Biography
Dennis O'Keefe (born Edward Vance Flanagan; 29 March 1908 – 31 August 1968) was an American actor. The son of Irish-American vaudevillians, he joined his parents' stage act as a child and later wrote skits. He began working in films as an extra in the early 1930s, appearing uncredited in numerous productions under the name Bud Flanagan.
After a small role in Saratoga (1937), Clark Gable recommended him to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, which signed him to a contract that year and renamed him Dennis O'Keefe. He gained larger parts from 1938, including The Bad Man of Brimstone (1938) and the lead in Burn 'Em Up O'Connor (1939). He left MGM around 1940 and continued in mostly lower-budget films, often as a leading man in action and crime dramas or comedies.
In the 1950s he directed one film, wrote mystery stories and appeared in television series, including his own sitcom The Dennis O'Keefe Show (1959–60).
