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Michael O'Shea (actor)
Encyclopedia
Michael O'Shea was an American
character actor whose career spanned from the 1940s-1960s. O'Shea was born in Hartford, Connecticut
. Unlike his five brothers who became policemen, he dropped out of school at 12 and began his acting career in vaudeville
by touring with boxing idol Jack Johnson
's show.
's boyfriend comic in Lady of Burlesque. He also received great reviews in 1944 when he reprised his stage role of Private Thomas Mulveray in the film version of The Eve of St. Mark.
After his career in film waned—he was largely out of films by 1952—he took many roles in television. He acted in TV programs such as Ethel Barrymore Theater
, Damon Runyon Theater
, Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
, The Revlon Mirror Theater
, and Daktari
. He also starred in the NBC
sitcom television series It's a Great Life
from 1954-1956 as Denny Davis, a former GI trying to find a civilian job. Frances Bavier
played his landlady.
In the 1960s, O'Shea became a plainclothes operative for the CIA after retiring from show business.
, whom he married in 1947. He met Mayo during the filming of Jack London in 1943. They subsequently appeared on the stock stage together in such productions as George Washington Slept Here
, Tunnel of Love and Fiorello!
. They had one child, Mary Catherine O'Shea, who was born in 1953. They remained married until December 4, 1973, when O'Shea died from a heart attack in Dallas, Texas
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
character actor whose career spanned from the 1940s-1960s. O'Shea was born in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
. Unlike his five brothers who became policemen, he dropped out of school at 12 and began his acting career in vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
by touring with boxing idol Jack Johnson
Jack Johnson (boxer)
John Arthur Johnson , nicknamed the “Galveston Giant,” was an American boxer. At the height of the Jim Crow era, Johnson became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion...
's show.
Career
Much like his character from Lady of Burlesque (1943), Biff Brannigan, O'Shea was a comedian and emcee at speakeasies. He put together his own dance band, "Michael O'Shea and His Stationary Gypsies", and later broke into radio and the "legitimate" stage, where he was billed for a time as "Eddie O'Shea". His performance in the 1942 play The Eve of St. Mark led to a string of film roles in the 40s, which included a memorable performance as Barbara StanwyckBarbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress. She was a film and television star, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
's boyfriend comic in Lady of Burlesque. He also received great reviews in 1944 when he reprised his stage role of Private Thomas Mulveray in the film version of The Eve of St. Mark.
After his career in film waned—he was largely out of films by 1952—he took many roles in television. He acted in TV programs such as Ethel Barrymore Theater
Ethel Barrymore
Ethel Barrymore was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors.-Early life:Ethel Barrymore was born Ethel Mae Blythe in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second child of the actors Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew...
, Damon Runyon Theater
Damon Runyon
Alfred Damon Runyon was an American newspaperman and writer.He was best known for his short stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To New Yorkers of his generation, a "Damon Runyon character" evoked a distinctive social type from the...
, Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, is a weekly CBS anthology television series, was telecast on Friday nights from 1951 until 1959. Offering both comedies and drama, the series was sponsored by Schlitz beer...
, The Revlon Mirror Theater
Revlon
Revlon is an American cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care company founded in 1932.-History:Revlon was founded in the midst of the Great Depression, 1932, by Charles Revson and his brother Joseph, along with a chemist, Charles Lachman, who contributed the "L" in the Revlon name...
, and Daktari
Daktari
Daktari is an American children's drama series that aired on CBS between 1966 and 1969. The series, an Ivan Tors Films Production in association with MGM Television, stars Marshall Thompson as Dr. Marsh Tracy, a veterinarian at the fictional Wameru Study Centre for Animal Behaviour in East...
. He also starred in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
sitcom television series It's a Great Life
It's a Great Life
It's a Great Life is an American situation comedy which aired on NBC from 1954 to 1956...
from 1954-1956 as Denny Davis, a former GI trying to find a civilian job. Frances Bavier
Frances Bavier
Frances Elizabeth Bavier was an American stage and television actress. Originally from the New York theatre, Bavier worked in film and television from the 1950s...
played his landlady.
In the 1960s, O'Shea became a plainclothes operative for the CIA after retiring from show business.
Family
He was married twice. His first wife was Grace Watts, by whom he had two children. They divorced in 1947. His second wife was actress Virginia MayoVirginia Mayo
Virginia Mayo was an American film actress.After a short career in vaudeville, Mayo progressed to films and during the 1940s established herself as a supporting player in such films as The Best Years of Our Lives and White Heat .Mayo remained an A-list actress into the mid-'50s, but then went...
, whom he married in 1947. He met Mayo during the filming of Jack London in 1943. They subsequently appeared on the stock stage together in such productions as George Washington Slept Here
George Washington Slept Here
George Washington Slept Here is a 1942 comedy film starring Jack Benny and Ann Sheridan. It was based on the 1940 play of the same name by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman, adapted by Everett Freeman, and was directed by William Keighley...
, Tunnel of Love and Fiorello!
Fiorello!
Fiorello! is a musical about New York City mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia, a reform Republican who took on Tammany Hall. The book is by Jerome Weidman and George Abbott, drawn substantially from the 1955 volume Life With Fiorello by Ernest Cuneo, with lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and music by Jerry Bock...
. They had one child, Mary Catherine O'Shea, who was born in 1953. They remained married until December 4, 1973, when O'Shea died from a heart attack in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
.
Selected filmography
- Lady of BurlesqueLady of BurlesqueLady of Burlesque is a 1943 American mystery film starring Barbara Stanwyck and Michael O'Shea, based on the novel The G-String Murders written by famous strip tease artist Gypsy Rose Lee...
(1943) - Jack LondonJack London (1943 film)Jack London, also known as The Story of Jack London, is a 1943 American biographical film made by Samuel Bronston Productions and distributed by United Artists. It was directed by Alfred Santell and produced by Samuel Bronston with Joseph H...
(1943) - Something for the Boys (1944)
- Man from FriscoMan from FriscoMan from Frisco is a United States feature length spy and war film by Republic Pictures directed by Robert Florey and starring Michael O'Shea and Anne Shirley....
(1944) – Matt Braddock - The Eve of St Mark (1944)
- Circumstantial Evidence (1945)
- It's a Pleasure (1945)
- Last of the Redmen (1947)
- Violence (1947)
- Mr. District Attorney (1947)
- Parole, Inc.Parole, Inc.- Plot summary :The film opens with a scene of FBI agent Richard Hendricks bedridden in a hospital bed, dictating the results of his investigation for a report to the California Governor...
(1948) - Smart Woman (1948)
- The ThreatThe ThreatThe Threat is a 1949 American film noir directed by Felix E. Feist and starring Charles McGraw. The film features Michael O'Shea, Virginia Grey, Charles McGraw, among others.-Plot:...
(1949) - The Big WheelThe Big Wheel (film)The Big Wheel is a 1949 film starring Mickey Rooney and Thomas Mitchell.-Plot:Rooney plays Billy Coy, a young man determined to follow in his father's footsteps as a race car driver. Despite the fact that his father, "Cannonball" Coy, was killed in a fiery crash during the Indianapolis 500, Billy...
(1949) - The Underworld Story (1950)
- Captain China (1950)
- The Model and the Marriage Broker (1951)
- Fixed Bayonets! (1951)
- Disc Jockey (1951)
- Bloodhounds of BroadwayBloodhounds of Broadway (1952 film)Bloodhounds of Broadway is a 1952 musical film based on a Damon Runyon story and starred young starlet Mitzi Gaynor, along with Scott Brady, Mitzi Green, Marguerite Chapman, Michael O'Shea, Wally Vernon and George E. Stone. It was directed by Harmon Jones....
(1952) - It Should Happen to YouIt Should Happen to YouIt Should Happen to You is a romantic comedy film starring Judy Holliday, notable as the first screen appearance of Jack Lemmon, who was then an aspiring young actor. The film was directed by George Cukor and filmed on location in New York City...
(1954)