Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell (November 14, 1904 – January 2, 1963) was an American singer, actor, producer, director and studio boss.
Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell (November 14, 1904 – January 2, 1963) 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.
External links
IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/nm0694090
Wikipedia: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q287977
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Filmography (Movies)
The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:28/06/2024
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:29/01/2013
Fascination: Unauthorized Story of Marilyn Monroe
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:15/05/2012
42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:21/03/2006
Gold Diggers: FDR'S New Deal... Broadway Bound
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:21/03/2006
Television: The First Fifty Years
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1999
That's Dancing!
Character:
Release Date:18/01/1985
Going Hollywood: The '30s
Character:(archive footage)
Release Date:01/01/1984
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
Character:Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Release Date:25/02/1983
It's Showtime
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:31/03/1976
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:06/08/1975
The Love Goddesses
Character:(Archive Footage)
Release Date:03/03/1965
Ricochet
Character:Self - Host
Release Date:03/10/1961
Who Killed Julie Greer?
Character:Host / Inspector Amos Burke
Release Date:26/09/1961
One Must Die
Character:
Release Date:12/01/1961
The All-Star Christmas Show
Character:Self
Release Date:01/12/1958
Susan Slept Here
Character:Mark Christopher
Release Date:28/07/1954
The Bad and the Beautiful
Character:James Lee Bartlow
Release Date:25/12/1952
You Never Can Tell
Character:Rex Shepherd
Release Date:23/09/1951
The Tall Target
Character:John Kennedy
Release Date:17/08/1951
Cry Danger
Character:Rocky Mulloy
Release Date:23/02/1951
Right Cross
Character:Rick Garvey
Release Date:06/10/1950
The Reformer and the Redhead
Character:Andrew Hale
Release Date:05/05/1950
Mrs. Mike
Character:Sgt. Mike Flannigan
Release Date:23/12/1949
Rogues' Regiment
Character:Whit Corbett
Release Date:28/12/1948
Station West
Character:Lt. John Martin Haven
Release Date:01/09/1948
Pitfall
Character:John Forbes
Release Date:11/08/1948
To the Ends of the Earth
Character:Commissioner Michael Barrows
Release Date:07/02/1948
Blow-Ups of 1947
Character:Self
Release Date:31/12/1947
Johnny O'Clock
Character:Johnny O'Clock
Release Date:07/01/1947
Cornered
Character:Laurence Gerard
Release Date:23/11/1945
Murder, My Sweet
Character:Philip Marlowe
Release Date:14/12/1944
Meet the People
Character:William 'Swanee' Swanson
Release Date:01/06/1944
It Happened Tomorrow
Character:Lawrence 'Larry' Stevens
Release Date:31/03/1944
True to Life
Character:Link Ferris
Release Date:24/12/1943
Riding High
Character:Steve Baird
Release Date:11/11/1943
Three Cheers for the Girls
Character:Singer (archive footage) (uncredited)
Release Date:08/05/1943
Happy Go Lucky
Character:Pete Hamilton
Release Date:04/01/1943
Star Spangled Rhythm
Character:Dick Powell
Release Date:05/03/1942
In the Navy
Character:Thomas Halstead
Release Date:30/05/1941
Model Wife
Character:Frederick "Fred" Chambers
Release Date:17/04/1941
Christmas in July
Character:Jimmy McDonald
Release Date:25/10/1940
I Want a Divorce
Character:Alan MacNally
Release Date:20/09/1940
Naughty But Nice
Character:Professor Donald Hardwick
Release Date:23/06/1939
Hollywood Hobbies
Character:Self (uncredited)
Release Date:03/05/1939
Going Places
Character:Peter Mason
Release Date:31/12/1938
Breakdowns of 1938
Character:Elly Jordan (archive footage) (uncredited)
Release Date:31/12/1938
Hard to Get
Character:Bill Davis
Release Date:05/11/1938
Cowboy from Brooklyn
Character:Elly Jordan
Release Date:09/07/1938
Hollywood Hotel
Character:Ronnie Bowers
Release Date:15/01/1938
Breakdowns of 1937
Character:Self
Release Date:31/12/1937
Varsity Show
Character:Charles 'Chuck' Daly
Release Date:04/09/1937
The Singing Marine
Character:Bob Brent
Release Date:03/07/1937
On the Avenue
Character:Gary Blake
Release Date:12/02/1937
Gold Diggers of 1937
Character:Rosmer Peck
Release Date:28/12/1936
Stage Struck
Character:George Randall
Release Date:12/09/1936
Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
Character:Self
Release Date:11/09/1936
Hearts Divided
Character:Jerome Bonaparte
Release Date:20/06/1936
Colleen
Character:Donald Ames
Release Date:21/03/1936
One And One Is One
Character:Himself
Release Date:01/01/1936
Dick Powell and Joan Blondell home movies: "No. 5"
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1936
Dick Powell and Joan Blondell home movies: "No. 1, From beginning"
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1936
Dick Powell and Joan Blondell home movies: "No. 3, Normie"
Character:
Release Date:01/01/1936
A Dream Comes True
Character:Himself (uncredited)
Release Date:31/12/1935
Things You Never See on the Screen
Character:Self
Release Date:01/12/1935
Thanks a Million
Character:Eric Land
Release Date:13/11/1935
Shipmates Forever
Character:Richard 'Dick' Melville III
Release Date:12/10/1935
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Character:Lysander
Release Date:09/10/1935
Page Miss Glory
Character:Bingo Nelson
Release Date:07/09/1935
Broadway Gondolier
Character:Richard 'Dick' Purcell, aka Ricardo Purcelli
Release Date:27/07/1935
Gold Diggers of 1935
Character:Dick Curtis
Release Date:15/03/1935
Flirtation Walk
Character:Dick "Canary" Dorcy
Release Date:01/12/1934
Happiness Ahead
Character:Bob Lane
Release Date:27/10/1934
Dames
Character:Jimmy Higgens
Release Date:01/09/1934
Studio Highlights
Character:Self (archive footage)
Release Date:01/08/1934
Twenty Million Sweethearts
Character:Buddy Clayton
Release Date:26/05/1934
Wonder Bar
Character:Tommy
Release Date:31/03/1934
And She Learned About Dames
Character:Himself
Release Date:27/03/1934
Hollywood Newsreel
Character:Himself
Release Date:24/03/1934
Convention City
Character:Jerry Ford
Release Date:14/12/1933
College Coach
Character:Phil "Sarge" Sargeant
Release Date:04/11/1933
Footlight Parade
Character:Scotty Blair
Release Date:21/10/1933
Gold Diggers of 1933
Character:Brad
Release Date:27/05/1933
42nd Street
Character:Billy Lawler
Release Date:11/03/1933
The King's Vacation
Character:John Kent
Release Date:25/02/1933
The Road Is Open Again
Character:The Songwriter
Release Date:30/01/1933
Just Around the Corner
Character:Jerry
Release Date:17/01/1933
Too Busy to Work
Character:Dan Hardy
Release Date:02/12/1932
Big City Blues
Character:Radio Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
Release Date:18/09/1932
Blessed Event
Character:Bunny Harmon
Release Date:10/09/1932
Television Appearances
American Experience
Character:Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Dick Powell Show
Character:Self - Host
The DuPont Show of the Week
Character:Self
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
Character:Paul Martin
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
Character:Dr. Timothy McVey
Tonight Starring Jack Paar
Character:Self
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
Character:Self - Host
Climax!
Character:Philip Marlowe
This Is Your Life
Character:Self
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Willie Dante
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Eddie White
Four Star Playhouse
Character:US Marshal Philip Dana
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Burt Stroude
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Graham
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Paul
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Mike Donegan
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Dan
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Dan Hodges
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Dave Robinson
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Fred
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Chris
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Eddie
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Jeff
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Dave
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Capt. Avery
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Andrew
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Will Sonnett
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Fleet Mason
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Grover Doane
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Steve
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Priest
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Philip Benton
Four Star Playhouse
Character:Dan Matson
Lux Video Theatre
Character:Self - Intermission Guest
What's My Line?
Character:Self - Mystery Guest
What's My Line?
Character:Self - Panelist
The Emmy Awards
Character:Self
The Ed Sullivan Show
Character:Self
Golden Globe Awards
Character:Self - Host
Images
