DP
Photo of Dick Powell

Dick Powell

Actor, Director, Producer
Born November 14, 1904Died January 2, 1963 (58 years)
Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell was an American singer, actor, producer, director and studio boss.

Born in Mountain View, the seat of Stone County in northern Arkansas, Powell attended the former Little Rock College in the state capital, before he started his entertainment career as a singer with the Charlie Davis Orchestra, based in the midwest. He recorded a number of records with Davis and on his own, for the Vocalion label in the late 1920s.

Powell moved to Pittsburgh, where he found great local success as the Master of Ceremonies at the Enright Theater and the Stanley Theater. In April 1930, Warner Bros. bought up Brunswick Records which at that time owned Vocalion. Warner Bros. was sufficiently impressed by Powell's singing and stage presence to offer him a film contract in 1932. He made his film debut as a singing bandleader in Blessed Event. He went on to star as a boyish crooner in movie musicals such as 42nd Street, Footlight Parade, Gold Diggers of 1933, Dames, Flirtation Walk, and On the Avenue, often appearing opposite Ruby Keeler and Joan Blondell.

Powell desperately wanted to expand his range but Warner Bros. wouldn't allow him to do so, although they did (mis)cast him in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) as Lysander. This was to be Powell's only Shakespearean role and one he did not want to play, feeling that he was completely wrong for the part. Finally, reaching his forties and knowing that his young romantic leading man days were behind him he lobbied to play the lead in Double Indemnity. He lost out to Fred MacMurray, another Hollywood nice guy. MacMurray’s success, however, fueled Powell’s resolve to pursue projects with greater range and in 1944, he was cast in the first of a series of films noir, as private detective Philip Marlowe in Murder, My Sweet, directed by Edward Dmytryk. The film was a big hit and Powell had successfully reinvented himself as a dramatic actor.

The following year Dmytryk and Powell re-teamed to make Cornered, a gripping, post-WWII thriller that helped define the film noir style. He became a popular "tough guy" lead appearing in movies such as Johnny O'Clock and Cry Danger. But 1948 saw him step out of the brutish type when he starred in Pitfall, a film noir that sees a bored insurance company worker fall for an innocent but dangerous femme fatale, played by Lizabeth Scott. Even when he appeared in lighter fare such as The Reformer and the Redhead and Susan Slept Here (1954) he never sang in his later roles. The latter, his final onscreen appearance in a feature film, did include a dance number with costar Debbie Reynolds.

From 1949-1953, Powell played the lead role in the National Broadcasting Company radio theater production Richard Diamond, Private Detective. His character in the 30-minute weekly was a likable private detective with a quick wit. When Richard Diamond came to television in 1957, the lead role was portrayed by David Janssen.

Movies & Shows on Plex

  • Pitfall
  • It Happened Tomorrow
  • Four Star Playhouse

Known For

  • Murder, My Sweet
  • The Enemy Below
  • Pitfall
  • Christmas in July
  • The Bad and the Beautiful
  • The Conqueror
  • It Happened Tomorrow
  • Gold Diggers of 1935
  • Cry Danger
  • Johnny O'Clock
  • Cornered
  • The Tall Target
  • Susan Slept Here
  • Split Second
  • Gold Diggers of 1933
  • The Hunters
  • Footlight Parade
  • Station West
  • 42nd Street
  • Gold Diggers of 1937
  • Dames
  • In the Navy
  • A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • To the Ends of the Earth

Filmography

2011
Vito · as Tommy
1998
1985
1984
Going Hollywood: The '30s · as (archive Footage)
1982
Inside the Third Reich · as Actor In Film Clip (edited From: Footlight Parade)
1969
1962
Ensign O'Toole (TV Series) · as Chief Richard E. Powell
1960
The Law and Mr. Jones (TV Series) · as Colonel Drayton
1959
The June Allyson Show (TV Series) · as Paul Martin
1957
Mr. Adams and Eve (TV Series) · as Cast
1954
Susan Slept Here · as Mark Christopher
1954
Climax! (TV Series) · as Philip Marlowe
1952
The Bad and the Beautiful · as James Lee Bartlow
1952
Four Star Playhouse (TV Series) · as Willie Dante
1951
You Never Can Tell · as Rex Shepherd
1951
The Tall Target · as John Kennedy
1951
Cry Danger · as Rocky Mulloy
1950
Right Cross · as Rick Garvey
1950
1949
Mrs. Mike · as Sgt. Mike Flannigan
1948
Rogues' Regiment · as Whit Corbett
1948
Station West · as Lt. John Martin Haven
1948
Pitfall · as John Forbes
1948
To the Ends of the Earth · as Commissioner Michael Barrows
1947
Johnny O'Clock · as Johnny O'clock
1945
Cornered · as Laurence Gerard
1944
Murder, My Sweet · as Philip Marlowe
1944
Meet the People · as William 'swanee' Swanson
1944
It Happened Tomorrow · as Lawrence 'larry' Stevens
1943
True to Life · as Link Ferris
1943
Riding High · as Steve Baird
1943
Happy Go Lucky · as Pete Hamilton
1941
In the Navy · as Thomas Halstead
1941
Model Wife · as Frederick "fred" Chambers
1940
Christmas in July · as Jimmy Mcdonald
1940
I Want a Divorce · as Alan Macnally
1939
Naughty But Nice · as Professor Donald Hardwick
1938
Going Places · as Peter Mason
1938
Hard to Get · as Bill Davis
1938
Cowboy from Brooklyn · as Elly Jordan
1937
Hollywood Hotel · as Ronnie Bowers
1937
Varsity Show · as Charles 'chuck' Daly
1937
The Singing Marine · as Bob Brent
1937
On the Avenue · as Gary Blake
1936
Gold Diggers of 1937 · as Rosmer Peck
1936
Stage Struck · as George Randall
1936
Hearts Divided · as Jerome Bonaparte
1936
Colleen · as Donald Ames
1935
Thanks a Million · as Eric Land
1935
1935
Shipmates Forever · as Richard 'dick' Melville Iii
1935
Page Miss Glory · as Bingo Nelson
1935
Broadway Gondolier · as Richard 'dick' Purcell, Aka Ricardo Purcelli
1935
Gold Diggers of 1935 · as Dick Curtis
1934
Flirtation Walk · as Dick "canary" Dorcy
1934
Happiness Ahead · as Bob Lane
1934
Dames · as Jimmy Higgens
1934
Twenty Million Sweethearts · as Buddy Clayton
1934
Wonder Bar · as Tommy
1933
Convention City · as Jerry Ford
1933
College Coach · as Phil "sarge" Sargeant
1933
Footlight Parade · as Scotty Blair
1933
1933
42nd Street · as Billy Lawler
1933
The King's Vacation · as John Kent
1932
Too Busy to Work · as Dan Hardy
1932
Big City Blues · as Radio Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
1932
Blessed Event · as Bunny Harmon

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