James Dannaldson

James Melven Dannaldson (born July 17, 1915, Omaha, Nebraska, died August 12, 1984, Tarzana, California (age 69)) starred in the Frank Buck film Jacaré.

James Dannaldson
Frank Buck (left) and James Dannaldson in Jacaré (1942)
BornJuly 17, 1915
Omaha, Nebraska
DiedAugust 12, 1984 (age 69)
Tarzana, California
Occupationmotion picture actor
Years active1942–1982
Spouse(s)Beth Marie Dannaldson

Early life

Dannaldson was the son of James Jerrmiel Dannaldson and Lulu Belgium Rola Hiatt. Young James was a shot put star at Hollywood High School in 1934, when he suffered his first animal mishap. A pet rattlesnake nipped Dannaldson's finger when he playfully stuck his thumb into the reptile's mouth.[1] Dannaldson was not deterred, and kept a barn filled with three rattlesnakes, five king snakes, ten turtles and one hoot owl when he was a University of Southern California student. The neighbors were not pleased.[2]

Jacaré
James Dannaldson in Jacaré (1942)

In Jacaré (1942) Dannaldson traveled up the Amazon to catch specimens. In the film, Dannaldson worked with jaguars and caymans, whose jaws had been wired shut. He said his only close call came when an anaconda he wrestled got a loop around his neck and almost strangled him before the natives could unwrap it. Dannaldson's most primitive adventure occurred on Marajó Island, at the mouth of the Amazon, where the movie company spent four weeks, ran out of imported food and had to subsist for five days on moldy doughnuts filled with small worms and on chickens which, Dannaldson said, seemed to be 90 per cent vulture.[3] Producer Jules Levey incorporated a narration by Frank Buck and music by Miklos Rozsa into the finished film.[4] Dannaldson came home from the Amazon with a rare eagle from Manaus, obtained as a fledgling from a native hunter. Dannaldson presented the eagle to the San Diego Zoo in 1943.[5]

Later life

In his later years, "Jungle Jim" Dannaldson provided animals for Hollywood films, especially reptiles, spiders, scorpions and insects for horror films. In 1977 he was to appear on The Tonight Show with a six-foot angleworm from Australia.[6] Dannaldson was author of two books, Serpent Trails (1937) and A Trek in the Amazon Jungles (1949).

Filmography

Cannery Row (1982) (zoological specialist)
... aka John Steinbeck's Cannery Row
Jennifer (1978) (zoological specialist)
... aka Jennifer Power (Philippines: English title)
... aka Jennifer the Snake Goddess
Damnation Alley (1977) (zoological specialist)
... aka Survival Run
Sisters of Death (1977) (animal trainer)
The Hills Have Eyes (1977) (snakes)
... aka Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes (USA: LD title)
Snakes (1974) (snake handler)
... aka Fangs
... aka Holy Wednesday
The Wild Bunch (1969) (provided ants, scorpions, and vultures)
Earth vs. the Spider (1958) (spider handler)
... aka Earth vs. the Giant Spider
... aka The Spider (USA: promotional title)
The Land Unknown (1957) (lizard handler)
The Cyclops (1957) (animal sequences)
The Hellstrom Chronicle (1971) (special thanks)
Jacaré (1942) (as James M. Dannaldson) .... Adventurer
... aka Jacare, Killer of the Amazon

References
  1. Jack Singer.Thirty-three Schools, 1500 Athletes to Compete in 1934 City Relays at L.A. High Today. Los Angeles Times. March 17, 1934 p a8
  2. Snakes and turtles: neighbors complain. Los Angeles Times. Nov 21, 1935 p a8
  3. Thomas F. Brady. Hollywood’s story marts dry up. New York Times. May 24, 1942 p X3.
  4. Lehrer, Steven (2006). Bring 'Em Back Alive: The Best of Frank Buck. Texas Tech University press. pp. xii–xiii. ISBN 0-89672-582-0.
  5. San Diego Zoo gets rare eagle. Pittsburgh Post Gazette. October 29, 1943
  6. From bees to tarantulas. Los Angeles Times. Sept 12, 1977 p F14
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