Dewey Martin (actor)

Dewey Martin (December 8, 1923 – March 11[1] or April 9,[2] 2018) was an American film and television actor.

Dewey Martin
Dewey Martin in 1952
Born(1923-12-08)December 8, 1923
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Died(2018-03-11)March 11, 2018 or
April 9, 2018(2018-04-09) (aged 94)
San Pedro, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1948–1978
Spouse(s)
​
(
m. 1956; div. 1958)
RelativesRoss Bass (first cousin)

Early life

Martin was born in Katemcy, Texas.[3] For a time as a teenager, he lived in Florence, Alabama.[4]

Martin joined the U.S. Navy in 1940 and served as a Grumman F4F Wildcat and Grumman F6F Hellcat pilot in the Pacific Theater of the war. He fought in the Battle of Midway and had to ditch his Wildcat in the ocean because his carrier was damaged. He was shot down twice, the last time in 1945 and was held as a prisoner of war until Japan's surrender.[5]

Acting career

His film debut was an uncredited part in Knock on Any Door (1949), starring Humphrey Bogart. He also appeared in The Thing from Another World (1951), co-starred with Kirk Douglas in The Big Sky (1952), and reuniting again with Humphrey Bogart as his younger escape convict brother in The Desperate Hours. Martin also played a lead role in Land of the Pharaohs (1955), and was featured opposite Dean Martin in his first post-Martin and Lewis film – the notorious flop Ten Thousand Bedrooms (1957) – but did not become a full-fledged star.[4]

Martin worked extensively in television as well, including The Twilight Zone episode "I Shot an Arrow Into the Air" (1960) and The Outer Limits episode "The Premonition" (1965), co-written by Ib Melchior. Starting in 1960, he played Daniel Boone on four episodes of Walt Disney Presents.

Personal life

Martin was married to singer Peggy Lee for two years; the marriage ended in divorce.[6]

His first cousin was Ross Bass, a Democratic United States Senator from Tennessee in 1964-66.[7] Martin supported Adlai Stevenson during the 1952 presidential election.[8]

Complete filmography

Partial television work

References
  1. Lentz III, Harris M. (May 30, 2019). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2018. McFarland. p. 238. ISBN 1476636559.
  2. "In Memoriam". SAG-AFTRA.
  3. Moser, J.D.; Stevens, T.; Publishing, Q.; Pay, W.; Thompson, P. (2004). Television & Video Almanac. 49. Quigley Publishing Company. ISSN 0895-2213. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  4. Staff (May 22, 1952). "Dewey Martin, Florence's Own Movie Star, Visits". The Florence Times. Retrieved May 3, 2014.
  5. Is That All There Is?: The Strange Life of Peggy Lee. Atria Books. November 11, 2014. pp. 188–90. ISBN 1451641680.
  6. Staff (June 14, 1959). "Peggy Lee, Dewey Martin, Divorce". Associated Press (via The Florence Times). Retrieved May 3, 2014.
  7. "Dewey Martin". Corsicana Daily Sun. January 12, 1955. Retrieved May 3, 2014.
  8. Motion Picture and Television Magazine, November 1952, page 33, Ideal Publishers
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