Ralph Byrd

Ralph Byrd
Byrd in Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947)
Born	(1909-04-22)April 22, 1909 Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
Died	August 18, 1952(1952-08-18) (aged 43) Tarzana, California, U.S.
Resting place	Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1935–1952
Spouse	Virginia Carroll ​ ​ (m. 1936)​
Children	1

Ralph Byrd (April 22, 1909  – August 18, 1952) was an American actor. He was most famous for playing the comic strip character Dick Tracy on screen, in serials, feature films, and television.

Early life and career

The son of George and Edna May Byrd, Ralph Byrd was born in Dayton, Ohio. Before he began acting in films, he sang and danced in theatrical productions. He debuted in movies with a bit part in Red-Headed Woman in (1932).

Once established in Republic Pictures' Dick Tracy serials (beginning in 1937), he was usually cast in action features (as a truck driver, lumberjack, cowboy, etc.).

Byrd also starred in three other serials: Blake of Scotland Yard (1937), S.O.S. Coast Guard (1937), and The Vigilante (1947).

Byrd worked regularly at both major and minor studios, from highest-budget Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) to lowest-budget Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC). PRC could seldom afford star names but did sign Byrd for comedian Harry Langdon's comeback feature Misbehaving Husbands (1940), directed by William Beaudine. PRC and Beaudine then starred Byrd as a light comedian in two 1942 features, Duke of the Navy and Broadway Big Shot. Byrd's screen career was interrupted temporarily by military service.

Byrd co-starred with fellow action star George Reeves in two features for producer Robert L. Lippert: Jungle Goddess and Thunder in the Pines (both 1948).

Dick Tracy

Republic cast Byrd as Chester Gould's comic-strip detective Dick Tracy in the 1937 serial of the same title. The film was so successful that it spawned three sequels (unheard of in serials): Dick Tracy Returns, Dick Tracy's G-Men (featuring a young Jennifer Jones, under her real name of Phylis Isley), and Dick Tracy vs. Crime Inc. (reissued in 1952 as Dick Tracy vs. the Phantom Empire).

RKO Radio Pictures made a feature film, Dick Tracy, in 1945, with character actor Morgan Conway in the title role. After two films, exhibitors complained. To them, Ralph Byrd was Dick Tracy, and only Ralph Byrd would do. RKO capitulated, and hired Byrd to finish the series. Dick Tracy's Dilemma and Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome were both released in 1947.

Byrd portrayed Tracy for one season on the Dick Tracy TV series, which premiered on the ABC network in September 1950. The 48 half-hour episodes were filmed on a breakneck schedule and a low budget, with Byrd having to do some of the strenuous stunts himself. The exertion may have contributed to a heart condition, which caused his untimely death at age 43.

Personal life

He married actress and model Virginia Carroll in 1936. The couple remained together until Byrd's death in 1952.

He served in the United States Army during World War II, having been inducted into the service in San Pedro, California, in 1944.

He died of a heart attack on August 18, 1952, and is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale).

Selected filmography

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ralph Byrd.

• Ralph Byrd at IMDb
• Ralph Byrd at Find a Grave