Actor. He was best known for playing the character roles of police officers, farmers, convicts, henchmen, but some are uncredited, in several films including action-adventure or westerns. He will be best remembered for playing the role of 'Officer Torch' in the science fiction film classics, "Flash Gordon" (1936), and "Flash Gordon's Trips To Mars" (1938). He was born one of two children as Earl Leslie Rengstorff Askam in Seattle, Washington, to Dr. Oliver Perry Askam (1864-1906), a prominent physician in Santa Clara County, California, and his wife Helena Margaret Rengstorff Askam (1864-1902), on May 10, 1891. He was educated locally and was orphaned by the time he was in his early teens. He later studied voice in Italy and decided to become an actor. He was originally a stage actor and a trained opera singer and a member of the New York Metropolitan Opera who appeared in numerous stage operettas before turning to films. He put his acting career on hold and served his country during World War I as a Lieutenant in the United States Army. Following his military service, he moved to Los Angeles, California, and began appearing films for Paramount Studios. He made his actual film debut playing the role of 'Mover' in the comedy musical romance film, "Let's Go Native" (1930). The film which was directed by Leo McCarey, and which also starred Jack Oakie, Jeanette MacDonald, James Hall, Kay Francis, and Richard "Skeets" Gallagher, tells the story of a Dress designer named Joan Wood, who's heavily in debt, and has created costumes for a Broadway show that is exported to Argentina. With the money, she wants to pay her debts, but there was a mistake: she is receiving the money in Buenos Aires, not in New York. Her friend Wally Wendell, whose grandfather does not approve of his relationship with her, wants him to marry a girl he hasn't seen for some years named Constance Cook, whose grandfather is the owner of a ship traveling to Buenos Aires and Constance Cook is one of the passengers. Wally's friend Basil has caused a freak accident with Voltair McGuines' cab, who wants his money for the damage. Basil asks Wally, but he has been disinherited and lost all credibility by his grandfather because he still wants Joan. Besides, "Let's Go Native" (1930), "Flash Gordon" (1936), and "Flash Gordon's Trips To Mars" (1938), his many other film credits include, "Madam Satan" (1930), "The Squaw Man" (1931), "No More Women" (1934), "Our Daily Bread" (1934), "Girl In Danger" (1934), "Stolen Harmony" (1935), "Silver Spurs" (1936), "The Great Ziegfeld" (1936), "Cain And Mabel" (1936), "The Case Of The Black Cat" (1936), "The Plainsman" (1936, he was seriously injured on the set of this film when a team of horses pulling a stagecoach suddenly bolted and knocked down him and two other extras), "Trail Dust" (1936), "Empty Saddles" (1936), "You Only Live Once" (1937), "North Of The Rio Grande" (1937), "Dead End" (1937), "The Wrong Road" (1937), "Thunder Trail" (1937), "Hawaiian Buckaroo" (1938), "Hollywood Stadium Mystery" (1938), "Pride Of The West" (1938), "Down In 'Arkansaw' (1938), "Hawk Of The Wilderness" (1938), "Red River Range" (1938), "The Oklahoma Kid" (1939), "Mexicali Rose" (1939), "Let Us Live" (1939), "Frontier Pony Express" (1939), "Union Pacific" (1939), "Outside These Walls" (1939), "Missing Daughters" (1939), "Daredevils Of The Red Circle" (1939), "Golden Boy" (1939), "Rulers Of The Sea" (1939), "Allegheny Uprising" (1939), "Pioneers Of The West" (1940), "Dark Command" (1940), "The Light Of The Western Stars" (1940), and "North West Mounted Police" (1940). His promising acting career was cut short when he passed away from a heart attack in Los Angeles, California, while playing a round of golf with actor Kermit Maynard on April 1, 1940, at the age of 48. His funeral services were conducted at Steen Funeral Parlor in Van Nuys, California, with full military rites and he was buried in Oak Hill Memorial Park in San Jose, California. His brother Perry Askam (1898–1961), was also a professionally trained opera singer with the New York Metropolitan Opera, and an actor. He was married to Wally Ella with whom he had one child, a son.