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Dennis O'Keefe | |
|---|---|
 O'Keefe in 1940 | |
| Born | Edward Vance Flanagan (1908-03-29)March 29, 1908 Fort Madison, Iowa, U.S. |
| Died | August 31, 1968(1968-08-31) (aged 60) Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Memorial Park,Glendale, California |
| Other names | Bud Flanagan Jonathan Rix Al Everett Dennis |
| Occupations | Actor, screenwriter |
| Years active | 1930–1967 |
| Spouse(s) | [1] |
| Children | 2[2] |
| Parent | Edward Flanagan |
Dennis O'Keefe (bornEdward Vance Flanagan;[3][4] March 29, 1908 – August 31, 1968) was an American actor.
O'Keefe was born inFort Madison, Iowa as Edward Vance Flanagan,[5] the son ofEdward J. Flanagan and Charlotte Flanagan (née Ravenscroft),[6] bothvaudevillians of Irish descent. He was raised a Roman Catholic.[7] As a small child, O'Keefe joined his parents' act and later wrote skits for the stage.[5] He attended theUniversity of Southern California but left midway through his sophomore year after his father died.[8]
O'Keefe continued his father's vaudeville act for several years after the father's death.[6] He started in films as an extra in 1931[9] and appeared in numerous films under the name Bud Flanagan. After his role inSaratoga (1937),Clark Gable recommended O'Keefe toMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which signed him to a contract in 1937 and renamed him Dennis O'Keefe.[citation needed]
His film roles were bigger after that, starting withThe Bad Man of Brimstone (1938) oppositeWallace Beery, and the lead role inBurn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939). He left MGM around 1940 but continued to work in mostly low-budget productions. He often played the tough guy in action and crime dramas, but was known as a comic actor as well as a dramatic lead. He gained great attention with a showy role inThe Story of Dr Wassell and became a comedy star. He expressed interest in expanding into direction.[10] In the mid-1940s, he was under a five-year contract toEdward Small.[11] O'Keefe starred in film-noir classics such asT-Men andRaw Deal, both directed byAnthony Mann. In a 1946 newsreel followingHoward Hughes'calamitous plane wreck into a neighbor's Beverly Hills house, O'Keefe can be seen walking through the home inspecting the damage.[citation needed]
In 1950, O'Keefe starred in the radio programT-Man on CBS.[12] Also in the 1950s, he did some directing and wrote mystery stories. During the 1950s, O'Keefe made guest appearances as himself, or in acting roles, on episodes of a number of television series, such asJustice,The Ford Show,Studio 57, andClimax!. In 1957, he was to be the permanent host ofSuspicion,[13]: 1043 an anthology TV series in which 10 episodes were produced byAlfred Hitchcock. After two episodes, he left the series and was not replaced. From 1959 to 1960, he was the star ofThe Dennis O'Keefe Show.[13]
His Broadway credits includeNever Live Over a Pretzel Factory (1964) andNever Too Late.[14]
O'Keefe wrote screenplays under the pen name Jonathan Rix in the late 1940s and 1950s, and then as Al Everett Dennis in the 1960s. HisDon't Pull Your Punches was produced by Warner Bros.[6] In 1947, he was working on plans to co-produce and act inDrawn Sabers, another of his stories.[15] He also wrote and directedAngela.[4]
O'Keefe married actressLouise Stanley in 1937 but divorced her in 1938.[16] In 1940, he married actress and dancerSteffi Duna. They had two children, Juliena and James.[17]
A heavy cigarette smoker, O'Keefe died of lung cancer in 1968 at the age of 60 at St. John's Hospital inSanta Monica, California. He was buried at Wee Kirk O'the Heather atForest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.[5]
