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Frank Garnier Jaquet was born on March 16, 1885, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to the editor of the Milwaukee "Sentinel."
His stage debut came as Little Lord Fauntleroy in a children's play, but his true acting career began in an unusual way. Jessie Pringle led a stock company on Chicago's West Side, preparing to perform "Arrah Gopaugh, or Warwick Wedding," which required her to perform an Irish jig. Just before a show, she severely sprained her ankle. Though she could act the part, she couldn’t dance the jig. The company called upon Jaquet, then a young man, who stepped in dressed in wig and costume to perform the jig while Pringle handled the rest of the performance. This marked Jaquet's professional debut, impersonating a woman.
From that point on, Jaquet became a well-known character actor in theater for twenty-five years, performing on Broadway as well as with touring companies and regional repertory theaters including the People's Theater Stock Company in Chicago, Elitch Gardens Stock Company in Denver, Empress Theater in St. Louis, Oliver Theater in Indiana, and Denham Theater in Denver.
At age forty-nine, in 1934, Jaquet made his film debut in "War Is a Racket." Over the following two decades, he appeared in more than 140 films and television episodes. His versatility was notable, playing both benevolent doctors and sinister villains. He was often cast as politicians, such as in "Stanley and Livingston" (1939) and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939). His portrayals were so convincing that he and two fellow character actors were once hired to impersonate actual U.S. senators as part of a stunt.
In numerous Westerns, Jaquet frequently played the villain, ultimately defeated by stars like Roy Rogers, Allan "Rocky" Lane, Sunset Carson, or the Cisco Kid.
His other notable films include "Torchy Blane in Panama" (1938), where he and Frank Orth appear in leopard skins as conventioneers; the war drama "Corregidor" (1943), in which he plays a priest; and "Jungle Jim in the Forbidden Land" (1952), where he appears somewhat portly and comical in safari attire. Billy Wilder cast him against type in "Ace in the Hole" (1951) as a construction boss attempting to rescue a victim trapped by a cave-in.
One of Jaquet's standout later performances is in the "Bullets for Ballots" episode of "The Lone Ranger" (1950), portraying Leander Knox, a corrupt town mayor whose reelection campaign is manipulated by the primary villain. He delivers a full-bodied performance as a pompous, overweight old man who ultimately becomes a cringing coward under the pressure of The Lone Ranger and Tonto.
Throughout the 1950s, he appeared in various television episodes, including a recurring role as Mr. Selkirk on "The Stu Erwin Show." By 1954, health issues related to his heart forced him to lose weight, making him appear somewhat gaunt in the "I Love Lucy" episode "Bonus Bucks."
Jaquet's final screen appearance was as a bar patron in "Timberjack" (1955). He passed away from a heart attack on May 11, 1958, in Los Angeles.
