Gabriel Dell
Encyclopedia
Gabriel Dell was an American actor and one of the members of what came to be known as the Dead End Kids
/East Side Kids
/The Bowery Boys
.
, Dell almost made his stage debut a few years before Dead End
when he and his sister were slated for roles in The Good Earth
with Alla Nazimova
and Claude Rains
.
, East Side Kids
and The Bowery Boys
before leaving the series in 1950
.
He won a role in Tickets, Please!
on Broadway, and also toured with former gang buddy Huntz Hall
in a nightclub partnership that eventually caused them both to become divorced. Dell spent the next three years at the Actor's Studio, married and had a son in 1956.
In the late 1950s, Dell joined the stock company of The Steve Allen Show
, along with Don Knotts
, Louis Nye
, Tom Poston
, Bill Dana, Pat Harrington
, Dayton Allen
and Skitch Henderson
. During this period Dell developed a Bela Lugosi
imitation, usually used comedically.
Over the next few years Dell appeared in several productions on and off Broadway and supplied all of the voices for an LP recording of Famous Monsters Speak, on which he did his Lugosi impression in a serious context. In 1964 Dell won the role the title character in Lorraine Hansberry
's The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window. In 1967, he guest starred in an episode of The Fugitive
, "There Goes The Ballgame".
Dell had several other roles, a second son, a third wife, and roles on several TV series in the fifties and sixties. In the latter part of his life, Dell also appeared as the proprietor of The Corner Bar
(1972) on ABC, a supporting role in Earthquake, a 1976 pilot, Risko, and A Year at the Top
, in which he played opposite Mickey Rooney
as the Devil's son.
Dead End Kids
The Dead End Kids were a group of young actors from New York who appeared in Sidney Kingsley's Broadway play Dead End in 1935. In 1937 producer Samuel Goldwyn brought all of them to Hollywood and turned the play into a film...
/East Side Kids
East Side Kids
The East Side Kids were characters in a series of films released by Monogram Pictures from 1940 through 1945. Many of them were originally part of The Dead End Kids and The Little Tough Guys, and several of them later became members of The Bowery Boys....
/The Bowery Boys
The Bowery Boys
The Bowery Boys were fictional New York City characters who were the subject of feature films released by Monogram Pictures from 1946 through 1958....
.
Early life
Born Gabriel Marcel Dell Vecchio in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Dell almost made his stage debut a few years before Dead End
Dead End
Dead End is a 1937 crime drama film. It is an adaptation of the Sidney Kingsley 1935 Broadway play of the same name. It stars Humphrey Bogart, Joel McCrea, and Sylvia Sidney...
when he and his sister were slated for roles in The Good Earth
The Good Earth
The Good Earth is a novel by Pearl S. Buck published in 1931 and awarded the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1932. The best selling novel in the United States in both 1931 and 1932, it was an influential factor in Buck winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1938...
with Alla Nazimova
Alla Nazimova
Alla Nazimova , was a Russian American film and theatre actress, a screenwriter and film producer. She is perhaps best known as simply Nazimova, but also went under the name Alia Nasimoff.-Early life:...
and Claude Rains
Claude Rains
Claude Rains was an English stage and film actor whose career spanned 66 years. He was known for many roles in Hollywood films, among them the title role in The Invisible Man , a corrupt senator in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington , Mr...
.
Career
By the time he was cast in Dead End, he had changed his last name to Dell, and after achieving fame with the other youthful thugs, Dell moved back and forth between Warner Bros., Universal and Monogram during the guys' heyday, appearing as a member of the Dead End KidsDead End Kids
The Dead End Kids were a group of young actors from New York who appeared in Sidney Kingsley's Broadway play Dead End in 1935. In 1937 producer Samuel Goldwyn brought all of them to Hollywood and turned the play into a film...
, East Side Kids
East Side Kids
The East Side Kids were characters in a series of films released by Monogram Pictures from 1940 through 1945. Many of them were originally part of The Dead End Kids and The Little Tough Guys, and several of them later became members of The Bowery Boys....
and The Bowery Boys
The Bowery Boys
The Bowery Boys were fictional New York City characters who were the subject of feature films released by Monogram Pictures from 1946 through 1958....
before leaving the series in 1950
1950 in film
The year 1950 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 15 - Walt Disney Studios' animated film Cinderella debuts.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:*Ambush...
.
He won a role in Tickets, Please!
Tickets, Please!
Tickets, Please! was a 1950 Broadway revue, composed by Harold Hastings. It is also notable as the first theatre credit of Larry Kert....
on Broadway, and also toured with former gang buddy Huntz Hall
Huntz Hall
Henry Richard "Huntz" Hall was an American radio, theatrical, and motion picture performer noted primarily for his roles in the "Dead End Kids" movies, such as Angels with Dirty Faces , which gave way to the "The Bowery Boys" movie franchise, a prolific and highly successful series of comedies in...
in a nightclub partnership that eventually caused them both to become divorced. Dell spent the next three years at the Actor's Studio, married and had a son in 1956.
In the late 1950s, Dell joined the stock company of The Steve Allen Show
Steve Allen (comedian)
Stephen Valentine Patrick William "Steve" Allen was an American television personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, and writer. Though he got his start in radio, Allen is best known for his television career. He first gained national attention as a guest host on Arthur Godfrey's Talent...
, along with Don Knotts
Don Knotts
Jesse Donald "Don" Knotts was an American comedic actor best known for his portrayal of Barney Fife on the 1960s television sitcom The Andy Griffith Show, a role which earned him five Emmy Awards...
, Louis Nye
Louis Nye
Louis Nye was an American comedy actor.-Early years:He was born Louis Neistat in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Joseph Neistat and Jennie Sherman . His sister was Rose Neistat...
, Tom Poston
Tom Poston
Thomas Gordon "Tom" Poston was an American television and film actor. He starred on television in a career that began in 1950...
, Bill Dana, Pat Harrington
Pat Harrington, Jr.
Pat Harrington, Jr., is an American voice, stage, and television actor most popularly known for his role as building superintendent "Schneider" on the CBS sitcom One Day At A Time. He is the son of Pat Harrington, Sr.- Biography :...
, Dayton Allen
Dayton Allen
Dayton Allen was a comedian and voice actor. He was one of the "men in the street" on the '"The Steve Allen Show."' His catchphrase was "Why not, Bubbe?"...
and Skitch Henderson
Skitch Henderson
Lyle Russell Cedric “Skitch” Henderson was a pianist, conductor, and composer. His nickname reportedly derived from his ability to quickly "re-sketch" a song in a different key.- Biography :...
. During this period Dell developed a Bela Lugosi
Béla Lugosi
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó , commonly known as Bela Lugosi, was a Hungarian actor of stage and screen. He was best known for having played Count Dracula in the Broadway play and subsequent film version, as well as having starred in several of Ed Wood's low budget films in the last years of his...
imitation, usually used comedically.
Over the next few years Dell appeared in several productions on and off Broadway and supplied all of the voices for an LP recording of Famous Monsters Speak, on which he did his Lugosi impression in a serious context. In 1964 Dell won the role the title character in Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry was an African American playwright and author of political speeches, letters, and essays...
's The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window. In 1967, he guest starred in an episode of The Fugitive
The Fugitive (TV series)
The Fugitive is an American drama series produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1967. David Janssen stars as Richard Kimble, a doctor from the fictional town of Stafford, Indiana, who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death...
, "There Goes The Ballgame".
Dell had several other roles, a second son, a third wife, and roles on several TV series in the fifties and sixties. In the latter part of his life, Dell also appeared as the proprietor of The Corner Bar
The Corner Bar
The Corner Bar is a short-lived American situation comedy that aired on ABC from 1972–1973. The Corner Bar revolved around the lives of the patrons of a tavern called Grant's Toomb. The series is notable for its inclusion of the first recurring gay character on American television, Peter Panama...
(1972) on ABC, a supporting role in Earthquake, a 1976 pilot, Risko, and A Year at the Top
A Year at the Top
A Year at the Top is an American sitcom which aired for five episodes on CBS in 1977. Produced by T.A.T. Communications Company, the series was created by Heywood Kling and co-executive produced by Don Kirshner and Norman Lear.-Synopsis:...
, in which he played opposite Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
as the Devil's son.