William Joseph Patrick O'Brien was an American film actor with more than 100 screen credits. Of Irish descent, he often played Irish and Irish-American characters and was referred to as "Hollywood's Irishman in Residence" in the press. One of the best-known screen actors of the 1930s and 1940s, he played priests, cops, military figures, pilots, and reporters. He is especially well-remembered for his roles in Knute Rockne, All American (1940), Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), and Some Like It Hot (1959). He was frequently paired onscreen with Hollywood star James Cagney. O'Brien also appeared on stage and television.
George O'Brien was an American actor, popular during the silent film era and into the sound film era of the 1930s. He is best known today as the lead actor in F. W. Murnau's 1927 film Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans and subsequent appearances in a number of Westerns in the 1930s and 1940s.
Peggy Shannon was an American actress. She appeared on the stage and screen of the 1920s and 1930s.
Marian Marsh was a Trinidad-born American film actress and later an environmentalist.
Fixer Dugan is a 1939 American drama film starring Lee Tracy as a circus promoter who decides to help out an orphaned girl, played by Virginia Weidler. The film was directed by Lew Landers, released by RKO Radio Pictures and is based on the play What's a Fixer For? by H.C. Potter.
The Fighting Gringo is a 1939 Western film directed by David Howard and featuring George O'Brien, Lupita Tovar and William Royle. The picture was produced under the RKO Pictures banner. Ben Johnson had a small uncredited early role as a Mexican barfly and did some work as a stuntman.
Wagon Train is a 1940 American Western film directed by Edward Killy and starring Tim Holt. It was this film that really started Holt's series of B Westerns for RKO, replacing those made by George O'Brien.
Virginia Vale was an American film actress. She starred in a number of B-movie westerns but took a variety of other roles as well, notably in Blonde Comet (1941), in which she played a race car driver.
The Right to Romance is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film starring Ann Harding and Robert Young and released by RKO Radio Pictures.
The Girl and the Gambler is a 1939 Western film, from RKO Radio Pictures, starring Tim Holt. It was an early starring Western for Holt, who soon replaced George O'Brien as the studio's main Western star.
Touchdown is a 1931 American pre-Code football film directed by Norman Z. McLeod and starring Richard Arlen, Peggy Shannon, Jack Oakie and Regis Toomey. Jim Thorpe and Herman Brix appear uncredited as unbilled football players.
Smashing the Rackets is a 1938 American drama film directed by Lew Landers, written by Lionel Houser, and starring Chester Morris, Frances Mercer, Rita Johnson, Bruce Cabot and Edward Pawley. It was released on August 19, 1938, by RKO Pictures.
Arizona Legion is a 1939 American Western film directed by David Howard from a screenplay by Oliver Drake, based on Bernard McConville's story. Produced and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures, it was released on January 20, 1939, and stars George O'Brien and Laraine Day.
Trouble in Sundown is a 1939 American Western film directed by David Howard, using a screenplay by Oliver Drake, Dorrell McGowan and Stuart McGowan, based on a story by Charles F. Royal.
Timber Stampede is a 1939 American Western film directed by David Howard from a screenplay by Morton Grant, based on a story by Bernard McConville and Paul Franklin. The film stars George O'Brien, Chill Wills, and Marjorie Reynolds. RKO Radio Pictures produced and distributed the film, which was released on June 30, 1939.
The Marshal of Mesa City is a 1939 American Western film directed by David Howard from a screenplay by Jack Lait Jr..
Prairie Law is a 1940 American Western film directed by David Howard from a screenplay by Doris Schroeder and Arthur V. Jones, based on a story by Bernard McConville. Released on June 14, 1940, the film was produced and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures and stars George O'Brien, Virginia Vale, and Dick Hogan.
Stage to Chino is a 1940 American Western film directed by Edward Killy from a screenplay by Morton Grant and Arthur V. Jones, based on a story by Norton S. Parker. The film was released by RKO Radio Pictures on July 26, 1940, who also produced the film. It stars George O'Brien, Virginia Vale, and the vocal group, Pals of the Golden West.
George White's Scandals is a 1934 American pre-Code musical film directed by George White and written by Jack Yellen. The film stars Rudy Vallée, Jimmy Durante, Alice Faye, Adrienne Ames, Gregory Ratoff, Cliff Edwards and Dixie Dunbar. The film was released on March 16, 1934, by Fox Film Corporation. George White also produced George White's Scandals for RKO in 1945. It was directed by Felix E. Feist and starred Joan Davis and Jack Haley.
The Devil's Mate is a 1933 American pre-Code mystery film directed by Phil Rosen, starring Peggy Shannon and Preston Foster.
