They Go Boom

James Parrott was an American actor and film director; and the younger brother of film comedian Charley Chase. James Gibbons Parrott was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Charles and Blanche Thompson Parrott. In 1903, his father died from a heart attack, leaving the family in bad financial shape,... which forced them to move in with a relative. Charley Jr. quit school, so he could go to work, in order to support his mother and brother. Eventually the call of the stage beckoned him, and Charley Jr. left home at age 16 to travel the vaudeville circuit as a singer and comedic performer. By the time James had reached his teens, he too, had quit school, and became involved with the street gangs of Baltimore. Later, Charley's connections in the film industry helped get his younger brother established in movies, and he would appear during the 1920s in a series of relatively successful comedies for producer Hal Roach. He was billed first as "Paul Parrott," then "Jimmie Parrott." Approximately 75 comedies were produced from 1921 to 1923, with titles continuing to be released through Pathé until 1926.
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