News on Screen

Frank Canham began his career as a trick cyclist in the music hall, until forced to abandon this in about 1905, due to ‘leg trouble.' A keen photographer, he moved into the film industry where he qualified as a cameraman. Canham worked for Kinemacolor and Windsor, and also ‘spent four years in Rome with Milano and Tespi,' presumably before 1914. After the war Canham is known to have been cameraman on ‘Sands of Time’ (Harma, 1919), ‘The Breed of the Treshams’ (Astra, 1920), ‘A Bachelor Husband’ (Astra, 1920), ‘The Headmaster’ (Astra, 1921), ‘No.5, John Street’ (H.W. Thompson, 1921), ‘The Wonderful Year’ (H.W. Thompson, 1921), ‘Cherry Ripe’ (H.W. Thompson, 1921), and ‘Further Mysteries of Dr. Fu-Manchu’ (Stoll, 1924). Canham also did freelance newsreel work, and is credited in the team that filmed ‘THE GRAND NATIONAL, 1927’ for Pathe Gazette No.1384 in March 1927. He was cameraman on ‘Arise and Walk’ (Oxford Films, 1929), and was also credited in the camera team for ‘THE CUP FINAL 1929’ in Pathe Gazette No.1602 of April 1929. Canham also appears in the credits for ‘THE GRAND NATIONAL, 1933’ in Pathe Super Sound Gazette No.33/25 of March 1933, and for a number of similar assignments ending with ‘STOP PRESS! Pathe Gazette has pleasure in presenting first picture’s of today’s ROYAL WEDDING’ in Pathe Super Sound Gazette No.34/96 of November 1934.

Sources

Kinematograph Year Book 1921 (London, 1920), p.590, ‘Frank Canham’: Cine Technician, November-December 1943, p.138.