Known for Acting
Born
November 23, 1894
Died
July 23, 1962 (age 67)
Birthplace
Greenville, Pennsylvania, USA
Filmography
51 films, 19 shows


All the Fine Young Cannibals
1960 · 1h 52m · US
An ambitious farm girl rushes into marriage with a rich man, almost destroying four lives in the process.


Paul Bunyan
1958 · 17m · US
A retelling of the classic Canadian / American tall tale of the enormous lumberjack and his loyal companion, an equally huge blue ox.


Escape from San Quentin
1957 · 1h 21m · US
Desmond plays convict Mike Gilbert, who goes on the lam with fellow prisoners Gruber and Graham when he finds out his wife is divorcing him and feels he has nothing to lose. Gruber intends to get his robbery loot, which his father, Curly, has successfully hidden from the law. After commandeering a plane, they double-cross Graham, who assembles his gang to get revenge - and Gruber's loot. Meanwhile, Gilbert falls in love with Robbie, his ex-wife’s sister. Through Robbie’s influence, Gilbert decides to go straight, but his cohorts aren’t quite so willing to reform.


Outlaw's Son
1957 · 1h 28m · US
A young boy grows to adulthood believing his father was the man responsible for a murder committed during a bank robbery.


Fury at Showdown
1957 · 1h 15m · US
After serving a year for a killing in self-defense, gunfighter Brock Mitchell tries to help his younger brother save his ranch but a crooked lawyer has other ideas.


Utah Blaine
1957 · 1h 15m · US
Western about Calhoun helping to overcome land-grabbing outlaws.


The Werewolf
1956 · 1h 19m · US
The arrival in a small mountain town of a dissheveled stranger launches a series of murders committed by some sort of animal. As the town doctor and his daughter attempt to help the stranger, the sheriff investigates the murders; and they uncover a sinister experiment involving two rogue scientists, a car accident victim, his wife and children, and a serum that causes a man to turn into a ravaging werewolf.


Blackjack Ketchum Desperado
1956 · 1h 16m · US
A former gunslinger comes to the aid of ranchers battling a murderous land baron.


Inside Detroit
1955 · 1h 22m · US
Gus Linden, former racketeer head of a Detroit local of the United Automobile Workers of America, A.F.L, attempts to destroy his successor, Blair Vicker, so he can put his old rackets back into the auto factories. Vickers fights him off, ultimately winning help from Linden's attractive daughter Barbara and from Joni Calvin, Vickers' moll.


My Sister Eileen
1955 · 1h 48m · US
Ruth and her beautiful sister Eileen come to New York's Greenwich Village looking for "fame, fortune and a 'For Rent' sign on Barrow Street". They find an apartment, but fame and fortune are a lot more elusive. Ruth gets the attention of playboy publisher Bob Baker when she submits a story about Eileen. She tries to keep his attention by convincing him that she and the gorgeous, man-getting Eileen are one and the same person.


Black Tuesday
1954 · 1h 20m · US
Vicious gangster Vincent Canelli pulls off a daring prison escape just moments before going to the electric chair, taking with him Peter Manning – a bank robber and cop killer who was to die right after him. Taking several hostages along, they try to get their hands on the loot from Manning’s robbery to finance their escape from the country.


Phone Call from a Stranger
1952 · 1h 45m · US
Four strangers board a plane and become fast friends, but a catastrophic crash leaves only one survivor. He then sets off on a journey to discover who these people were, but ultimately discovers the devastating truth about himself.


The Tall Target
1951 · 1h 18m · US
A detective tries to prevent the assassination of President-elect Abraham Lincoln during a train ride headed for Washington in 1861.


Ace in the Hole
1951 · 1h 52m · US
An arrogant reporter exploits a story about a man trapped in a cave to revitalize his career.


A Place in the Sun
1951 · 2h 2m · US
A young social climber wins the heart of a beautiful heiress but his former girlfriend's pregnancy stands in the way of his ambition.


No Way Out
1950 · 1h 46m · US
Two hoodlum brothers are brought into hospital for gunshot wounds, and when one dies, the other accuses their Black doctor of murder.


Sunset Boulevard
1950 · 1h 50m · US
A hack screenwriter writes a screenplay for a former silent film star who has faded into Hollywood obscurity.


Trapped
1949 · 1h 18m · US
Secret Service agents make a deal with a counterfeiting inmate to be released on early parole if he will help them recover some bogus moneymaking plates, but he plans to double-cross them.


The Devil's Henchmen
1949 · 1h 8m · US
Insurance agent Jesse Arno is posing as a sailor while on the trail of a gang of waterfront thieves, supposedly headed by Tip Banning. Arno is aware that a gang member has been murdered by Rhino, Banning's simple-minded right-hand man, but says nothing when he is questioned by the police, who are unaware of his real profession. Banning, knowing that Jesse knew who the killer was, admits him into the gang.


Sitting Pretty
1948 · 1h 23m · US
Tacey and Harry King are a suburban couple with three sons and a serious need of a babysitter. Tacey puts an ad in the paper for a live-in babysitter, and the ad is answered by Lynn Belvedere. But when she arrives, she turns out to be a man. And not just any man, but a most eccentric, outrageously forthright genius with seemingly a million careers and experiences behind him.


Jiggs and Maggie in Society
1947 · 1h 6m · US
Maggi continues her forever-ever efforts to crash Manhattan's top society, while Jiggs still mingles with his old construction cronies at the bar of Dinty Moore on 10th Avenue.


Circumstantial Evidence
1945 · 1h 8m · US
A man waits on death row while his son and friend try to prove that he did not kill a grocer with an ax.


Roaring Guns
1944 · 19m · US
Farmers take up arms against miners whose high water pressure mining operations are destroying their farms with mud and water runoff.
Say Uncle
Say Uncle
1944 · 17m · US
Suffering from a hangover, Errol finds himself with a hobo and a fan dancer left over as guests of the previous night's party, when his wife returns from a trip. His solution to pass them off as his uncle and niece from Alaska doesn't work out very well.


Northern Pursuit
1943 · 1h 33m · US
Canadian Mountie Steve Wagner captures a German Luftwaffe officer on a spy mission, who later escapes from the prison camp. To catch the spy ring, the Mounties employ a ruse so that the spies, believing Steve to be sympathetic, enlist him in their plans.


Hit the Ice
1943 · 1h 22m · US
After Flash Fulton and Weejie McCoy take pictures of a bank robbery, they're lured to the mountain resort hideout of the robbers, where they meet an old friend and his band.


Gildersleeve's Bad Day
1943 · 1h 2m · US
Gildersleeve has jury duty.


He Hired the Boss
1943 · 1h 12m
A shy bookkeeper accidentally discovers that the company where he works is targeted in a series of late-night robberies.


Arabian Nights
1942 · 1h 26m · US
Two half brothers battle each other for the power of the throne and the love of sensual, gorgeous dancing girl Scheherazade.


Kid Glove Killer
1942 · 1h 14m · US
Van Heflin stars as the head of a city crime lab who tries to solve the murder of the town mayor by scientifically analyzing evidence.


Two Yanks in Trinidad
1942 · 1h 24m · US
The Two Yanks in Trinidad are gangsters Tim Reardon (Pat O'Brien) and Vince Barrows (Brian Donlevy), who split up over a disagreement and join the army, Tim to escape Vince's wrath and Vince to get his lunch-hooks on Tim. Both of our heroes run afoul of Army discipline and protocol in general, and tough top sergeant Valentine (Donald MacBride).


This Time for Keeps
1942 · 1h 13m · US
A young newlywed (Robert Sterling) finds working for his nasty father-in-law difficult.


Blondie Goes to College
1942 · 1h 14m · US
Dagwood Bumstead must receive a college diploma or lose his job with the Dithers Construction Company. Not wishing to be separated from her husband, Blondie enrolls in college as well. But Leighton College rules stipulate "No Married Couples", forcing Blondie and Dagwood to pretend that they're not married. This causes quite a dilemma when coed Laura Wadsworth begins flirting with Dagwood and Rusty Bryant does the same with Blondie. And Blondie's discovery of a very pleasant secret threatens to expose her and Dagwood's marital status too.


Ball of Fire
1941 · 1h 51m · US
A group of academics have spent years shut up in a house working on the definitive encyclopedia. When one of them discovers that his entry on slang is hopelessly outdated, he ventures into the wide world to learn about the evolving language. Here he meets Sugarpuss O’Shea, a nightclub singer, who’s on top of all the slang—and, it just so happens, needs a place to stay.


Secrets of the Lone Wolf
1941 · 1h 6m · US
Michael Lanyard's faithful butler Jamison is mistaken for his boss by a gang of jewel robbers.


Three Girls About Town
1941 · 1h 15m · US
Faith and Hope Banner, sisters, are "convention hostesses" in a hotel. A body is discovered next door as the magician's convention is leaving and the mortician's convention is arriving, and the sisters, with help from manager Wilburforce Puddle, try to hide it. Complicating matters, Hope's boyfriend, Tommy, is a newspaper reporter in the hotel covering some labor negotiations.


Burma Convoy
1941 · 1h 12m · US
A truck convoy traveling the Burma Road is menaced by a group of smugglers.
I'll Fix It
I'll Fix It
1941 · 17m
Edgar decides to do a home plumbing job himself.


Harmon of Michigan
1941 · 1h 5m · US
A former University of Michigan football star (Tom Harmon) rejects an opportunity to play professional football. Instead, he marries his college sweetheart (Anita Louise) and begins a career as a college football coach.


Whistling in the Dark
1941 · 1h 18m · US
Radio crime show host 'The Fox' along with his fiancée and ex-girlfriend are kidnapped by a larcenous cult who demand that he help them plan a perfect murder.


Here Comes Mr. Jordan
1941 · 1h 34m · US
Boxer Joe Pendleton, flying to his next fight, crashes...because a Heavenly Messenger, new on the job, snatched Joe's spirit prematurely from his body. Before the matter can be rectified, Joe's body is cremated; so the celestial Mr. Jordan grants him the use of the body of wealthy Bruce Farnsworth, who's just been murdered by his wife. Joe tries to remake Farnsworth's unworthy life in his own clean-cut image, but then falls in love; and what about that murderous wife?


A Panic in the Parlor
1941 · 18m · US
Leon goes partying in Tijuana with a friend, but his wife gets wise and makes plans to teach him a lesson. She pretends to have a couple of lovers, including a large Cossack knife-handler. Leon, in order to trap her, disguises himself only to mess up things all around.


Love Crazy
1941 · 1h 39m · US
Circumstance, an old flame and a mother-in-law drive a happily married couple to the verge of divorce and insanity.


Pot o' Gold
1941 · 1h 26m · US
Jimmy, the owner of a failed music shop, goes to work with his uncle, the owner of a food factory. Before he gets there, he befriends an Irish family who happens to be his uncle's worst enemy because of their love for music and in-house band who constantly practices. Soon, Jimmy finds himself trying to help the band by getting them gigs and trying to reconcile the family with his uncle.


Mr. Dynamite
1941 · 1h 3m · US
A ball player takes his girlfriend to a carnival, only to discover a ring of saboteurs.


Whispers
1941 · 10m · US
In this John Nesbitt's Passing Parade short we see how gossip can be used to spread propaganda or to ruin a person's reputation.


You, the People
1940 · 21m · US
This MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short features a big city crime boss's attempt to use his crime "machine" to fraudulently win reelection for the current corrupt mayor. By using several illegal tactics, and aided by voter apathy, the crime boss nearly continues his control of the city.


Third Finger, Left Hand
1940 · 1h 36m · US
Magazine editor Margot Merrick pretends to be married in order to avoid advances from male colleagues. Unfortunately, things don't go to plan when Jeff Thompson, a potential suitor, uncovers the deception and decides to show up at Margot's family home posing as her husband!


Dr. Kildare Goes Home
1940 · 1h 19m · US
A young doctor gives up big-city success to help his father set up a small-town clinic.


Buyer Beware
1940 · 20m · US
This entry in MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series deals with shady companies selling fake merchandise.


Foreign Correspondent
1940 · 2h · US
American crime reporter John Jones is reassigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent to cover the imminent war. When he walks into the middle of an assassination and stumbles on a spy ring, he seeks help from a beautiful politician’s daughter and an urbane English journalist to uncover the truth.