Ralph Meeker Movies
Northwestern University grad Ralph Meeker reached Broadway just when the "Method" school of acting was taking hold. His first role of note was Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams' Streetcar Named Desire; Meeker took over the role from Marlon Brando, and there were those who felt that he was closer to Williams' concept of Stanley than the mighty Brando. Meeker went on to star in the Pulitzer Prize-winning William Inge play Picnic, though when time came to film the play, he was passed over in favor of the more bankable William Holden. As for his own film career, Meeker often had to settle for indifferent leading-man and villain assignments; his best screen showings included the role of Mike Hammer in 1955's Kiss Me Deadly and his harrowing portrayal of a condemned army private in Kubrick's Paths of Glory (1957). He remained active onscreen until the early 1980s, and in 1978 both starred in and co-produced the feature film My Boys are Good Boys. In 1959, Ralph Meeker starred as army investigator Steve Dekker in the syndicated TV series Not For Hire. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1956
Battle Shock and War Shock were the titles bestowed by British distributors upon the Paul Henreid-directed psychological drama A Woman's Devotion. Ralph Meeker stars as Trevor Stevenson, an emotionally scarred World War II veteran who has channelled his fears and phobias into his painting. At present, he is in Acapulco on his honeymoon with bride, Stella (Janice Rule). Shortly after Trevor's arrival, two women are murdered. The audience is presented with a "lady or the tiger" situation, with clues pointing to Trevor's guilt or innocence depending upon one's point-of-view. Henreid cagily avoids telling us the whole story -- continuing to withhold information right up to the grim finale. Trevor's behavior in the climactic scenes is an interesting precursor to the "crazed Vietnam vet" school of drama. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Meeker, Janice Rule, (more)
- 1961
Dean Martin plays an easygoing Southern politician, long on charm but short on brains. Susan Hayward, a poor girl with rich ideas, marries Martin and endeavors to engineer him into the governor's chair. Though no saint herself, Hayward is determined to overcome the good-old-boy corruption infesting the state government. She emerges triumphant after a public showdown with crafty politico Wilfred Hyde-White. Based on a novel by Wirt Williams,Ada was produced by the same team that had guided Susan Hayward to an Oscar nomination for I'll Cry Tomorrow. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Susan Hayward, Dean Martin, (more)
- 1959
Used-car salesman John Forbes (Ralph Meeker) is saddled with a high-maintenance wife named Dorothy (Elizabeth Fraser), who spends far more than her husband earns. When Dorothy insists upon taking an expensive trip to New Zealand, John can stand no more. Using one of the cars on his lot, John prepares to "accidentally" kill his wife -- but his plan has one tiny, irksome flaw, namely another husband with another spendthrift spouse. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
Showing up at his doctor's office complaining of stomach troubles, Carl Borden (Ralph Meeker) is informed that there are traces of arsenic in his system. Under normal circumstances, only one conclusion could be arrived at -- Carl's wife Annette (Phyllis Thaxter) is trying to poison him. But these aren't normal circumstances, as we find out in the wryly cynical conclusion of the episode. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1955
Alfred Hitchcock himself directed the first half-hour episode of his long-running suspense anthology. Heading the cast of Revenge is Ralph Meeker as aircraft worker Carl Spann and Vera Miles (The Wrong Man, Psycho) as Carl's ballerina wife Elsa. Having given up his job to care for Elsa after she suffers a nervous breakdown, Carl comes home one day to find all the furniture overturned and his wife in a state of near-shock. She tells Carl that a man had broken into their home and assaulted her, but cannot remember any other details. Later on, while out on a drive with Carl, Elsa stares at a passing pedestrian and whispers, "That's him! That's the man!" -- whereupon the vengeful Carl prepares to take the law into his own hands. "Revenge" was re-filmed as part of the 1985 Alfred Hitchcock Presents revival, featuring Linda Purl in the Vera Miles role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1959
Fashion expert Jan Manning (Nancy Olson) faces the loss of her department store when the bank turns down her loan request. She tells her troubles to her salesman boyfriend, Mel Reeves (Ralph Meeker), who suggests that she torch the store and collect a huge insurance settlement -- and to this end, Mel agrees to hire an arsonist. Later on, the store goes up in flames as scheduled, but what happens next to Jan and Mel isn't on anyone's schedule...especially theirs. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1980
This goofy sci-fi/horror nonsense plays like '50s-style alien-invasion schlock with a dollop of '80s-style blood and gore. The invasion -- such as it is -- is perpetrated on various backwoods hunters and campers by a scarcely-seen alien that looks like a menacing Star Trek guest star in a glam-rock outfit. The alien's rather simple frontal attack employs an arsenal of toothy, pulsating frisbees that glow in the dark and glom onto the necks and backs of various flannel-clad denizens of the woods. That's about it... oh, and there's a few reliable character actors on hand to spout silly dialogue. Jack Palance plays a crusty hunter who fancies the alien stuffed and mounted, not caring that it plans to do the same to him (now there's a trophy); Martin Landau turns in an eye-rolling performance as the local lunatic, whose paranoid ravings presage those of his character in the feature film The X-Files. Also known as It Came Without Warning. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Palance, Martin Landau, (more)
- 1955
In this violent, gripping drama, a ruthless criminal kidnaps a little boy and takes him into the Colorado wilderness where, unfortunately, the lad accidentally dies in a terrible fall. This doesn't stop the crook from collecting and hiding a substantial ransom. He is eventually captured and imprisoned. There he hooks up with four other bad apples and together they escape and go looking for the money. These criminals are desperate and will stop at nothing to reach their goal. One of them is a true psychopath and the cops and FBI agents must hurry before more blood is spilled. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Broderick Crawford, Ralph Meeker, (more)
- 1973
Harry Walker (David Janssen) is a helicopter traffic reporter in Salt Lake City who's never quite gotten over the time he spent flying during World War II -- a former combat pilot, he sees the world passing him by amid complacency and his own life reduced to boredom and bittersweet nostalgia for the best of times, when he was working for a cause that mattered (and there were causes that mattered). He chances on a brutal armored car robbery and helps the police give chase, and suddenly finds himself in the thick of the action when the robbers -- who have taken a woman hostage -- switch from a getaway car to a chopper. And when the getaway chopper tries to ram him, that's all it takes to get Walker into a cross-country aerial pursuit into the Utah desert in a duel to the death. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide
This offbeat John Wayne vehicle casts the Duke as Detective Jim Brannigan, an Irish-American detective at large in London. After the requisite culture-clash routines, it's down to business as Brannigan teams with Scotland Yard official Commander Swann (Richard Attenborough) to corral a crook who has absconded to England to avoid extradition. Judy Geeson co-stars as Jennifer Thatcher, a cute lady constable who spends most over her time fending off Brannigan's inbred chauvinism. Brannigan was co-written by Christopher Trumbo, the son of former blacklistee Dalton Trumbo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Wayne, Richard Attenborough, (more)
- 1953
The modest MGM programmer Code Two follows a group of police academy aspirants from the grueling training process to their first days on the job. The plot concentrates on three of these trainees: self-satisfied Chuck O'Flair (Ralph Meeker), bridegroom-to-be Harry Whenlon (Jeff Richards) and married rookie Russ Hardley (Robert Horton). Eschewing the usual Hollywood cliché, it is Whenlon, rather than Hardley, who is the first to be killed in the line of duty. The film then segues into a lengthy chase, with O'Flair and Hardley hot on the trail of the truck hijackers responsible for Hardley's death. While most of Code Two is presented in the clipped, straightforward style of TV's Dragnet, the producers find time to display leading lady Elaine Stewart in a brief two-piece bathing suit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Meeker, Sally Forrest, (more)
- 1974
In this made-for-TV movie, a driver is involved in a hit-and-run accident. By the time the guilt-ridden fellow returns to the accident scene, the body has mysteriously disappeared. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Forsythe
- 1955
Although the French Foreign Legion became increasingly anachronistic in the 1950s, films like Desert Sands helped to perpetuate the glamorous legend of this mercenary aggregation. Ralph Meeker heads the cast as a bold legionnaire who falls in love with gorgeous Arab girl Marla English. Alas, Marla is the daughter of shiek John Carradine and the sister of vengeful Keith Larsen, both of whom have vowed to kill all Legionnaires within shouting distance. Larsen eventually discovers that his real enemy is not Meeker, but the duplicitous Carradine. Director Lesley Selander staged most of the action scenes in the manner of his western films, with excellent results. One of the scriptwriters of Desert Sands was Danny Arnold, later the prime mover of TV's Barney Miller. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Meeker, Marla English, (more)
- 1951
It's a lucky thing that Four in a Jeep was bankrolled by a Swiss production company; if ever a movie needed a neutral approach, this is the one. The scene is postwar Vienna, a city sliced up into four United Nations sectors. Viveca Lindfors, a recent escapee from a Soviet prison camp, tries to win freedom for her husband. American MP Ralph Meeker attempts to help Lindfors, and to avoid falling in love with her himself. Filmed on location, Four in a Jeep was released in the US by United Artists. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Viveca Lindfors, Ralph Meeker, (more)
- 1961
In the final episode of Walt Disney's 17-part miniseries Tales of Texas John Slaughter, John (Tom Tryon), in his capacity as sheriff of Tombstone, AZ, has captured vicious robber and murderer Jimmy Deuce. As a result, every other outlaw in Tombstone has fled for the hills -- thereby utterly ruining the town's economy and causing the populace to turn against Sheriff Slaughter. Urged to give up his badge by his wife Viola (Betty Lynn), John refuses, insisting that his job is far from finished. Meanwhile, professional gunfighter Frank Clell (Ralph Meeker) rides into town, insisting that he's mended his murderous ways -- but has he? Originally telecast as part of the Walt Disney Presents anthology, "Frank Clell's in Town" and the previous episode, "A Trip to Tucson," were in 1966 excerpted for use in the expanded theatrical-feature version of the earlier Tales of Texas John Slaughter entry "A Holster Full of Law." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1967
The title character is a benign 7-foot-tall grizzly bear (perhaps all grizzlies are benign, but we're not about to get close enough to find out). Little Clint Howard befriends the bear, naming the beast Ben. Clint's wildlife-officer dad Dennis Weaver and mom Vera Miles have some trouble adjusting to the boy's new pet, but all ends happily after a lengthy sojourn in the Everglades. The best scenes involve ex-Bowery-Boy Huntz Hall, here playing a grizzled old swamp tramp. The upshot of Gentle Giant's success was the TV series Gentle Ben, which also starred Howard and Weaver and which ran from 1967 through 1969. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Weaver, Vera Miles, (more)
- 1952
Authentic New Orleans locations enhance the overall enjoyment of the prizefight melodrama Glory Alley. A mere few seconds before a championship bout, Socks Barbarrosa (Ralph Meeker) decides to throw in the towel so far as his boxing career is concerned. Socks' friends, family and handlers assume that he's turned yellow. A series of complex flashbacks, coupled with a subsequent tour of duty in Korea, prove otherwise. For those not interested in cinematic pugilism, Glory Alley offers such sidelines pleasures as the jazz music of Jack Teagarden and the dancing of leading lady Leslie Caron. Kurt Kazner also provides some choice moments as a blind "boxing groupie" who happens to be Caron's father. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Meeker, Leslie Caron, (more)
In this collaboration between actor Gregory Peck and director John Frankenheimer, Peck plays Southern sheriff Henry Tawes, who intends to bring moonshiner Carl McCain (Ralph Meeker) to justice. Instead, Tawes falls in love with McCain's nubile daughter, Alma (Tuesday Weld), and arranges for the feds to keep their hands off McCain's still. The sheriff thus risks completely destroying his work life and home life. Not surprisingly, Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line" is heard on the soundtrack at various crucial junctures. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gregory Peck, Tuesday Weld, (more)
- 1968
Ironside (Raymond Burr) heads to San Francisco's Skid Row to solve the murder of a street person. In the course of events, the Chief tries to rehabilitate Rafe (Ralph Meeker), a fiercely proud ex-cop who has become a shabby derelict. Meanwhile, another down-and-outer named Jack (Clu Gulager) confounds the authorities with a trail of forged checks. It soom becomes clear to Ironside that either Rafe or Jack is the murderer...and is more than willing to murder again. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
Ironside (Raymond Burr) is reunited with his old friend Dr. Juan Domingo (Desi Arnaz), an eccentric Cuban-born doctor currently residing in a small California town. When not being sidetracked by an odd assortment of patients (which include an expectant duck!), Dr. Domingo likes to dabble in crime-solving, much to the dismay of his nurse Big Sue (Linda Foster) and local police chief Cardiff (L.Q. Jones). At the moment, the good doctor is trying to prove that an alleged heart attack victim was actually murdered while flying his own plane. This episode was originally the pilot for a potential Desi Arnaz detective series called Dr. Domingo, which unfortunately failed to make a network sale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1953
The answer is: A turgid melodrama. The question: What is Jeopardy? Barbara Stanwyck stars as a suburbanite on a Mexican vacation with her husband (Barry Sullivan) and son (Lee Aaker). The threesome runs afoul of escape convict Ralph Meeker. Stanwyck's dilemma: Attempting to rescue her husband from drowning, while staving off the carnal demands of Meeker, who holds Stanwyck and her son at gunpoint. Jeopardy is on and off in only 69 minutes, but 64 of those minutes seem far longer. Trivia note: When dramatized on Lux Radio Theater, Jeopardy costarred child actor Harry Shearer, later a comic regular on Saturday Night Live. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barbara Stanwyck, Barry Sullivan, (more)
- 1975
- R
Puerto Rican actor Victor Mohica plays the title character, a Native American who has returned to his small California desert home town after service in Vietnam to face a new enemy -- a gang of ruthless racist thugs led by town boss Colby (Ralph Meeker). Pushed to his breaking point by a neverending string of brawls and harassment by town sheriff Jesse (well-played by David Canary, later on All My Children), who is kept under Colby's thumb by a hidden secret. Johnny finally snaps when Colby's goons lynch his alcoholic grandfather (Frank De Kova of F Troop) for kicks. Johnny escapes from prison and vanishes into the desert. There, he stalks and brutally murders each of the gang members responsible for his grandfather's death. A panicked Colby sends Jesse after Johnny, and soon, the two are facing each other down. Jesse must choose between obeying his cruel employer or freeing a man who has suffered the same sort of injustice as he. ~ Paul Gaita, All Movie Guide
Regarded by many critics as the ultimate film noir, and by many more as the finest movie adaptation of a book by Mickey Spillane, Kiss Me Deadly stars Ralph Meeker as Spillane's anti-social private eye Mike Hammer. While driving down a lonely road late one evening, Hammer picks up a beautiful blonde hitchhiker (Cloris Leachman), dressed in nothing but a raincoat. At first, Hammer assumes that the incoherent girl is an escaped lunatic; his mind is changed for him when he and the girl are abducted by two thugs. The men torture the girl to death as the semiconscious Hammer watches helplessly. He himself escapes extermination when the murderers' car topples off a cliff and he is thrown clear. Seeking vengeance, Hammer tries to discover the secret behind the girl's murder. Among those who cross his path in the film's tense, tingling 105 minutes are a slimy gangster (Paul Stewart), a turncoat scientist (Albert Dekker), and the dead woman's sexy roommate (Gaby Rodgers). All clues lead to a mysterious box -- the "Great Whatsit," as Hammer's secretary Velda (Maxine Cooper) describes it. Both the box and Velda are stolen by the villains, at which point Hammer discovers that the "Whatsit" contains radioactive material of awesome powers. The apocalyptic climax is doubly devastating because we're never quite certain if Hammer survives (he doesn't narrate the story, as was the case in most Mike Hammer films and TV shows). Director Robert Aldrich and scriptwriter Jack Moffit transcend Kiss Me Deadly's basic genre trappings to produce a one-of-a-kind melodrama for the nuclear age. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Meeker, Albert Dekker, (more)
- 1969
In 1966, producer Frank Price came up with a TV series concept about a group of people lost on an uncharted island who are forced to carve out their own civilization. No, it wasn't Gilligan's Island, but a more serious endeavor titled Stranded. When the pilot episode didn't sell, Price put the idea on the back burner until 1969 when, in collaboration with writer Dean Riesner, he dreamed up the two-hour pilot film, Lost Flight. This time, an airliner captained by Steve Bannerman (Lloyd Bridges) crashes on a remote island in the Pacific. Among Bannerman's fellow castaways are Gina Talbot (Anne Francis), Merle Barnaby (Billy Dee Williams), Glenn Wallup (Ralph Meeker), Jonesey (Andrew Prine), Charlie Burnett (the character who gets killed off early, played by Michael-James Wixted), and, as the resident troublemaker, Eddie Randolph (Bobby Van). Given a one-shot telecast in early 1970, Lost Flight didn't fly as a series...nor did Price's like-minded effort, 1976's Stranded. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
