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Dennis O'Keefe can also refer to the Mayor of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, see Dennis O'Keefe (politician)

Dennis O'Keefe
Dennis O'Keefe in The Kid from Texas (1939)
Born	Edward Vance Flanagan March 29, 1908(1908-03-29) Fort Madison, Iowa, U.S.
Died	August 31, 1968 (aged 60) Santa Monica, California, U.S.
Years active	1933–1977
Spouse(s)	Steffi Duna (1940-1968) (his death) Louise Stanley (? - ?) (divorced)

Dennis O'Keefe (29 March 1908 – 31 August 1968) was an American actor. Born as Edward Vance Flanagan he was the son of Irish vaudevillians working in the United States. As a small child he joined his parents' act and later wrote skits for the stage.

O'Keefe started in films as an extra in the early 1930s and appeared in numerous films under the name Bud Flanagan. After a small but impressive role in Saratoga (1937), Clark Gable recommended O'Keefe to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which signed him to a contract in 1937 and re-named him Dennis O'Keefe. His film roles were bigger after that, starting with The Bad Man of Brimstone (1938), and the lead role in Burn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939).

O'Keefe left MGM around 1940 but continued to work in mostly lower budget productions. He often played the tough guy in action and crime dramas but was also known as a comic actor as well as a dramatic lead. In the 1950s he did some directing, wrote mystery stories, and appeared on TV in The Dennis O'Keefe Show.

He died of lung cancer at the age of 60.

Selected filmography

Dennis O'Keefe (right) in 1946 Doll Face.

• Hold That Kiss (1938)
• Topper Returns (1940)
• Weekend for Three (1941)
• Broadway Limited (1941)
• Lady Scarface (1941)
• The Leopard Man (1943)
• Abroad with Two Yanks (1944)
• The Fighting Seabees (1944)
• The Story of Dr. Wassell (1944)
• Brewster's Millions (1945)
• The Affairs of Susan (1945)
• Getting Gertie's Garter (1945)
• Doll Face (1946)
• Dishonored Lady (1947)
• T-Men (1947)
• Raw Deal (1948)
• Abandoned (1949)
• Woman on the Run (1950)
• The Company She Keeps (1950)
• One Big Affair (1952)
• The Lady Wants Mink (1953)
• Drums of Tahiti (1954)
• All Hands on Deck (1961)
• Naked Flame (1964)

External links

• Dennis O'Keefe at the Internet Movie Database
• Dennis O'Keefe at the Internet Broadway Database