy
Movie • 1951
Party Guest (Uncredited)
In This Our Life
Movie • 1942
Jailer (uncredited)
The Flame and the Arrow
Movie • 1950
Guard (uncredited)
Shopping with Wifie
Movie • 1932
Det. Dugan
So You Want to Enjoy Life
Movie • 1952
Boat Salesman / Flugleman's Assistant (uncredited)
Private Number
Movie • 1936
Detective in Ellen's Apartment (Uncredited)
Wild and Woolly
Movie • 1937
Policeman (uncredited)
So You Want an Apartment
Movie • 1948
Apartment Manager with a Vacancy (uncredited)
Come Out Fighting
Movie • 1945
Mr. McGinnis, Sr. (as Fred Kelsy)
The Garden Murder Case
Movie • 1936
Heath's Assistant (Uncredited)
Men Without Law
Movie • 1930
Deputy Sheriff Jeff
Excuse Me
Movie • 1925
George Ketchem
Beloved
Movie • 1934
Mulvaney
A Left Hook
Movie • 1911
The Lawful Cheater
Movie • 1925
Tom Horan
The Sagebrush Troubadour
Movie • 1935
Hank Polk
The Public Menace
Movie • 1935
Mike - Cop
The Strange Mr. Gregory
Movie • 1945
Lefert
Many Sappy Returns
Movie • 1938
Finnegan
One Foot in Heaven
Movie • 1941
Train Conductor (uncredited)
Dog Shy
Movie • 1926
Cop
The Fire Flingers
Movie • 1919
Sgt. Powers
Murder on the Roof
Movie • 1930
Ryan
The Mystery Pilot
Movie • 1926
Skipper Larsen
Bag and Baggage
Movie • 1923
Fred
Smiling Irish Eyes
Movie • 1929
County Fair Manager
There Ain't No Santa Claus
Movie • 1926
Store Detective (uncredited)
Nora Prentiss
Movie • 1947
Turnkey (uncredited)
Night and Day
Movie • 1946
First-Nighter (uncredited)
So You Want to Be a Muscle Man
Movie • 1949
Delivery Man
Murder Without Tears
Movie • 1953
Sergeant-at-Arms
So You Want to Be an Actor
Movie • 1949
Counter Man
The Man I Love
Movie • 1946
Mac the Doorman (uncredited)
So You Think You Can't Sleep
Movie • 1953
Sleeping patient in waiting room
So You Want to Be a Musician
Movie • 1953
Restaurant diner
Strangers on a Train
Movie • 1951
Tennis Match Spectator / Carnival Attendee (uncredited)
Speak Easily
Movie • 1932
Process Server
Orchids and Ermine
Movie • 1927
Police Sergeant
Screen Snapshots Series 10, No. 1
Movie • 1930
Self - Tour Guide
South of Suva
Movie • 1922
Karl Swartz
Plastered in Paris
Movie • 1928
Shine on Harvest Moon
Movie • 1944
Policeman in patrol car (uncredited)
Youth and Adventure
Movie • 1925
Red Mullin
Carson City
Movie • 1952
Townsman (uncredited)
Shoot-Out At Medicine Bend
Movie • 1957
Barfly (uncredited)
Riding Shotgun
Movie • 1954
Townsman (uncredited)
Held by the Law
Movie • 1927
Detective
Silver River
Movie • 1948
Townsman (uncredited)
The Bowery
Movie • 1933
Detective Kelsey (uncredited)
The Helen Morgan Story
Movie • 1957
Night Club Patron (uncredited)
The Off-Shore Pirate
Movie • 1921
Sailor
The Match-Breaker
Movie • 1921
Detective
The Trial of Vivienne Ware
Movie • 1932
Cop (uncredited)
The People's Choice
Movie • 1946
Shadows of Sing Sing
Movie • 1933
Murphy
The Third Generation
Movie • 1920
Brody
Phantom of the Rue Morgue
Movie • 1954
Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Racing Blood
Movie • 1954
Smithy
The Social Highwayman
Movie • 1926
Chief of Police
Traffic in Hearts
Movie • 1924
Tim Tracy
The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok
TV • 1951
Doc Jones (uncredited)