Dick Powell
Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell (November 14, 1904 – January 2, 1963) was an American singer, actor, producer, director and studio boss.
Born in Mountain View, the seat of Stone County in northern Arkansas, Powell attended the former Little Rock College in the state capital, before he started his entertainment career as a singer with the Charlie Davis Orchestra, based in the midwest. He recorded a number of records with Davis and on his own, for the Vocalion label in the late 1920s.
Powell moved to Pittsburgh, where he found great local success as the Master of Ceremonies at the Enright Theater and the Stanley Theater. In April 1930, Warner Bros. bought up Brunswick Records which at that time owned Vocalion. Warner Bros. was sufficiently impressed by Powell's singing and stage presence to offer him a film contract in 1932. He made his film debut as a singing bandleader in Blessed Event. He went on to star as a boyish crooner in movie musicals such as 42nd Street, Footlight Parade, Gold Diggers of 1933, Dames, Flirtation Walk, and On the Avenue, often appearing opposite Ruby Keeler and Joan Blondell.
Powell desperately wanted to expand his range but Warner Bros. wouldn't allow him to do so, although they did (mis)cast him in A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935) as Lysander. This was to be Powell's only Shakespearean role and one he did not want to play, feeling that he was completely wrong for the part. Finally, reaching his forties and knowing that his young romantic leading man days were behind him he lobbied to play the lead in Double Indemnity. He lost out to Fred MacMurray, another Hollywood nice guy. MacMurray’s success, however, fueled Powell’s resolve to pursue projects with greater range and in 1944, he was cast in the first of a series of films noir, as private detective Philip Marlowe in Murder, My Sweet, directed by Edward Dmytryk. The film was a big hit and Powell had successfully reinvented himself as a dramatic actor.
The following year Dmytryk and Powell re-teamed to make Cornered, a gripping, post-WWII thriller that helped define the film noir style. He became a popular "tough guy" lead appearing in movies such as Johnny O'Clock and Cry Danger. But 1948 saw him step out of the brutish type when he starred in Pitfall, a film noir that sees a bored insurance company worker fall for an innocent but dangerous femme fatale, played by Lizabeth Scott. Even when he appeared in lighter fare such as The Reformer and the Redhead and Susan Slept Here (1954) he never sang in his later roles. The latter, his final onscreen appearance in a feature film, did include a dance number with costar Debbie Reynolds.
From 1949-1953, Powell played the lead role in the National Broadcasting Company radio theater production Richard Diamond, Private Detective. His character in the 30-minute weekly was a likable private detective with a quick wit. When Richard Diamond came to television in 1957, the lead role was portrayed by David Janssen.
Known For | Acting |
---|---|
Most Rating | 7.434 |
Birthday | 1904-11-14 |
Place of Birth | Mountain View, Arkansas, USA |
Also Known As | Richard Ewing Powell, Дик Пауэлл, Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell, |
1944
Murder, My Sweet
7.2/220
After being hired to find an ex-con's former girlfriend, Philip Marlowe is drawn into a deeply complex web of mystery and deceit.
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Murder, My Sweet
1933
42nd Street
6.9/172
A producer puts on what may be his last Broadway show, and at the last moment a chorus girl has to replace the star.
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42nd Street
1944
It Happened Tomorrow
6.8/54
A young turn-of-the-century newspaper man finds he can get hold of the next day's paper. This brings more problems than fortune, especially as his new...
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It Happened Tomorrow
1933
Gold Diggers of 1933
7.2/139
During the Great Depression, all Broadway shows are closed down. A group of desperate unemployed showgirls find hope when a wealthy songwriter invests...
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Gold Diggers of 1933
1952
The Bad and the Beautiful
7.3/240
Told in flashback form, the film traces the rise and fall of a tough, ambitious Hollywood producer, Jonathan Shields, as seen through the eyes of vari...
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The Bad and the Beautiful
1948
Pitfall
6.8/72
An insurance man wishing for a more exciting life becomes wrapped up in the affairs of an imprisoned embezzler, his model girlfriend, and a violent pr...
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Pitfall
1951
Cry Danger
6.8/48
After serving five years of a life sentence, Rocky Mulloy hopes to clear his friend who's still in prison for the same crime.
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Cry Danger
1941
In the Navy
6.4/30
Popular crooner Russ Raymond abandons his career at its peak and joins the Navy using an alias, Tommy Halstead. However, Dorothy Roberts, a reporter,...
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In the Navy
1951
The Tall Target
6.905/37
A detective tries to prevent the assassination of President-elect Abraham Lincoln during a train ride headed for Washington in 1861.
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The Tall Target
1940
Christmas in July
6.986/73
An office clerk loves entering contests in the hopes of someday winning a fortune and marrying the girl he loves. His latest attempt is the Maxford Ho...
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Christmas in July
1933
Footlight Parade
6.9/80
A fledgling producer finds himself at odds with his workers, financiers and his greedy ex-wife when he tries to produce live musicals for movie-going...
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Footlight Parade
1945
Cornered
6.048/42
A World War II veteran hunts down the Nazi collaborators who killed his wife.
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Cornered
1932
Blessed Event
6.5/8
A New York gossip columnist feuds with a singer and enjoys the power of the press.
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Blessed Event
1948
Station West
6.1/23
When two US cavalrymen transporting a gold shipment get killed, US Army Intelligence investigator John Haven goes undercover to a mining and logging t...
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Station West
1935
Broadway Gondolier
5.4/5
A taxi driver travels to Venice and poses as a gondolier to land a radio singing job.
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Broadway Gondolier
1938
Hollywood Hotel
5.2/9
After losing a coveted role in an upcoming film to another actress, screen queen Mona Marshall (Lola Lane) protests by refusing to appear at her curre...
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Hollywood Hotel
1935
Gold Diggers of 1935
6.4/43
Romance strikes when a vacationing millionairess and her daughter and son spend their vacation at a posh New England resort.
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Gold Diggers of 1935
1934
Dames
6.3/34
A reformer's daughter wins the lead role in a scandalous Broadway show.
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Dames
1950
The Reformer and the Redhead
6.3/3
A small-town politician falls for an idealistic zookeeper.
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The Reformer and the Redhead
1938
Going Places
6/4
A sports store clerk poses as a famous jockey as an advertising stunt, but gets more than he bargained for.
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Going Places
1948
To the Ends of the Earth
5.6/16
A treasury agent becomes obsessed with exposing an international drug ring.
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To the Ends of the Earth
1935
A Midsummer Night's Dream
6.4/38
Four young people escape Athens to a forest where the king and queen of the fairies are quarreling, while meanwhile, a troupe of amateur actors rehear...
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A Midsummer Night's Dream
1954
Susan Slept Here
6.14/25
On Christmas Eve, suffering from a case of writer's block, screenwriter Mark Christopher and his gofer Virgil get an unexpected visit from Sergeant Ma...
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Susan Slept Here
1947
Johnny O'Clock
6.073/41
When an employee at an illegal gambling den dies suspiciously, her sister, Nancy, looks into the situation and falls for Johnny O'Clock, a suave partn...
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Johnny O'Clock
1936
Gold Diggers of 1937
5.8/13
The partners of stage-producer J. J. Hobart gamble away the money for his new show. They enlist a gold-digging chorus girl to help get it back by conn...
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Gold Diggers of 1937
1944
Meet the People
5/4
A idealistic shipyard worker interests a beautiful Hollywood star in staging a musical tribute to the war industry, but they disagree on some importan...
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Meet the People
1939
Hollywood Hobbies
5.6/5
In this short film, two starstruck movie fans hire a tour guide and see a plethora of Hollywood stars.
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Hollywood Hobbies
1937
On the Avenue
6.7/3
A new Broadway show starring Gary Blake shamelessly lampoons the rich Carraway family. To get her own back, daughter Mimi sets out to ensnare Blake, b...
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On the Avenue
1942
Star Spangled Rhythm
5.9/8
Pop, a security guard at Paramount has told his son that he's the head of the studio. When his son arrives in Hollywood on shore leave with his buddie...
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Star Spangled Rhythm
1934
Twenty Million Sweethearts
6/6
Unscrupulous agent Rush Blake makes singing waiter Buddy Clayton a big radio star while Peggy Cornell, who has lost her own radio show, helps Buddy.
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Twenty Million Sweethearts
1935
Thanks a Million
5.6/5
A show troupe is engaged by Judge Culliman, who is running for Governor, to enhance his political campaign. When the inebriated Judge has to be replac...
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Thanks a Million
1936
Colleen
5.3/3
Musical about dingaling millionaire businessman Cedric Ames and his various employees
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Colleen
1951
You Never Can Tell
6.4/8
Ex-police/army dog King inherits a fortune from an eccentric millionaire. But someone poisons him for his fortune. He gets to go back to earth as a hu...
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You Never Can Tell
1934
Happiness Ahead
6/4
Society heiress Joan Bradford rebels against her mother's choice of a future husband by masquerading as a working class girl and dating a window washe...
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Happiness Ahead
1934
Wonder Bar
6.2/18
Harry and Inez are a dance team at the Wonder Bar. Inez loves Harry, but he is in love with Liane, the wife of a wealthy business man. Al Wonder and t...
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Wonder Bar
1933
College Coach
4.3/9
Ruthless Coach Gore creates turmoil at a college by hiring players and alienating students. Along the way, the coach loses his wife Claire Gore to a g...
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College Coach
1933
The King's Vacation
5/2
The king of an unnamed European country abdicates and tries to recapture the happiness with the wife he had to give up for the throne.
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The King's Vacation
1938
Cowboy from Brooklyn
4/1
A singing cowboy turns out to be a tenderfoot.
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Cowboy from Brooklyn
1937
Varsity Show
5.7/3
Winfield College students rebel against a stodgy professor who won't permit "swing" music be played in their varsity show. They appeal to a big Broadw...
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Varsity Show
1943
Happy Go Lucky
4/1
A gold-digger hopes to land a rich husband in Trinidad, but gets mixed up with a beach boy and voodoo.
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Happy Go Lucky
1933
The Road Is Open Again
0/0
A Songwriter falls asleep while writing a song about the NRA. He dreams that Washington, Lincoln and FDR appear in his room asking him why he wants to...
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The Road Is Open Again
1936
Hearts Divided
5/2
Napoleon Bonaparte's younger brother, visiting the United States, falls madly in love with a young woman he meets in Baltimore.
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Hearts Divided
1935
Page Miss Glory
6.3/6
A country girl goes to the city and gets a job in a posh hotel, and winds up becoming an instant celebrity thanks to an ambitious photographer.
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Page Miss Glory
1983
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
6.5/2
Out-takes (mostly from Warner Bros.), promotional shorts, movie premieres, public service pleas, wardrobe tests, documentary material, and archival fo...
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Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1935
Shipmates Forever
6.5/4
An admiral's son with no interest in carrying on the family tradition is a successful crooner. He finally joins the Navy to prove he can, but with no...
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Shipmates Forever
1950
Right Cross
6.6/5
A sportswriter forms a ring triangle with a fight manager's daughter and her Mexican-American boxer.
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Right Cross
1936
Stage Struck
4/2
A Broadway show is forced to bow to the whims of a talentless, whacky, but rich, Broadway actress with a contract.
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Stage Struck
1933
Just Around the Corner
6/2
Promotional short produced by General Electric for release through Warner Bros. to advertise GE's home appliances.
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Just Around the Corner
1943
Riding High
4/3
No relation to the 1950 Frank Capra film of the same name, the 1943 Technicolor musical Riding High is a by-the-numbers vehicle for Dorothy Lamour and...
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Riding High
1940
I Want a Divorce
0/0
Comedy about newlyweds wondering if their marriage was a mistake.
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I Want a Divorce
1939
Naughty But Nice
6.2/6
Donald Hardwick (Dick Powell) is a stuffed-shirt, classical music professor. His family and small-town music college that he works are of equal mindse...
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Naughty But Nice
1937
The Singing Marine
4/3
Bob Brent, a young Marine from Arkansas, impresses his comrades with his singing ability, and they pitch in to send him to New York to compete in an a...
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The Singing Marine
1938
Hard to Get
6/5
When spoiled young heiress Maggie Richards tries to charge some gasoline at an auto camp run by Bill Davis, he makes her work out her bill by making b...
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Hard to Get
1943
True to Life
6/1
A writer for a radio program needs some fresh ideas to juice up his show. For inspiration, he rents a room with a typical American family and begins t...
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True to Life
1948
Rogues' Regiment
6.5/5
A post World War 2, US Army agent is assigned to join the Foreign Legion in search of high ranking Nazi war criminal who may have also enlisted.
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Rogues' Regiment
1933
Convention City
3.5/2
Extra-marital fun and games at a convention of the Honeywell Rubber Company in Atlantic City.
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Convention City
1941
Model Wife
0/0
Complications in a dressmaking firm when a model has to hide her marriage.
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Model Wife
1932
Too Busy to Work
4/1
A hobo searches the countryside for the daughter he lost when his wife left him...
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Too Busy to Work
1934
Hollywood Newsreel
4/1
A potpourri of features involving Hollywood celebrities. The Columbia University football team, winner of the 1934 Rose Bowl game, visits the Warner B...
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Hollywood Newsreel
1934
Flirtation Walk
5.273/11
A private stationed in Hawaii gets involved with the general's engaged daughter. In order to avoid a scandal, the pair break up, but meet again years...
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Flirtation Walk
1936
One And One Is One
5/1
These home movies shot by Dick Powell feature his wife Joan Blondell in a series of poses and dances as she tries on various dresses.
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One And One Is One
1932
Big City Blues
5.273/11
An Indiana boy comes into an inheritance and moves to New York City, living it up with his girlfriend until he gets in over his head and someone gets...
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Big City Blues
1949
Mrs. Mike
2/1
This film is based on the novel, Mrs. Mike, which is based on the real life woman, Kathy O'Fallon Flannigan. A Boston teenager is sent to live with he...
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Mrs. Mike
2013
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
5.5/4
Uncensored. Laugh along with Hollywood's brightest stars in this hilarious compilation of bloopers from some of the biggest movies in history . You'll...
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Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
1935
Things You Never See on the Screen
5/3
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1935.
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Things You Never See on the Screen
1943
Three Cheers for the Girls
6.2/5
This short film showcases six production numbers from various Warner Bros. musicals.
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Three Cheers for the Girls
1935
A Dream Comes True
5.5/1
A promotional short to hype the production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935).
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A Dream Comes True
1938
Breakdowns of 1938
5/2
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1938.
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Breakdowns of 1938
1937
Breakdowns of 1937
6/3
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1937.
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Breakdowns of 1937
1947
Blow-Ups of 1947
6.3/3
Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1947.
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Blow-Ups of 1947
1975
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
5.7/7
Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American entertainment industry during the Great Depression.
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Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
1934
And She Learned About Dames
6/1
Students at New York's Rovina Finishing School for Girls send their photographs to the makers of Claybury's Beauty Soap, in the hope of being chosen a...
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And She Learned About Dames
1936
Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
6/1
Viewers are provided a visit to Ken Maynard's private circus; Bette Davis poses for her portrait; Frank McHugh plays with his children; a visit to the...
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Screen Snapshots (Series 16, No. 1)
1965
The Love Goddesses
6.3/22
This insightful documentary features some of the major and most beautiful actresses to grace the silver screen. It shows how the movie industry change...
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The Love Goddesses
1976
It's Showtime
7/1
A collection of film clips profiling animal actors.
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It's Showtime
1985
That's Dancing!
7/18
A documentary film about dancing on the screen, from it's orgins after the invention of the movie camera, over the movie musical from the late 20s, 30...
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That's Dancing!
1934
Studio Highlights
0/0
A short promotional film about Ruby Keeler and her upcoming film "Flirtation Walk." It provides a brief look at her career on Broadway, early films, a...
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Studio Highlights
2006
42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
6/2
Making-of documentary about the 1933 musical, 42nd Street.
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42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
1984
Going Hollywood: The '30s
10/1
Robert Preston hosts this documentary that shows what people of the 1930s were watching as they were battling the Depression as well as eventually get...
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Going Hollywood: The '30s
1961
Who Killed Julie Greer?
0/0
Amos Burke is an L.A. cop who's inherited millions and usually arrives at crime scenes in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce. Investigating the death of a...
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Who Killed Julie Greer?
1961
Ricochet
0/0
An army sergeant blames himself for causing a rookie's death during training.
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Ricochet
2023
The Conqueror (Hollywood Fallout)
0/0
The story of one of the great environmental disasters to befall the United States, and the terrible movie that helped bring the catastrophe to light.
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The Conqueror (Hollywood Fallout)
1999
Television: The First Fifty Years
0/0
Trace the history of television and its impact on American culture with clips, newsreels, and exclusive interviews from television greats like Walter...
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Television: The First Fifty Years
2006
Gold Diggers: FDR'S New Deal... Broadway Bound
5.583/6
Short documentary about the Great Depression's impact on film, specifically Berkeley musicals.
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