Hal K. Dawson
Birthday: 1896-10-17 Place of Birth: Rockville, Connecticut, USA
Synopsis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Hal K. Dawson (October 17, 1896 – February 17, 1987) was an American actor. The films he performed in include: Dr. Socrates, My American Wife, Libeled Lady, Wells Fargo,, Broadway Melody of 1940, Star Dust, The Doctor Takes a Wife, Washington Melodrama, Week-End in Havana,, Guest Wife, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, Chicken Every Sunday, Bonzo Goes to College and The Benny Goodman Story. He died on February 17, 1987, in Loma Linda, California aged 90.
Acting
The Touch of Satan
A murderous and decrepit old woman resides on a California walnut farm with her family. On a whim, a traveler named Jodie makes a brief side trip to the farm, where he meets and falls in love with Melissa, the proverbial farmer's daughter. Jodie and Melissa grow closer as Melissa begins to reveal the strange, dark history of her family.
The Rat Race
An aspiring musician arrives in New York in search of fame and fortune. He soon meets a taxi dancer, moves in with her, and before too long a romance develops.
The Captive City
A small-town newspaper editor defies threats to expose the mob.
Superman and the Mole-Men
Reporters Clark Kent and Lois Lane arrive in the small town of Silsby to witness the drilling of the world's deepest oil well. The drill, however, has penetrated the underground home of a race of small, furry people who then come to the surface at night to look around. The fact that they glow in the dark scares the townfolk, who form a mob, led by the vicious Luke Benson, intent on killing the strange people. Only Superman has a chance to prevent this tragedy.
Guest Wife
Christopher Price, a small-town bank executive, continues to be loyal to and idolize his boyhood friend, Joseph Jefferson Parker, a famous war correspondent. But Chris's wife, Mary, is none to fond of Joe and tired of her husband's idolizing. On the eve of the Price's second-honeymoon trip to New York City, Joe arrives and tells Chris that he needs someone to pose as his wife in order to fool his boss in NYC, who thinks Joe got married to an overseas woman while on an assignment. Chris pushes Mary into posing as Joe's wife. In New York, this leads to many complications and misunderstandings, with Mary finally deciding to teach Chris and Joe a lesson by making them believe she is in love with Joe.
The Magnificent Dope
Dwight Dawson, who runs an unsuccessful success school, stages a contest to find the biggest failure in the USA, for publicity value when the "dope" takes his course. But winner Tad Page is contented with his idle, lazy life and threatens to convert Dawson's other students to his philosophy. Dawson captalizes on Tad's attraction to Claire Harris to win him over; but will Tad find out Claire is really engaged to Dawson?
Baby Face Morgan
When crime boss Big Mike Morgan is killed, his lieutenant, "Doc" Rogers, learns that Morgan has a son named Edward living in the country with his mother. Rogers has naïve Edward brought to the city and installs him as the head of Acme Protective Agency. Good-hearted Eddy assumes his company provides insurance, rather than extortion-- But don't be too hard on the guy, he still doesn't know he's Baby Face Morgan, the most feared gangster in the city!
We Who Are Young
A man violates company policy by getting married.
The Great Victor Herbert
In his last film assignment, portly Walter Connolly fills the title role (in more ways than one) in The Great Victor Herbert. Very little of Herbert's life story is incorporated in the screenplay (a closing title actually apologizes for the film's paucity of cold hard facts); instead, the writers allow the famed composer's works to speak for themselves. In the tradition of one of his own operettas, Herbert spends most of his time patching up the shaky marriage between tenor John Ramsey (Allan Jones) and Louise Hall (Mary Martin). Many of Herbert's most famous compositions are well in evidence, including "Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life", "March of the Toys" and "Kiss Me Again", the latter performed con brio by teenaged coloratura Susanna Foster. Evidently, the producers were able to secure the film rights for the Herbert songs, but not for the stage productions in which they appeared, which may explain such bizarre interpolations as having a song from Naughty Marietta.
Second Honeymoon
Raoul McLish stops over in Miami Beach where he runs into his ex-wife, Vicky Benton, and her new husband Bob, a belt manufacturer. At first Bob enjoys Raoul's presence - in part because Vicky is his not Raoul's and in part because Raoul is a lot of fun. The fun wears thin for Bob as his seriousness and possessiveness take over. When Bob leaves for a few days to settle a labor dispute at his factory, Vicky and Raoul spend time together, Winchell's column implies untoward behavior, Bob barks at Vicky, and that gets her back up. Can things be sorted out? Help comes from Raoul's upright valet, McTavish, and a principled cigarette girl, Joy, whom Raoul picks up.
Public Enemy's Wife
Judith has just been paroled for a crime which her vindictive, jealous, violent husband, Gene, fingered her for. Gene is in prison for life. She claims that she had no knowledge of Gene's criminal activity, but FBI agent Lee Laird doesn't buy it.
The Firebird
Prohibited from seeing her actor sweetheart Herman Brandt by her tyrannical parents, sweet young Vienesse lass Mariette defies authority by regularly visiting Brandt's downstairs apartment. The lovers' signal is a song called "The Firebird," which Brandt sings whenever he wants Mariette to visit him. When the actor is murdered, poor Mariette and her parents are prime suspects. But the truth is a bit more complicated than that, involving as it does a haughty aristocrat, a powerful diplomat and a most unusual "candid camera" device.
