Person
Ralph Meeker
Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Ralph Meeker (born Ralph Rathgeber; November 21, 1920 – August 5, 1988) was an American actor. He first rose to prominence for his roles in the Broadway productions of Mister Robe…
IMDbKnown for
Popular titles
Photos
More stills of Ralph Meeker
Biography
A closer look
Read full biography
Ralph Meeker (born Ralph Rathgeber; November 21, 1920 – August 5, 1988) was an American actor. He first rose to prominence for his roles in the Broadway productions of Mister Roberts (1948–1951) and Picnic (1953), the former of which earned him a Theatre World Award for his performance. In film, Meeker is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Mike Hammer in Robert Aldrich's 1955 Kiss Me Deadly. Meeker went on to play a series of roles that used his husky and macho screen presence, including a lead role in Stanley Kubrick's military courtroom drama Paths of Glory (1957), as a troubled mechanic opposite Carroll Baker in Something Wild (1961), as a World War II captain in The Dirty Dozen (1967), and in the gangster film The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967). Other credits include supporting roles in I Walk the Line (1970) and Sidney Lumet's The Anderson Tapes (1971). He also had a prolific career in television, appearing as Sergeant Steve Dekker on the series Not for Hire (1959–1960), and in the television horror film The Night Stalker (1972). After suffering a stroke in 1980, Meeker was forced to retire from acting, and died eight years later of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California.
Filmography
Movies and shows, newest first
-
2002
The Men Who Made the Movies: Samuel Fuller
Movie Lt. Driscoll (archive footage)
-
1980
Without Warning
Movie Dave
-
1979
Winter Kills
Movie Gameboy Baker
-
1978
Kaz
TV show
-
1978
The Eddie Capra Mysteries
TV show
-
1978
The Alpha Incident
Movie Charlie
-
1978
Hi-Riders
Movie Mike
-
1978
My Boys Are Good Boys
Movie Bert Morton
-
1977
CHiPs
TV show
-
1976
The Food of the Gods
Movie Bensington
-
1975
Barbary Coast
TV show Big Lou Hobart
-
1975
Johnny Firecloud
Movie Colby
-
1975
Brannigan
Movie Capt. Moretti
-
1975
The Dead Don't Die
Movie Lieutenant Reardon
-
1974
Police Woman
TV show
-
1974
Harry O
TV show
More credits
-
1974
Run, Joe, Run
TV show
-
1974
The Girl on the Late, Late Show
Movie Inspector DeBiesse
-
1974
Night Games
Movie Dutch Armbreck
-
1974
Cry Panic
Movie Chuck Braswell
-
1973
Toma
TV show
-
1973
Faraday and Company
TV show Ed Kelso
-
1973
Angela – Love Comes Quietly
Movie Ben Hoeksema
-
1973
The Evil Touch
TV show
-
1973
Police Story
TV show
-
1973
You'll Never See Me Again
Movie Will Alden
-
1973
Birds of Prey
Movie Jim McAndrew
-
1972
The Rookies
TV show
-
1972
The Mind Snatchers
Movie The Major
-
1972
The Night Stalker
Movie Bernie Jenks
-
1971
The Reluctant Heroes
Movie Capt. Luke Danvers
-
1971
Primus
TV show
-
1971
Cannon
TV show
-
1971
The Anderson Tapes
Movie Police Captain 'Iron Balls' Delaney
-
1970
I Walk the Line
Movie Carl McCain
-
1970
Lost Flight
Movie Glenn Walkup
-
1969
Room 222
TV show
-
1969
The Devil's Eight
Movie Burl
-
1968
The Name of the Game
TV show Senator Goddard
-
1968
The Detective
Movie Curran
