Eddie Dean made his name as a country-western singer on radio in the
'30s. He journeyed to Hollywood to make it in western movies, debuting
in
Manhattan Love Song (1934),
but he could only land bit parts in features and musical shorts. His
career started to take off in the early 1940s, though, and by 1945 he
was among the more popular of the cowboy stars. However, several
factors weighed against him rising much further: his stolid, somewhat
dour screen personality, the fact that he was under contract to
low-rent PRC (later Eagle-Lion) Pictures--whose shoddiness was
legendary and whose westerns were not particularly popular among
aficionados--and the unfortunate fact that the singing cowboy craze had
pretty much run its course by the time he came along. His career can be
summed up in a review of one of his films by the "New York Times":
"Instead of the usual black and white, Eddie Dean's newest western has
been shot in Cinecolor, but it's not an improvement; you can still see
him."
The Beverly Hillbillies(1962)as Sergeant Dean
The Night Rider(1962)as Tim Dawson
Varieties on Parade(1951)as Eddie Dean
The Tioga Kid(1948)as Eddie Dean, The Tioga Kid
Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch(1976)
The Porter Wagoner Show(1961)
Nashville Rebel(1966)
Century of Country(1999)as Self
This Is Your Life(1987)as Self
Action Heroes of the Wild West(1992)as Self
The Gabby Hayes Show(1956)as Eddie Dean
The Gabby Hayes Show(1950)as Eddie Dean, Tioga Kid
