Denis O'Dea
Encyclopedia
Denis O'Dea was an Irish stage
and film
actor
.
O'Dea was a leading member of Dublin's Abbey Theatre
, where his work led to a number of notable film roles, including two mid-1930s John Ford
films, The Informer (1935 film) and The Plough and the Stars
(1936), and the part of the police inspector in pursuit of IRA man James Mason
in Carol Reed
's Odd Man Out
(1947).
Other films in which he appeared include: The Mark Of Cain (1948), The Fallen Idol (1948, again for Reed, and again as a police inspector), Alfred Hitchcock
's Under Capricorn
(1949), The Bad Lord Byron
(1949), Landfall
(1949), Disney's
Treasure Island
(1950), Marry Me (1950), Captain Horatio Hornblower
(1951), The Long Dark Hall (1951), Mogambo
(1953; another John Ford film), Niagara
(1953), Never Take No For An Answer (1953), Raoul Walsh
's Sea Devils
(1953), The Rising of the Moon
(1957), Captain Lightfoot
(1957), Darby O'Gill and the Little People
(1959) and Esther and the King
(1960).
from 1956 until his death in 1978 at the age of 73; they had one son, Donnacha O'Dea
.
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
and film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
O'Dea was a leading member of Dublin's Abbey Theatre
Abbey Theatre
The Abbey Theatre , also known as the National Theatre of Ireland , is a theatre located in Dublin, Ireland. The Abbey first opened its doors to the public on 27 December 1904. Despite losing its original building to a fire in 1951, it has remained active to the present day...
, where his work led to a number of notable film roles, including two mid-1930s John Ford
John Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
films, The Informer (1935 film) and The Plough and the Stars
The Plough and the Stars (film)
The Plough and the Stars is a 1936 drama film directed by John Ford based on the play of the same name by Seán O'Casey.-Cast:* Barbara Stanwyck - Nora Clitheroe* Preston Foster - Jack Clitheroe* Barry Fitzgerald - Fluther Good...
(1936), and the part of the police inspector in pursuit of IRA man James Mason
James Mason
James Neville Mason was an English actor who attained stardom in both British and American films. Mason remained a powerful figure in the industry throughout his career and was nominated for three Academy Awards as well as three Golden Globes .- Early life :Mason was born in Huddersfield, in the...
in Carol Reed
Carol Reed
Sir Carol Reed was an English film director best known for Odd Man Out , The Fallen Idol , The Third Man and Oliver!...
's Odd Man Out
Odd Man Out
Odd Man Out is a 1947 Anglo-Irish film noir directed by Carol Reed, starring James Mason, and is based on a novel of the same name by F. L. Green.-Plot:The film's opening intertitle reads:...
(1947).
Other films in which he appeared include: The Mark Of Cain (1948), The Fallen Idol (1948, again for Reed, and again as a police inspector), Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's Under Capricorn
Under Capricorn
Under Capricorn is an Alfred Hitchcock historical feature film.-Production:The film is based on the novel Under Capricorn by Helen Simpson, with screenplay by James Bridie, and adaptation by Hume Cronyn. The movie was co-produced by Hitchcock and Sidney Bernstein for their short-lived production...
(1949), The Bad Lord Byron
The Bad Lord Byron
The Bad Lord Byron is a 1949 British historical drama film centered around the life of Lord Byron. It was directed by David MacDonald and starred Dennis Price as Byron with Mai Zetterling, Linden Travers and Joan Greenwood....
(1949), Landfall
Landfall (1949 film)
Landfall is a 1949 British war film directed by Ken Annakin and starring Michael Denison, Patricia Plunkett and Kathleen Harrison. It is based on the 1940 novel, Landfall: A Channel Story, written by author Nevil Shute.-Cast:* Michael Denison as Rick...
(1949), Disney's
Walt Disney Pictures
Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...
Treasure Island
Treasure Island (1950 film)
Treasure Island is a 1950 Disney adventure film, adapted from the Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island. It starred Bobby Driscoll as Jim Hawkins, and Robert Newton as Long John Silver...
(1950), Marry Me (1950), Captain Horatio Hornblower
Captain Horatio Hornblower
Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. is a 1951 naval adventure film. It was directed by Raoul Walsh and stars Gregory Peck, Virginia Mayo, Robert Beatty and Terence Morgan.It was based upon three of C. S...
(1951), The Long Dark Hall (1951), Mogambo
Mogambo
Mogambo is a 1953 film directed by John Ford, featuring Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Donald Sinden. The film was adapted by John Lee Mahin from the play by Wilson Collison....
(1953; another John Ford film), Niagara
Niagara (1953 film)
Niagara is a 1953 thriller-film noir directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters, and introducing Marilyn Monroe. Unlike other film noirs of the time, Niagara was shot in Technicolor on location and was one of 20th Century Fox's biggest box-office hits of the year.-Plot:Ray...
(1953), Never Take No For An Answer (1953), Raoul Walsh
Raoul Walsh
Raoul Walsh was an American film director, actor, founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the brother of silent screen actor George Walsh...
's Sea Devils
Sea Devils
Sea Devils is a 1953 British-American historical adventure film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Rock Hudson and Yvonne De Carlo. The story was adapted from the novel Les Travailleurs de la mer by Victor Hugo...
(1953), The Rising of the Moon
The Rising of the Moon (film)
The Rising of the Moon is a 1957 anthology film directed by John Ford. It consists of three episodes all set in Ireland:*"The Majesty of the Law", based on the short story of that title by Frank O'Connor in Bones of Contention...
(1957), Captain Lightfoot
Captain Lightfoot
Captain Lightfoot is a 1955 film starring Rock Hudson and Barbara Rush.It is a historical drama set in Ireland and was filmed at Clogherhead, County Louth, Ireland.-Cast:* Rock Hudson as Michael Martin* Barbara Rush as Aga Doherty...
(1957), Darby O'Gill and the Little People
Darby O'Gill and the Little People
Darby O'Gill and the Little People is a 1959 Walt Disney Productions feature film starring Albert Sharpe, Janet Munro, Sean Connery and Jimmy O'Dea, in a tale about a wily Irishman and his battle of wits with leprechauns. The film was directed by Robert Stevenson and its screenplay written by...
(1959) and Esther and the King
Esther and the King
Esther and the King is a 1960 U.S.A. / Italian film direction, written, and produced by Raoul Walsh. It is a religious epic. It was produced at 20th Century Fox/ Raoul Walsh Productions, and was released by 20th Century Fox. Joan Collins stars as Esther in this melodramatic, routine Biblical story...
(1960).
Family
He was married to actress Siobhán McKennaSiobhán McKenna
Siobhán McKenna was an Irish stage and screen actress.-Background:Born Siobhán Giollamhuire Nic Cionnaith in Belfast, Northern Ireland into a Catholic and nationalist family, she grew up in Galway City and in County Monaghan, Ireland speaking fluent Irish...
from 1956 until his death in 1978 at the age of 73; they had one son, Donnacha O'Dea
Donnacha O'Dea
Donnacha "The Don" O'Dea is an Irish professional poker player. In his youth he was a swimmer, and represented Ireland in the 1968 Olympics. He was also the first Irish swimmer to swim 100m in less than one minute...
.