Frederic Handschy

Frederic W. Handschy was born September 28, 1906, in Seattle, Washington, the son of Frederic Weaver and Alice (Wild) Handschy. He had three sisters: Harriett, Rita and Dorothy. His father was a brewery executive, working as the "President-Treasurer-General Manager" of the Claussen Brewing Company.

In 1909 the family moved into their newly built home at 2433 9th Avenue in Seattle. Now a Seattle Landmark, the Handschy/Kistler House  (as it is now known) was a gabled bungalow of the Prairie School of architectural design, built by Andrew Willatzen and Barry Byrne, who were both apprentices of Frank Lloyd Wright. The house was designed with the growing family in mind; having four bedrooms, a maid's room, and an upstairs play room for the children. It was built for the grand sum (in 1909 dollars) of $5,100.

They did not enjoy the new home for long, by 1913 they were living in San Diego, California, where the father, Frank Sr., was now working as the Vice-President and Manager of the Mission Brewing Company. 1917 found the family moved to Los Angeles, with their father again managing a different company, the Arrowhead Springs Company, Inc.

In 1920 they were living in Chicago, Illinois, with their grandmother, Alice's mother, Anna Wild. Here young Fred attended Hyde Park High School, where he first become involved in the dramatic arts, taking part in the 1922 Senior Play- The Golden Asp.

Fred attended the University of Chicago from 1923 to 1927. He was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity, and was active on the staff of the school newspaper The Phoenix, where he worked his way up to Editor. He continued his interest in acting, as a member of The Dramatic Association he was cast in "Catherine Parr", "Daisy Mayme", and had the starring role in "Mr. Pim Passes By."

In 1930, three years after leaving college, Fred was living in Montebello, California (a suburb of Los Angeles) with his sister, Harriett, and her husband, Harold Bell. Fred was then working as an actor in vaudeville. On stage he was known as "Frank D. Herrick," or merely "F. D. Herrick."

In the 1990's he was living in the Upper East Side neighborhood of New York City, at 210 East 63rd Street.

Frederic W. Handschy died at the age of 90, on November 4, 1996, at York-Presbyterian-Weill, Cornell Medical Center in New York. He was buried on Hart Island.

Sources: U.S. Social Security Death Index; U.S. Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007; 1920 and 1930 U.S. Federal Censuses; U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012; Washington, Births, 1883-1935; U.S. City Directories, 1822-1989; U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Vol. 1; The Prairie School Traveler; HistoryLink.org-the Free Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History.