William Gargan Movies
Actor William Gargan began his career in 1924, shortly after leaving high school, and made it to Broadway within a year. In 1932 he won great acclaim for his work in the play The Animal Kingdom, leading to an invitation from Hollywood where he made his film debut in 1932. During the '30s he played high-energy, gregarious leads in many "B"-movies and second leads in major films; later he moved into character roles. For his work in They Knew What They Wanted (1940), he received a "Best Supporting Actor" Oscar nomination. He made few films after 1948, but from 1949 to 1951 he starred in the title role of the TV series Martin Kane, Private Eye then reprised the role in 1957 in The New Adventures of Martin Kane. He was stricken by cancer of the larynx, and in 1960 his voice box was removed in surgery, ending his career. He learned esophageal speech then taught this method for the American Cancer Society; the same group enlisted him as an anti-smoking campaigner. Two years after losing his speech, he gave his final performance, portraying a mute clown on TV in King of Diamonds. He authored an autobiography, Why Me? (1969), recounting his struggle with cancer. His brother was actor Edward Gargan. ~ All Movie Guide
The fate that brings lovers together can easily tear them apart as can be seen in this sentimental tragedy that centers on an ordinary-looking secretary's (Jane Wyman) lonely life. Other than working and spending some free time with a spinster (Eileen Heckart), who is her best friend, the woman devotes most of her time attempting to cheer up her deeply depressed, eternally grieving mother, who has never recovered from her husband's leaving her. One day the secretary is in Central Park when a cloudburst occurs and she ends up meeting a handsome young soldier from Tennessee (Van Johnson). Although they couldn't be more different, they fall deeply in love. Unfortunately, he goes overseas and gets killed. The poor secretary nearly falls apart both mentally and physically. She seems near death when one day she is walking near St. Patrick's Cathedral when a second miracle occurs, giving her the will to live again. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Wyman, Van Johnson, (more)
- 1956
In this western, an adventurous gambler goes on the lam when he is falsely accused of a riverboat killing. He hides out for three years before returning to prove his innocence, and to find the girl he loves. Unfortunately, the girl is involved with a gambler, the ringleader of the gang responsible for the killing. The fugitive, assisted by a comic sidekick, soon brings them all to justice, and reclaims his lady love. Songs include: "Give Me Your Love," "Happy Go Lucky," and "The Gypsy with the Fire in His Shoes." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tony Curtis, Colleen Miller, (more)
- 1955
Man on the Ledge is a 60-minute TV remake of the 1951 theatrical film Fourteen Hours. Cameron Mitchell (playing the role originated in the film by Richard Basehart) stars as a disconsolate young man who steps out onto a skyscraper ledge, intending to jump to his death. The many people who try to talk Mitchell out of suicide include hard-bitten cop William Gargan, the boy's mother Sylvia Sidney, and his girflfriend Vera Miles. Both this TV drama and the original Fourteen Hours were based on a real-life incident which had a more tragic denouement than the one depicted herein. Man on the Ledge originally aired as the December 28, 1955 entry in the Twentieth Century Fox Hour television anthology. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Dynamite is a 1949 effort from the Pine-Thomas production mill. William Gargan and Richard Crane star as Gunner and Johnny, troubleshooters for dynamite contractor Hard Rock Mason Frank Ferguson. Though forced to work as a team on the job, Gunner and Johnny fall out when romance enters the picture in the form of Mason's pretty daughter Mary Virginia Welles. However, all misunderstandings are swept aside, however, when one of the men is trapped in a tunnel where several tons of TNT are about to go off. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Virginia Welles, (more)
- 1948
Only faintly related to the old stage play The Argyle Case, The Argyle Secrets is based on a half-hour radio program originally heard on CBS' Suspense. In the immediate postwar years, several above-suspicion Americans attempt to hide their past collaborations with the Nazis. Reporter William Gargan refuses to let sleeping dogs lie, however, and tracks down some of these fifth columnists. The film's "Macguffin" is a set of incriminating papers, which are stolen early in the proceedings. The supporting cast of this Film Classics programmer includes future Danny Thomas Show co-star Marjorie Lord and former "Dick Tracy" portrayer Ralph Byrd. The Argyle Secrets was written and directed by one-time MGM film editor Cyril Endfield, later the man behind the megaphone on Zulu (1964). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Marjorie Lord, (more)
- 1948
The Pine-Thomas action/adventure assembly line put together another winner with Waterfront at Midnight. Hoping to put the cuffs on criminal mastermind Socks Barstow (Richard Travis), detective Mike Hanrohan (William Gargan) is stymied by the fact that his younger brother Denny (Richard Crane) has joined Barstow's gang. Things get worse after a bloody shootout, in which Mike apparently guns down his own brother. It takes several reels for Mike to realize he's being played for a chump by the cagey Barstow-and when he does realize this, it's every man for himself! Starting off with a brutal point-blank murder, Waterfront at Midnight remains in high gear right up to the "End" title. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Mary Beth Hughes, (more)
Nora Goodrich (Brenda Marshall) is a dedicated research scientist who is very close to a breakthrough in her field of anesthetics. She allows herself to be used as the subject of an experiment, and becomes the victim of sabotage by her jealous assistant (Hillary Brooke), who is her rival for the affections of the same man (William Gargan). Nora is scarred by the accident, but fate takes a hand when a vicious blackmailer (Ruth Ford), part of an extortion scam that was being worked on her, breaks in to her apartment. In the ensuing struggle, the lady grifter is killed and then mistaken for Nora, while the real Nora goes into hiding. Taking the identity of the dead woman, she realizes how she has been betrayed and maimed and plots an elaborate revenge, undergoing reconstructive surgery that changes her whole appearance. She then reintroduces herself into the lives of her former associates, in her new guise, and begins her revenge. Before her plans can be concluded, however, her masquerade backfires on her, when she finds herself accused by the police -- of the murder of Nora Goodrich. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
- 1946
In this police drama, a busy precinct is thrown into chaos when the murdered corpse of a local detective is found in an abandoned car. Now the press is demanding to learn details. Meanwhile, an ambitious officer finds himself sorely tempted to use dishonest means to advance his political career. Things get even more muddled up when he falls in love with a female murder suspect. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carole Landis, William Gargan, (more)
- 1946
Most of this Republic B-plus mystery yarn is set in a penthouse, next door to a music hall where a strange song-and-dance extravaganza is being staged. This production incorporates several ice-skating sequences--a good excuse as any for the presence of leading lady Vera Hruba Ralston, Republic's answer to Sonja Henie. Ralston and orchestra leader William Marshall come across the body of producer Edward Norris. Almost everyone in the cast is placed under suspicion, since Norris was a cad and blackmailer. The surprise killer is (as usual) not that much of a surprise, though the scenarists keep us going with some last-minute red herrings. Murder in the Music Hall was reissued in a shortened version titled Midnight Melody in 1951. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vera Ralston, William Marshall, (more)
- 1946
Inspired by the radio program of the same name, Night Editor features Charles D. Brown as the editor of the New York Star. In flashback, the editor tells the tale of police lieutenant William Gargan, who forsakes his happy home life for the love of no-good society dame Janis Carter. Both Gargan and Carter begin cheating on their respective spouses, and while on a romantic rendezvous the couple witnesses a murder. They can't report the crime without revealing their own infidelities, a dilemma which leads to blackmail, double-crossing and a second murder attempt. A twist ending caps this snappy little 65-minute morality play. The script of Night Editor was based on the story "Inside Story" by Scott Littleton, previously dramatized on the Night Editor radio series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Janis Carter, (more)
- 1946
One of many films of the late 1940s examining the impact of WWII on post-war domestic life in the U.S., The Swell Guy is the story of an unprincipled war correspondent, Jim Duncan (Sonny Tufts). Jim has returned to his hometown following the war and tries to milk his wartime status and pose as a hero. He's actually a corrupt con man who exploits the good graces of his brother Martin (William Gargan) and tries to woo Martin's wife Ann (Ruth Warrick). Jim cheats the townspeople by staging rigged craps games, and he engages in other nefarious schemes that depend on the local citizens' naïve trust in the supposed war hero. Jim finally steals money from the town's charity campaign for war veterans and tries to leave town before his misdeeds catch up to him. But Jim gets a chance for redemption and real heroism when he alone can save his nephew's life. This film was directed by Frank Tuttle and based on the book The Hero by Gilbert Emery. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sonny Tufts, Ann Blyth, (more)
- 1946
Two secret agents must somehow prevent a group of post WW II Nazis hiding in the Hartz mountains from successfully making an atomic bomb as they plan to use the weapon on large Allied cities to help the Germans again rise to power. The two good agents find themselves entangled with beautiful German spies, but this does not keep them from fulfilling their mission just before the evil Germans are to bomb Paris. Interestingly, the Federation of American Scientists did not approve of the movie's use of the bomb. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Pat O'Moore, (more)
- 1946
In this drama two wandering WW II vets visit the family of a former buddy who had been killed in action. Finding the family nearly destitute and their trucking business on the brink of ruin, the friends decide to stay and help them fight the rival companies behind the mayhem. Unfortunately, the rivals play hard ball and kill the youngest son in the family causing the two vets to combine their know how and fight back in earnest. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Jean Rogers, (more)
- 1945
Follow That Woman is a tad more light-hearted than most Pine-Thomas adventure efforts. William Gargan plays private eye Sam Boone, who is about to be inducted into the Army. Before donning uniform, Boone attempts to solve a murder, but Uncle Sam is a little faster than he is. Still on the "outside", Boone's wife Nancy (Nancy Kelly) takes it upon herself to finish the case that Sam started. Yes, it's another "Thin Man" derivation, given a bit of currency by its wartime setting. The story doesn't always make sense, but William Gargan and Nancy Kelly work together quite well. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Nancy Kelly, (more)
- 1945
In this drama, two competing reporters get involved in a mystery when they find a gangster's corpse in a wax museum. As no one has reported the death, the two rivals begin racing to get the scoop. Unfortunately the uncooperative corpse keeps disappearing. Also looking for the body is the killer who does not want his murder to become public as he has also stolen some jewels. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Ann Savage, (more)
William C. Thomas' Midnight Manhunt begins with the shooting death of a master criminal who expires in a wax museum. Reporter Sue Gallagher (Ann Savage) is first on the scene, but she is soon in competition with her boyfriend, fellow reporter Pete Willis (William Gargan). The killer traps Sue in the wax museum when he returns there looking for the body. Leo Gorcey plays the caretaker of the wax museum. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- 1945
Joan Davis, the daughter of a famed woman detective, has inherited none of her mother's deductive prowess. Nonetheless, Joan teams with patrolman Leon Errol to solve a series of blowgun murders. The two erstwhile Sherlocks track down the alleged murder weapon to a theatre, where it is being used as a prop in a play. After disrupting the performance, Davis determines that the murders weren't committed by blowgun, and that the culprit is a mild-mannered gentleman to whom murder is a "hobby." The title She Gets Her Man clues us in on the finale, and also refers to the shaky but affectionate relationship between Joan Davis and Leon Errol. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1945
In this tuneful comedy adventure, a free-spirited fellow with a keen eye for easy money is assigned to sail to a remote island and grab a great fortune in pearls which happen to be guarded by some very fearsome natives who are ruled by a sensuous dancing woman. Later the guards capture the would-be thief and tie him to the stake for an impromptu barbecue. Fortunately, the dancer uses her moves to save his neck and happiness ensues. Songs include: "Pied Pipers from Swingtown" (Jack Brooks, sung by Eddie Quillan, Fuzzy Knight), "Ridin, on the Crest of a Cloud" (Brooks), "Lovely Luana" (Don Raye, Gene DePaul, sung by Nancy Kelly, The Native Girls), "Island of the Moon" (Raye, DePaul), and "Camptown Races" (Stephen Foster, sung by Kelly, William Gargan). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nancy Kelly, William Gargan, (more)
- 1944
In this musical comedy, an aspiring singer is desperate to audition before a producer. She finally gets an opportunity during a benefit concert. Mayhem ensues, when crooks kidnap the producer. The ransom is a rare Rembrandt. The plucky singer, not only saves the producer, she also wows the audience with her exceptional voice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1943
William Gargan and Margaret Lindsay, stars of Columbia's "Ellery Queen" series, were reunited for the like-minded comedy/mystery No Place for a Lady. Gargan plays private eye Jess Arno, while Lindsay is Jess' ever-faithful, long-suffering fiancee June Terry. The plot gets under way when a valuable collection of tires (vital to the War effort of course) are stolen by a wealthy widow-who subsequently ends up murdered. Suspicion falls upon Dolly Adair (Phyllis Brooks), but Arno isn't satisfied with this and eventually ferrets out the real killer. While it's not fair to reveal the murderer, it should be noted that the cast includes such whodunit veterans as Edward Norris, Dick Purcell and Jerome Cowan. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Gargan, Margaret Lindsay, (more)
- 1943
The world of horse racing provides the framework for this drama. The story centers around a young aspiring jockey who becomes the student of a corrupt ex-jock, who not only teaches him how to race, he teaches him the subtleties of cheating. The student ends up teaching the teacher a thing or two about honesty, and both of them go straight. The young jockey runs the final big race fair and square. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frank Craven, William Gargan, (more)
- 1943
In most of his movie vehicles, bandleader Kay Kyser played a bandleader named Kay Kyser. In Swing Fever, however, Kyser is cast as aspiring songwriter Lowell Blackford. Though he isn't too successful at peddling his songs, Blackford does have one unique talent: The ability to hypnotize boxer Killer Kennedy (Nat Pendleton) into winning fights. Blackford is coerced into using his "whammy" on Kennedy by Ginger Gray (Marilyn Maxwell). On the night of the championship bout, Blackford finds out he's being used, but goes through with his hypnosis to save Ginger from gangsters. The whole thing ends rather incongruously with a patriotic floor show, a specialty of MGM films of the period. Several guest performers lift Swing Fever out of the ordinary, including Lena Horne and the Merrill Abbott Dancers. Also appearing is an uncredited Ava Gardner as a sarcastic receptionist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marilyn Maxwell, William Gargan, (more)
