Dick Tracy, Detective (Splitface) (1945)
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44% of users liked it
(270 ratings)
Dick Tracy, Detective (originally just Dick Tracy) was the first of four RKO Radio B-pictures based on Chester Gould's classic comic strip. Though Ralph Byrd is most closely associated with the role of Tracy, the title character is played herein by Morgan Conway (Byrd would be seen as Tracy in… More Dick Tracy, Detective (originally just Dick Tracy) was the first of four RKO Radio B-pictures based on Chester Gould's classic comic strip. Though Ralph Byrd is most closely associated with the role of Tracy, the title character is played herein by Morgan Conway (Byrd would be seen as Tracy in the last two series entries). The jut-jawed detective takes on a vicious criminal named Splitface (Mike Mazurki), who upon escaping from jail vows to murder the jurors who found him guilty and their alternates. He manages to knock off three before the police force figures out what's happening. Galvanized into action, Dick Tracy and his partner Pat Patton (Lyle Latell) track Splitface to a deserted riverboat (a leftover set from the 1945 RKO feature Man Alive) where the villain is holding Tracy's girlfriend Tess Truehart (Anne Jeffreys) and adopted son Junior (Mickey Kuhn) captive. When asked about Dick Tracy Detective in 1990, Anne Jeffreys flatly denied she'd ever played Tess Trueheart until she caught up with the film on videotape. She'd completely forgotten the whole experience. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- William A. Berke, William Berke
- Genres
- Mystery & Suspense, Action & Adventure
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Dec 1, 1945 Wide
- Studio
- American Pop Classics
Critic Reviews
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Forgettable crime drama.
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Ed Gonzalez, Apollo Guide
The best thing about the film is the way Berke manages to shape genuinely suspenseful film-noir elements around an otherwise simple yarn.
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Cast
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Morgan Conway
as Dick Tracy
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Anne Jeffreys
as Tess Trueheart
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Mike Mazurki
as Splitface
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Jane Greer
as Judith Owens
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Lyle Latell
as Pat Patton
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Mickey Kuhn
as Junior
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Joseph Crehan
as Chief Brandon
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Trevor Bardette
as Prof. Linwood J. Starling
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Morgan Wallace
as Steven Owens
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Milton Parsons
as Deathridge
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William Halligan
as Mayor
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Edythe Elliott
as Mrs. Caraway
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Mary Currier
as Dorothy Stafford
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Ralph Dunn
as Manning
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Edmund Glover
as Radio Announcer
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Bruce Edwards
as Sergeant
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Sam Ash
as Police Officer
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Gertrude Astor
as Woman
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Tanis Chandler
as Miss Stanley
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Jack Chefe
as Headwaiter
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Robert Douglas
as Bus Boy
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Franklin Farnum
as Bystander at Murder
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Carl Faulkner
as Police Officer
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Jack Gargan
as Police Officer
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Wilbur Mack
as Motorist
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George Magrill
as Detective
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Alphonse Martell
as Jules the Waiter
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Jason Robards Sr.
as Motorist
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Harry Strang
as Detective
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Tommy Noonan
as Johnny Moko
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Frank Meredith
as Police Officer
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Bob Reeves
as Cop
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Carl Hanson
as Pedestrian
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Jim Jordan
as Pedestrian
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Florence Pepper
as Girl
