Brian Donlevy, the Good Bad Guy

Brian Donlevy (1901–1972) was an underrated film actor with surprising range and a little-heralded gift for comedy. Often typecast as a villain, he played the definitive bad guy in such films as Destry Rides Again, Union Pacific and Beau Geste (all in 1939). He showed his versatility in the title role of Preston Sturges’ political satire The Great McGinty (1940) and impressed both New York critics and the Soviet government as the cooly authoritative Major Caton in Wake Island (1942). Donlevy was fondly remembered as globe-trotting U.S. Special Agent Steve Mitchell in the television series Dangerous Assignment (1952) and as Professor Quatermass in two acclaimed science fiction films. This first ever biography of Donlevy covers his colorful early life as a boy soldier, his years playing comedy roles on Broadway and his long career in Hollywood.

Derek Sculthorpe, an archives assistant and researcher, has written plays, short stories and articles. He lives in Leeds, Yorkshire.

Derek Sculthorpe

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 220
Bibliographic Info: 42 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2017
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6657-0
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2658-1
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments v
Preface 1
1. “Mention my name in Sheboygan” 3
2. Broadway: “Mr. Donlevy is between engagements” 12
3. Hollywood at Last: The Fox Years 28
4. Beau Geste and Beyond 46
5. The Great Donlevy 55
6. The War Years: Riding High at Paramount 74
7. “Gentlemen, this is my wife…” 90
8. The Postwar Years 97
9. Impact and the Early 1950s 117
10. Radio and Television 131
11. Quatermass to the Rescue 137
12. Fade Out 150
13. Happiness with Lillian 160
Epilogue 163
Appendices 165
Filmography  165
Theater  169
Radio  170
Television  174
Recordings  178
Chapter Notes 179
Bibliography 195
Index 201

“Sculthorpe’s analyses are superb…Sculthorpe does a fine job resurrecting Donlevy’s ‘intriguing if very uneven career.’ He is a good writer with solid, definite opinions and a knack for telling an interesting story. His research is amazing, unearthing many nuggets…very impressive”—Classic Images.