Robert Ryan Overview:

Legendary character actor, Robert Ryan, was born Robert Bushnell Ryan on Nov 11, 1909 in Chicago, IL. Ryan died at the age of 63 on Jul 11, 1973 in New York City, NY and was cremated and his ashes scattered in unknown location.

MINI BIO:

Tall, lean, dark-haired American actor who, after a spotty early career interrupted by war service, found that his whippy, gritty performances earned him some good leading roles at RKO from 1947 to 1952. After that, often cast as embittered men, he was mostly second or third on the cast list of largely unworthy films, although working steadily. He received an Oscar nomination for his performance in Crossfire. Died from cancer.

(Source: available at Amazon Quinlan's Film Stars).

HONORS and AWARDS:

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Although Ryan was nominated for one Oscar, he never won a competitive Academy Award.

Academy Awards

YearAwardFilm nameRoleResult
1947Best Supporting ActorCrossfire (1947)MontgomeryNominated
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Robert Ryan BlogHub Articles:

AND THE OSCAR DOESN’T GO TO… Robert Ryan

By Carol Martinheira on Nov 27, 2023 From The Old Hollywood Garden

AND THE OSCAR DOESN’T GO TO… Robert Ryan On November 27, 2023 By CarolIn Uncategorized There are certain faces that you are just always looking forward to seeing on screen. And when it comes to film noir, Robert Ryan is one of those faces. He’s gre... Read full article


Ida Lupino and Robert Ryan do battle in “Beware, My Lovely”

By Stephen Reginald on Aug 14, 2023 From Classic Movie Man

Ida Lupino and Robert Ryan do battle in “Beware, My Lovely” Beware, My Lovely (1952) is an American film noir directed by Harry Horner and starring Ida Lupino and Robert Ryan. The film is based on the play The Man by Mel Dinelli. The Man was originally a short story, and then a play... Read full article


James Mason, Barbara Bel Geddes, and Robert Ryan are "Caught"

By Stephen Reginald on Jul 18, 2022 From Classic Movie Man

James Mason, Barbara Bel Geddes, and Robert Ryan are "Caught" Caught (1949) is an American film noir directed by Max Ophuls and starring James Mason, Barbara Bel Geddes, and Robert Ryan. The screenplay was by Arthur Laurents from the novel Wild Calendar by Libbie Block.Leonora Eames (Bel Geddes... Read full article


Noir Nook: Spring Trivia ? Joan Bennett, Robert Mitchum, Ann Blyth, Robert Ryan, Jean Hagen, and Richard Widmark

By Karen Burroughs Hannsberry on May 12, 2022 From Classic Movie Hub Blog

Spring Trivia ? Joan Bennett, Robert Mitchum, Ann Blyth, Robert Ryan, Jean Hagen, and Richard Widmark There aren?t many things I love in life more than classic movie trivia. In celebration of spring, this month?s Noir Nook is serving up some trivial tidbits on some of my favorite noir actors an... Read full article


Harry Belafonte and Robert Ryan are up against the “Odds Against Tomorrow”

By Stephen Reginald on Jan 5, 2022 From Classic Movie Man

Harry Belafonte and Robert Ryan are up against the “Odds Against Tomorrow” Odds Against Tomorrow (1959) is an American film noir, produced and directed by Robert Wise and starring Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, and Shelley Winters. The film features a jazz film score directed by John... Read full article


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Robert Ryan Quotes:

Jim Wilson: Why do you make me do it? You know you're gonna talk! I'm gonna make you talk! I always make you punks talk! Why do you do it? Why?


[about Ben Allison]
Nathan Stark: There goes the only man I ever respected. He's what every boy thinks he's going to be when he grows up and wishes he had been when he's an old man.


Reno Smith: My name's Smith. I own the Three Bar Ranch. I want to apologize for some of the people in town.
John J. Macreedy: Act like they're sitting on a keg.
Reno Smith: A keg? Of what?
John J. Macreedy: Heh-heh, oh, I don't know. Diamonds? Gunpowder?
Reno Smith: Oh, it's nothing like that. We're suspicious of strangers, is all. Hangover from the old days, the Old West.
John J. Macreedy: I thought the tradition of the Old West was hospitality.
Reno Smith: I am trying to BE hospitable, Mr. Macreedy.


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Best Supporting Actor Oscar 1947





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Robert Ryan Facts
Irish-American.

Due to his towering frame, cruelly-lined face and a simmering intensity uncommon in his generation of "tough guys", he usually played hateful villains. Even on the rare occasions that he played a good guy, they often possessed a violent, obsessive personality that was a tad unsettling.

When casting the leading man role in the 1943 Ginger Rogers vehicle Tender Comrade (1943), RKO producer David Hempstead became interested in Ryan due to favorable preview cards hailing Ryan's performances in Bombardier (1943), The Sky's the Limit (1943) and Behind the Rising Sun (1943). He suggested him to Rogers, who was at first unimpressed after screening parts of the three movies. She turned him down as her leading man, as she thought he looked mean and, at 6'4", too big. A week later, when Rogers visited Hempstead at his office, he was busily going through preview cards of "The Sky's the Limit" and showed her some of them. Rogers saw that all the reviews of Ryan's performance were favorable and, since principal production was drawing near, she decided to have another look at him. Ryan was conveniently waiting in a nearby office for just such a possibility. Less than a minute later he came to the office and talked with both the producer and Rogers. After a few moments, she unobtrusively slipped Hempstead a note: "I

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