death_date death_place years_active birth_place children birth_date spouse image article_title name occupation death_cause
1 september 1945 beverly hills , california , usa 1928-1945 boston , massachusetts , usa john craven 24 august 1881 mazie b. daly -lrb- ? - ? -rrb- frank craven 01.jpg frank craven
 frank craven actor , director , playwright , producer heart ailment
frank craven

frank craven -lrb- 24 august 18811 september 1945 -rrb- was an american stage and film actor , playwright , and screenwriter , best known for originating the role of the stage manager in thornton wilder 's `` our town '' .
craven was a character actor who often portrayed wry , small-town figures .
his first film role was in `` we americans '' -lrb- 1928 -rrb- , and he appeared in `` state fair '' -lrb- 1933 -rrb- , `` penrod and sam '' -lrb- 1937 -rrb- , `` jack london '' -lrb- 1943 -rrb- , and `` son of dracula '' -lrb- 1943 -rrb- , among many others .
he wrote numerous screenplays , most notably for the laurel and hardy film `` sons of the desert '' -lrb- 1933 -rrb- .
his imdb biography credits him with 16 writing credits and 2 directing credits .
in 1938 , craven played the stage manager in `` our town '' on broadway , and reprised the role in the 1940 film version of the play .
his son john craven starred as george gibbs in the stage version , a role played by william holden in the 1940 film .
craven died in 1945 , shortly after finishing his work in `` colonel effingham 's raid '' .
