Iowa Almanac
Iowa Almanac -- Friday, September 06, 2024
The Padre of Hollywood. More from the Iowa Almanac in a moment. Every detail matters when building a winning game plan. That's why the Cyclones and Hawkeyes rely on better, cleaner now biodiesel to power their team buses on game day, delivering success on the field, in the field and in the environment. Make biodiesel part of your winning game plan by visiting iasoybeans.com. Biodiesel. Grow it. Request it. Use it. This message brought to you by the Iowa Soybean Association and the Soybean Check-Off. If you're a movie fan, you may recall the 1934 film It Happened One Night and the pivotal scene where would-be bride Claudette Colbert leaves her fiance at the altar of their garden wedding to run away with Clark Gable. The man preparing to officiate at the ceremony was Iowa native Neil Dodd. He was a popular choice to play such a role, since he was in real life and Anglican Priest. He first appeared in a film in 1920, the same year he became the founding secretary of the Motion Picture Relief Fund. He was the first clergyman to become a member of the screen after skilled. You may remember him from roles in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, where he played the Senate Chaplain, and his last role in 1951, as a priest in Here Comes the Groom. He officiated at 300 weddings on film, and more than 700 in real life, including performing the wedding ceremony for Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbank Sr. He also served as a technical advisor on religious material for several films. Father Dodd donated all his acting fees to charity. Much of it went to the church he founded with a Christmas Eve Mass in 1918, Saint Mary of the Angels Anglican Church in Los Angeles. He died in 1966 at age 86. His ashes are interred at the church he built. He became known as the Padre of Hollywood for the number of roles he played, officiating at weddings. Father Neil Dodd, born in Fort Madison, on this date in 1879. At that's Iowa Almanac for September 6th, there's more online at IowaAlmanac.com. Until Monday, I'm Jeff Stein.