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Morning Man Classic Encore: James Franciscus!
James Franciscus was a very handsome actor and tennis enthusiast who died far too young.
He was best known for his roles in such feature films as Beneath the Planet of the Apes, The Amazing Dobermans and Great White and in four television series, Mr. Novak, The Naked City, The Investigators, and Longstreet.
Franciscus was also a Yale grad and was one of the best celebrity tennis players of the 1970s when the sport was at the peak of its popularity.
Sadly, he was just 57 when he died 1991 from emphysema. He left behind four children.
FILE UNDER: Morning Man Classics
Comments
(All comments are reviewed before being published, and I review submissions several times per day.)
Eddie says:
I was 10 yrs old when I first saw James Franciscus (Marooned). I couldn’t stop thinking about him, but I didn’t understand why. A year later I saw him shirtless in Beneath The Planet of the Apes, and wanted him to hold me in his arms the rest of my life. Again, I didn’t understand why and didn’t imagine anything more. By the time his show Longstreet ended I finally understood why & what more I wanted. I knew I couldn’t be with him then, but I hoped that he would wait for me to grow up. Needless to say, I was heartbroken when I heard that he had died.
FAEN says:
Never heard of him but wow he was stunning! Pity he died so young.
Richard V says:
Yes James Franciscus was a heartbreaker in the looks department and it broke my heart when he passed especially because it was on my birthday. Miss looking at that hot man I do.
DP says:
@Eddie – I couldn’t have said it better than you. My first memory of James Franciscus was the movie Beneath The Planet of the Apes, as well. I also remember that I was incredibly aroused but didn’t understand it and didn’t know what to do about it because I was still naive about so much. What I DO remember about watching the movie was that I had to cross the living room to get to the other end of the couch to sit, and had a tent in my pants; my sister embarrassed me by calling out to me to get my *?#@ out of the way of her viewing. James Franciscus had me hot and bothered ever since.
Thank you Greg, for this Morning Man Classic!
Todd says:
I am a straight guy but I have to admit that I was aroused when I saw James in “Beneath the Planet of the Apes”. It wasn’t just his looks. It was his manliness, his easy confidence. I also felt stirrings when I saw Robert Conrad in “The Wild, Wild, Wild, Wild, Wild West”. I tell you these were men, brave men doing things that required great courage and I admired the Hell out of them.
Thank you.