Dennis O'Keefe
Encyclopedia
Dennis O'Keefe was an American actor. Born as Edward Vance Flanagan he was the son of Irish
vaudevillians
working in the United States
. As a small child he joined his parents' act and later wrote skits for the stage.
(1937), Clark Gable
recommended O'Keefe to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
, which signed him to a contract in 1937 and re-named him Dennis O'Keefe. His film roles were bigger after that, starting with The Bad Man of Brimstone
(1938), and the lead role in Burn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939).
O'Keefe left MGM around 1940 but continued to work in mostly lower budget productions. He often played the tough guy in action and crime dramas but was also known as a comic actor as well as a dramatic lead. In the 1950s he did some directing and wrote mystery stories. In the middle 1950s, he appeared on NBC
's legal drama
Justice
and on the network's The Martha Raye Show
. On October 3, 1957, he was a guest star on another NBC variety show
, The Ford Show
, starring Tennessee Ernie Ford
. From 1957 to 1958, he was the host of Suspicion
, a TV series produced by Alfred Hitchcock
. From 1959-1960, he was the star of the CBS Television situation comedy
, The Dennis O'Keefe Show
.
smoker, O'Keefe died of lung cancer
in 1968 at the age of sixty. Ironically, in his film The Diamond Wizard (1954), he directed and stars in, he played a U.S. Treasury Agent in London. In the film, O'Keefe's character is trying to quit smoking. Throughout the film, he is prevented from lighting up by different characters in the film. After the rousing finale, however, as a reward for his heroism, he is finally allowed to light up. He takes a deep puff and joyously exhales.
' calamitous plane wreck into a neighbor's Beverly Hills home, O'Keefe can be seen walking through the home inspecting damages.(see Hughes XF-11)
As Dennis O'Keefe
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
vaudevillians
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
working in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As a small child he joined his parents' act and later wrote skits for the stage.
Career
O'Keefe started in films as an extra in the early 1930s and appeared in numerous films under the name Bud Flanagan. After a small but impressive role in SaratogaSaratoga (film)
Saratoga is a 1937 film written by Anita Loos and directed by Jack Conway. The movie stars Clark Gable and Jean Harlow in their sixth and final film collaboration....
(1937), Clark Gable
Clark Gable
William Clark Gable , known as Clark Gable, was an American film actor most famous for his role as Rhett Butler in the 1939 Civil War epic film Gone with the Wind, in which he starred with Vivien Leigh...
recommended O'Keefe to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
, which signed him to a contract in 1937 and re-named him Dennis O'Keefe. His film roles were bigger after that, starting with The Bad Man of Brimstone
The Bad Man of Brimstone
The Bad Man of Brimstone is a 1937 Western film starring Wallace Beery and Virginia Bruce, and directed by J. Walter Ruben. Beery's brother Noah Beery, Sr...
(1938), and the lead role in Burn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939).
O'Keefe left MGM around 1940 but continued to work in mostly lower budget productions. He often played the tough guy in action and crime dramas but was also known as a comic actor as well as a dramatic lead. In the 1950s he did some directing and wrote mystery stories. In the middle 1950s, he appeared on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's legal drama
Legal drama
A legal drama is a work of dramatic fiction about crime and civil litigation. Subtypes of legal dramas include courtroom dramas and legal thrillers, and come in all forms, including novels, television shows, and films. Legal drama sometimes overlap with crime drama, most notably in the case of Law...
Justice
Justice (1954 TV series)
Justice is an NBC half-hour drama television series about attorneys of the Legal Aid Society of New York, which aired from April 8, 1954 to March 25, 1956. In the 1954-1955 season, Justice starred Dane Clark as Richard Adams and Gary Merrill as Jason Tyler. In the 1955-1956 season, William Prince...
and on the network's The Martha Raye Show
The Martha Raye Show
The Martha Raye Show is an hour-long comedy/variety show which aired live on NBC from January 23, 1954, to May 29, 1956. The series was hosted by the late Martha Raye, a Montana native, who often called herself "The Big Mouth." Her boyfriend on the program and a foil for her humor was portrayed by...
. On October 3, 1957, he was a guest star on another NBC variety show
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
, The Ford Show
The Ford Show
The Ford Show is a half-hour comedy/variety program, starring singer and folk humorist Tennessee Ernie Ford, which aired in color on NBC television on Thursday evenings from October 4, 1956 to June 29, 1961....
, starring Tennessee Ernie Ford
Tennessee Ernie Ford
Ernest Jennings Ford , better known as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American recording artist and television host who enjoyed success in the country and Western, pop, and gospel musical genres...
. From 1957 to 1958, he was the host of Suspicion
Suspicion (TV series)
Suspicion is the title of an American television mystery drama series which aired on the NBC from 1957 through 1959. The executive producer of Suspicion was film director Alfred Hitchcock.-Overview:...
, a TV series produced by Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
. From 1959-1960, he was the star of the CBS Television situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
, The Dennis O'Keefe Show
The Dennis O'Keefe Show
The Dennis O'Keefe Show is a 1959-1960 sitcom produced by United Artists Television which aired on CBS for sponsor General Motors' Oldsmobile division. It was not a ratings success during its original run, and was largely forgotten until a "Best Of" DVD release by Alpha Video during 2004. Certain...
.
Personal life
A heavy cigaretteCigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
smoker, O'Keefe died of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 1968 at the age of sixty. Ironically, in his film The Diamond Wizard (1954), he directed and stars in, he played a U.S. Treasury Agent in London. In the film, O'Keefe's character is trying to quit smoking. Throughout the film, he is prevented from lighting up by different characters in the film. After the rousing finale, however, as a reward for his heroism, he is finally allowed to light up. He takes a deep puff and joyously exhales.
Miscellaneous
In a 1946 newsreel following Howard HughesHoward Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
' calamitous plane wreck into a neighbor's Beverly Hills home, O'Keefe can be seen walking through the home inspecting damages.(see Hughes XF-11)
Selected filmography
As Bud Flanagan:- Reaching for the MoonReaching for the Moon"Reaching for the Moon" is a popular song written by Irving Berlin for the 1930 musical film of the same name.In 1930, United Artists prepared this original music film written by Irving Berlin with his music and lyrics...
(1930) - CimarronCimarronCimarron is the title of a novel published by popular historical fiction author Edna Ferber in 1929. The book was adapted into a critically acclaimed film in 1931 through RKO Pictures. In 1960, the story was again adapted for the screen to meager success by MGM...
(1931) - Lady KillerLady KillerA lady killer is a man exceptionally attractive to women. The phrase may also refer to:-Films:*The Lady Killer , a 1913 silent short*Lady Killer , a 1933 movie starring James Cagney...
(1933) - Fog Over FriscoFog Over FriscoFog Over Frisco is a 1934 American drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Robert N. Lee and Eugene Solow was based on the short story The Five Fragments by George Dyer.-Plot:...
(1934) - Jimmy the Gent (1934)
- SaratogaSaratoga (film)Saratoga is a 1937 film written by Anita Loos and directed by Jack Conway. The movie stars Clark Gable and Jean Harlow in their sixth and final film collaboration....
(1937)
As Dennis O'Keefe
- The Bad Man of BrimstoneThe Bad Man of BrimstoneThe Bad Man of Brimstone is a 1937 Western film starring Wallace Beery and Virginia Bruce, and directed by J. Walter Ruben. Beery's brother Noah Beery, Sr...
(1938) - Hold That KissHold That KissHold That Kiss is a romantic comedy film starring Maureen O'Sullivan and Dennis O'Keefe.-Plot:Travel agency clerk Tommy Bradford delivers tickets to wealthy J. Westley Piermont at the lavish wedding of his daughter. Piermont introduces him to model June Evans , but neglects to mention neither...
(1938) - Topper ReturnsTopper ReturnsTopper Returns is the third and final entry in the initial series of films inspired by the novels of Thorne Smith. It followed Topper and Topper Takes a Trip...
(1940) - Weekend for Three (1941)
- Broadway Limited (1941)
- Lady Scarface (1941)
- The Affairs of Jimmy ValentineThe Affairs of Jimmy ValentineThe Affairs of Jimmy Valentine is a 1942 American film directed by Bernard Vorhaus.The film is also known as Unforgotten Crime .- Plot summary :...
(1942) - The Leopard ManThe Leopard ManThe Leopard Man is a horror movie directed by Jacques Tourneur based on the book Black Alibi by Cornell Woolrich. It is one of the first American films to attempt an even remotely realistic portrayal of a serial killer .-Plot summary:The story, set in New Mexico, begins as Jerry Manning hires a...
(1943) - Abroad with Two Yanks (1944)
- The Fighting SeabeesThe Fighting SeabeesThe Fighting Seabees is a 1944 war film starring John Wayne and Susan Hayward. The picture portrays a heavily fictionalized account of the dilemma that led to the creation of the U.S. Navy's "Seabees" in World War II...
(1944) - The Story of Dr. Wassell (1944)
- Brewster's MillionsBrewster's Millions (1945 film)Brewster's Millions is one of a number of adaptations of the novel of the same name by George Barr McCutcheon. An ex-serviceman, played by Dennis O'Keefe, receives an unusual inheritance....
(1945) - The Affairs of SusanThe Affairs of SusanThe Affairs of Susan is a 1945 comedy film starring Joan Fontaine, Walter Abel, George Brent, Dennis O'Keefe and Don DeFore. The plot concerns Susan , who is about to be married. Complications set in when her fiance gives a party to celebrate, and he talks to three former beaus of Susan, each of...
(1945) - Getting Gertie's Garter (1945)
- Doll FaceDoll FaceDoll Face is a 1946 American film directed by Lewis Seiler starring Vivian Blaine as "Doll Face" Carroll. The film is also known as Come Back to Me in the United Kingdom.- Plot summary :...
(1946) - Dishonored LadyDishonored LadyDishonored Lady is a film starring Hedy Lamarr, Dennis O'Keefe, John Loder, William Lundigan, and Natalie Schafer, directed by Robert Stevenson, and released by United Artists...
(1947) - T-MenT-MenT-Men is a semidocumentary style 1947 film noir shot in black-and-white. The film was directed by Anthony Mann with cinematography by noted noir cameraman John Alton....
(1947) - Raw Deal (1948)
- AbandonedAbandoned (1949 film)Abandoned is a 1949 American crime film noir directed by Joseph M. Newman. The drama features Dennis O'Keefe, Gale Storm, and others.-Plot:...
(1949) - Woman on the RunWoman on the RunWoman on the Run is a 1950 black-and-white film noir directed by Norman Foster.- Plot :As the film opens, a man, Frank Johnson , is walking his dog in the city at night. He witnesses a man in a car talking about a crime. The man then gets shot. But whoever shot that man then sees Frank and shoots...
(1950) - The Company She Keeps (1950)
- One Big Affair (1952)
- The Lady Wants Mink (1953)
- Drums of TahitiDrums of Tahiti (1954)Drums of Tahiti is a 1954 Technicolor drama directed by William Castle, starring Dennis O'Keefe and Patricia Medina. Drums of Tahiti was released in 3-D, and was one of three 3-D movies made by director William Castle....
(1954) - All Hands on Deck (1961)
- Naked Flame (1964)