Ralph Byrd
Ralph Byrd (April 22, 1909 – August 18, 1952) was an American actor. He was most famous for playing the comic strip character Dick Tracy on screen, in serials, films and television. Early life and career The son of George and Edna May Byrd, Ralph Byrd was born in Dayton, Ohio. Before he began acting in films, he sang and danced in theatrical productions. He served in the United States Army during World War II, having been inducted into the service in San Pedro, California, in 1944. He married actress and model Virginia Carroll in 1936. The couple remained together until Byrd's death in 1952. Byrd was a good, all-purpose actor with a gift for delivering dialogue in a natural, ingratiating way. His screen characters could be breezy and affable or tough and authoritative, as the role required. He debuted in movies with a bit part in ''Red-Headed Woman'' in (1932). Once established in Republic Pictures' Dick Tracy serials (beginning in 1937), he was usually cast in act ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome
''Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome'' (also known as ''Dick Tracy Meets Karloff'' and ''Dick Tracy's Amazing Adventure'' (UK) ) is a 1947 thriller film starring Boris Karloff, Ralph Byrd, and Anne Gwynne. The film is the fourth and final installment of the ''Dick Tracy'' film series released by RKO Radio Pictures.Stephen Jacobs, ''Boris Karloff: More Than a Monster'', Tomahawk Press 2011 p 322-323 Plot Just out of jail, Gruesome (Boris Karloff) goes to the Hangman's Knot saloon, where his old crime crony, Melody (Tony Barrett), is now playing piano. Gruesome takes him to a plastics manufacturer, where X-Ray (Skelton Knaggs) and a mysterious mastermind are in possession of a secret formula and hatching a sinister plot. Ignoring a warning not to touch anything, Gruesome sniffs the gas from a mysterious test tube; he escapes the toxic fumes but collapses upon returning to the Hangman's Knot and is taken to the city morgue, where his body stiffens dramatically. Dick Tracy (Ralph Byrd) i ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures Corporation (currently held under Melange Pictures, LLC) was an American motion picture production-distribution corporation in operation from 1935 to 1967, that was based in Los Angeles. It had studio facilities in Studio City and a movie ranch in Encino. It was best known for specializing in Westerns, serials, and B films emphasizing mystery and action. Republic was also notable for developing the careers of John Wayne, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers. It was also responsible for the financing and distribution of a few A films directed by John Ford during the 1940s and early 1950s and one Shakespeare film, ''Macbeth'' (1948), directed by Orson Welles. Under Herbert J. Yates, Republic was considered a mini-major film studio. Company history Created in 1935 by Herbert J. Yates, a longtime investor in film (having invested in 20th Century Pictures at its founding in 1933) and owner of the film processing laboratory Consolidated Film Industries, Republic was initial ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Tracy's Dilemma
''Dick Tracy's Dilemma'', released in the United Kingdom as ''Mark of the Claw'', is a 1947 American action film based on the Dick Tracy, 1930s comic-strip character of the same name created by Chester Gould. Ralph Byrd stars as Dick Tracy, reprising the role after Republic Pictures's 1937 ''Dick Tracy (serial), Dick Tracy'' serial film, serial and its three sequels. Preceded by ''Dick Tracy vs. Cueball'', the film is the third installment of the Dick Tracy#Early feature films, ''Dick Tracy'' film series released by RKO Radio Pictures. The follow-up to ''Dick Tracy's Dilemma'' was ''Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome'' (1947), the fourth and last entry in the RKO series. Dick Tracy, the character next made the move to television. The program ran for 39 episodes in the 1950–1951 season. Ralph Byrd may well have played Dick Tracy in further adventures had he not died unexpectedly, of a heart attack, on August 18, 1952, at age 43. Plot Ruthless killer Steve Michel is known to the public a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Morgan Conway
Morgan Conway (born Sidney Conway, March 16, 1903 – November 16, 1981) was an American actor, best known for his portrayals of Dick Tracy. Early life and career Conway was educated at Columbia University in New York City. He had a brokerage business in New York City for 11 years before closing it in 1933. He went to Hollywood and began acting in little theatre. Conway was one of the founding members of the Screen Actors Guild. His first film appearance was in the 1934 film ''Looking for Trouble''. Returning to New York, Conway acted on Broadway in plays that included ''Angel Island'' (1937), ''In the Bag'' (1937), ''Mimie Scheller'' (1936), ''Summer Wives'' (1936), and ''If a Body'' (1935). For many years he freelanced, working for various studios in bits or supporting roles. His most familiar appearance from this period is probably in ''Charlie Chan in Reno'' (1939). RKO Radio Pictures and portrayal of Dick Tracy By the mid-1940s he was a contract player for RKO Ra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Tracy (1945 Film)
''Dick Tracy'' (also known as ''Dick Tracy, Detective'') is a 1945 American action film based on the Dick Tracy comic strip created by Chester Gould. The film is the first of four installment of the Dick Tracy film series, released by RKO Radio Pictures. Plot Dick Tracy (Morgan Conway), a supremely intelligent police detective, must solve a series of brutal murders in which the victims, all from different social and economic backgrounds, are viciously slashed to pieces by the one known as Splitface (Mike Mazurki). Suspects abound but Tracy must find the common link of extortion and revenge before more are killed. Cast * Morgan Conway as Dick Tracy, the tough detective, who lets nothing stand in the way of justice. * Anne Jeffreys as Tess Trueheart, Tracy's girlfriend, who often falls victim to her boyfriend's workaholism. * Mike Mazurki as Alexis "Splitface" Banning, a psychotic ex-con who seeks revenge. His weapon is a sharp surgical knife. He has a big disfiguring scar across h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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RKO Radio Pictures
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheum (KAO) theater chain and Joseph P. Kennedy's Film Booking Offices of America (FBO) studio were brought together under the control of the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in October 1928. RCA chief David Sarnoff engineered the merger to create a market for the company's sound-on-film technology, RCA Photophone, and in early 1929 production began under the RKO name (an abbreviation of Radio-Keith-Orpheum). Two years later, another Kennedy holding, the Pathé studio, was folded into the operation. By the mid-1940s, RKO was controlled by investor Floyd Odlum. RKO has long been renowned for its cycle of musicals starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the mid-to-late 1930s. Actors Katharine Hepburn and, later, Robert Mitchum had their ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Tracy Vs
Dick, Dicks, or Dick's may refer to: Media * ''Dicks'' (album), a 2004 album by Fila Brazillia * Dicks (band), a musical group * ''Dick'' (film), a 1999 American comedy film * "Dick" (song), a 2019 song by Starboi3 featuring Doja Cat Names * Dick (nickname), an index of people nicknamed Dick * Dick (surname) * Dicks (surname) * Dick, a diminutive for Richard * Dicks (writer) (1823–1891), a pen name of Edmond de la Fontaine of Luxembourg * Dicks., botanical author abbreviation for James Dickson (1738–1822) Places * Dicks Butte, a mountain in California * Dick's Drive-In, a Seattle, Washington-based fast food chain * Dick's Sporting Goods, a major sporting goods retailer in the United States * Dick's Sporting Goods Park, a soccer stadium in Denver, Colorado Other uses * Dick (slang), a dysphemism for the penis as well as a pejorative epithet * Detective, in early 20th century or 19th century English * Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran), or DIC(K), a political party ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jennifer Jones (actor)
Jennifer Jones (born Phylis Lee Isley; March 2, 1919 – December 17, 2009), also known as Jennifer Jones Simon, was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her career that spanned over five decades, she was nominated for the Oscar five times, including one win for Best Actress, as well as a Golden Globe Award win for Best Actress in a Drama. A native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Jones worked as a model in her youth before transitioning to acting, appearing in two serial films in 1939. Her third role was a lead part as Bernadette Soubirous in '' The Song of Bernadette'' (1943), which earned her the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Actress. She went on to star in several films that garnered her significant critical acclaim and a further three Academy Award nominations in the mid-1940s, including ''Since You Went Away'' (1944), ''Love Letters'' (1945), and '' Duel in the Sun'' (1946). In 1949, Jones married film producer David O. Selznick, and appeared ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Tracy's G-Men
''Dick Tracy's G-Men'' (1939) is a 15-Chapter Republic movie serial based on the ''Dick Tracy'' comic strip by Chester Gould. It was directed by William Witney and John English. This serial was the fifteenth of the sixty-six produced by Republic and the third Dick Tracy serial (there would be one more, ''Dick Tracy vs. Crime, Inc.'', in 1941). As with all four Dick Tracy serials, Ralph Byrd plays the lead. This time he faces Irving Pichel as the spy with a vendetta, Zarnoff. Future Academy Award winner Jennifer Jones co-stars as Gwen Andrews. "G-Man" is a contemporary slang term for an agent of the FBI. In the comic strip, Dick Tracy is actually a detective in the police force of an unnamed Midwestern city resembling Chicago. This was changed for the serial. Plot International spy, Zarnoff, in the employ of "The Three Powers" (presumably a fictionalized reference to the Axis) is captured by Dick Tracy at the start of the serial, tried and sentenced to death. However, t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dick Tracy Returns
''Dick Tracy Returns'' (1938) is a Republic Movie serial based on the Dick Tracy comic strip. It was the eleventh of the sixty-six serials Republic produced and a sequel to the 1937 serial ''Dick Tracy'', with Ralph Byrd reprising his role as the title character. It was successful enough that two further sequels were released in 1939 and 1941, and Byrd become so connected with the character he went on to play him in a subsequent television series. This serial charts Tracy's efforts to capture the gang of Pa Stark ( Charles Middleton) and his five criminal sons....Champ, Trigger, Dude, The Kid and Slasher. Plot Tracy and his group must battle saboteurs and spies in his effort to bring down the Stark gang, a major crime family syndicate led by the vicious and brutal Pa Stark. A young promising G-Man named Ron Merton (David Sharpe) is murdered by the Starks while trying to help Tracy bring the gang to justice. With the help of his friends Gwen, Junior and Mike McGurk, Tracy battles ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chester Gould
Chester Gould (; November 20, 1900 – May 11, 1985) was an American cartoonist, best known as the creator of the ''Dick Tracy'' comic strip, which he wrote and drew from 1931 to 1977, incorporating numerous colorful and monstrous villains. Early life Chester Gould was born to Gilbert R. Gould, the son of a minister, and Alice Maud (née Miller). All four of his grandparents were pioneer settlers of Oklahoma. He was a Christian. Growing up, Gould and his family were members of the United Brethren Church. His cousin Henry W. Gould is Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at West Virginia University. ''Dick Tracy'' In 1931, Gould was hired as a cartoonist with the ''Chicago Tribune'' and introduced ''Dick Tracy'' in the ''Detroit Mirror'' on Sunday, October 4, 1931. The original comic was based on a New York detective Gould was interested in. The comic then branched to the fictional character that became famous. He drew the comic strip for the next 46 years from his home in Wood ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Vigilante
''The Vigilante'' is a 1947 American Western film serial directed by Wallace Fox. The 33rd serial released by Columbia Pictures, it was based on the comic book cowboy Vigilante, who first appeared in ''Action Comics'', published by DC Comics. It stars Ralph Byrd, well known for his central role in the Dick Tracy serials. It was his last serial appearance. Plot The Vigilante, a masked government agent, is assigned to investigate the case of the "100 Tears of Blood", a cursed string of rare blood-red pearls sought by a gang led by the unknown ''X-1'' that may have been smuggled into the country. Greg Sanders (Sanders at that time, later changed to Saunders in the comics), in his civilian guise as an actor, is filming a western on George Pierce's ranch. Pierce is a wealthy rancher and nightclub owner. When Prince Hamil arrives at the ranch, he gives a horse each to Sanders, Pierce, Captain Reilly, Tex Collier, and Betty Winslow. But an outlaw gang soon attacks, attempting to stea ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |