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Ralph Ernest Dumke (July 25, 1899 – January 4, 1964) was an American comedian and actor who had an active career from the early 1920s up until his death in 1964. He rose to fame as part of a comedy duo with Ed East, performing nationally in
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...
on the B. F. Keith Circuit from 1922-1932 and then headlining the nationally popular daily afternoon radio program "Sisters of the Skillet" on NBC Radio. In the 1940s Dumke worked as a
character actor A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...
in Broadway musicals, and from 1949-1964 he worked in American film and television.


Biography

Dumke was born in South Bend, Indiana. He graduated from the
University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...
, where he was a varsity football player. He began his career in Chicago as a vaudeville entertainer in the early 1920s as part of a comedy duo with Ed East entitled "The Mirthquakers". The two men became stars on the B. F. Keith Circuit on which they toured for ten years. A capstone of "The Mirthquakers" performance run was being one of the leading acts for the opening of
Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall (also known as Radio City) is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York C ...
on December 27, 1932. The Dumke and East comedy duo were also pioneers in early radio broadcasts in New York City and Chicago in the late 1920s and early 1930s. They became national radio stars on
old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the earl ...
, hosting the daily 15 minute afternoon comedy and music program "Sisters of the Skillet" for NBC Radio from 1930-1937 in which they performed comedy sketches, jokes, and humorous musical numbers. Dumke later portrayed the role of Captain Walt, the host of ''Hook 'n' Ladder Follies'' on NBC (1943-1944). In 1942 Dumke made his Broadway debut as Hercules in the original production of
Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include "Blue Moon"; " The Lady Is a Tramp"; "Manhattan"; " Bewitched, Bo ...
and
Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...
's '' By Jupiter''. He returned to Broadway numerous times during the 1940s, appearing as General Bardini in ''
The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' ( ) is an operetta by the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The Libretto, librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein (writer), Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's ...
'' (1943-1944), Calchas in ''Helen Goes to Troy'' (1944), the Duke of Maddeloni in ''The Maid as Mistress'' (1944), Joe Horn in '' Sadie Thompson'' (1944-1945), Dapper Dan Pepper in ''Mr. Strauss Goes to Boston'' (1945), and Cap'n Andy in ''
Show Boat ''Show Boat'' is a musical theatre, musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on Edna Ferber's best-selling 1926 Show Boat (novel), novel of the same name. The musical follows the lives of the per ...
'' (1946-1947). He also appeared in several productions with the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera, including '' The Chocolate Soldier'' and '' Rosalinda''. Dumke appeared as a character actor in over forty feature films between 1949 and 1961, including crime pictures, films noir, dramas, mysteries, Westerns, horror, science fiction, musicals, and comedies. Among these were ''
All the King's Men ''All the King's Men'' is a 1946 novel by Robert Penn Warren. The novel tells the story of charismatic populist governor Willie Stark and his political machinations in the Depression-era Deep South. It was inspired by the real-life story of U. ...
'' (1949), '' The Breaking Point'' (1950), ''
The War of the Worlds ''The War of the Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells. It was written between 1895 and 1897, and serialised in '' Pearson's Magazine'' in the UK and ''Cosmopolitan'' magazine in the US in 1897. The full novel was ...
'' (1953), '' Daddy Long Legs'' (1955), and '' Invasion of the Body Snatchers'' (1956). On American television, Dumke starred as Captain Billy Bryant in the CBS-TV variety show ''Captain Billy's Showboat'' (1948) and was one of the hosts of ABC-TV's ''Movieland Quiz'' (1948). He also made guest appearances on several programs during the 1950s and 1960s, including '' The Bob Cummings Show'', ''
I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...
'', '' December Bride'', '' Waterfront'', '' My Little Margie'', '' Perry Mason'', and ''
The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American sitcom television series that was aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The series ...
''.


Personal life

Dumke was married to Greta Leona Edner from 1925 until his death. They had two children. On January 4, 1964, Dumke died of "a sudden heart seizure" at his home at age 64.


Partial filmography

* ''
All the King's Men ''All the King's Men'' is a 1946 novel by Robert Penn Warren. The novel tells the story of charismatic populist governor Willie Stark and his political machinations in the Depression-era Deep South. It was inspired by the real-life story of U. ...
'' (1949) - Tiny Duffy * '' Mystery Street'' (1950) - A Tattooist * '' Where Danger Lives'' (1950) - Klauber * '' The Breaking Point'' (1950) - Hannagan * '' The Fireball'' (1950) - Bruno Crystal * '' When I Grow Up'' (1951) - Carp * '' The Law and the Lady'' (1951) - James Horace Caighn * '' The Mob'' (1951) - Police Commissioner * ''
Boots Malone ''Boots Malone'' is a 1952 American drama film directed by William Dieterle. It stars William Holden as a down-on-his-luck sports agent and Johnny Stewart as a rich runaway who wants to become a jockey. Plot Down on his luck, jockey agent "Boots ...
'' (1952) - Beckett * '' Carbine Williams'' (1952) - Andrew White * '' The San Francisco Story'' (1952) - Winfield Holbert * '' We're Not Married!'' (1952) - Twitchell (uncredited) * '' Holiday for Sinners'' (1952) - Mike Hennighan * '' Hurricane Smith'' (1952) - Ben Hawkins * '' She Couldn't Say No'' (1952) - Sheriff * '' The Mississippi Gambler'' (1953) - F. Montague Caldwell * '' Lili'' (1953) - M. Corvier * '' Count the Hours'' (1953) - Bartender (uncredited) * ''
The War of the Worlds ''The War of the Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells. It was written between 1895 and 1897, and serialised in '' Pearson's Magazine'' in the UK and ''Cosmopolitan'' magazine in the US in 1897. The full novel was ...
'' (1953) - Buck Monahan (uncredited) * '' The President's Lady'' (1953) - Col. Stark * '' Hannah Lee'' (1953) - Alesworth * '' It Should Happen to You'' (1954) - Beckhard (uncredited) * '' Alaska Seas'' (1954) - Dad Jackson * '' Rails Into Laramie'' (1954) - Mayor Frank Logan * '' Massacre Canyon'' (1954) - Phineas J. 'Parson' Canfield * '' They Rode West'' (1954) - Dr. Gibson * '' Violent Saturday'' (1955) - Hotel Desk Clerk (uncredited) * '' Daddy Long Legs'' (1955) - Mr. Bronson (uncredited) * '' Hell's Island'' (1955) - Casino Drunk * '' The Desperate Hours'' (1955) - Clint (uncredited) * ''
Artists and Models ''Artists and Models'' is a 1955 American musical romantic comedy film in VistaVision directed by Frank Tashlin, marking Martin and Lewis's 14th feature together as a team. The film co-stars Shirley MacLaine and Dorothy Malone, with Eva Gabor ...
'' (1955) - Mr. Trimm (uncredited) * '' Invasion of the Body Snatchers'' (1956) - Police Chief Nick Grivett * '' Forever, Darling'' (1956) - Henry Opdyke * '' When Gangland Strikes'' (1956) - Walter Pritchard * '' Francis in the Haunted House'' (1956) - Mayor Hargrove * '' The Solid Gold Cadillac'' (1956) - Warren Gillie * '' The Buster Keaton Story'' (1957) - Mr. Jennings * '' Loving You'' (1957) - Jim Tallman * '' Walt Disney Presents: Annette'' (1958) - Mr. Abernathy * '' Wake Me When It's Over'' (1960) - Sen. Gillespie (uncredited) * '' Elmer Gantry'' (1960) - Salesman in Saloon (uncredited) * '' All in a Night's Work'' (1961) - Baker


Television


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dumke, Ralph 1899 births 1964 deaths 20th-century American male actors Actors from South Bend, Indiana American male comedians American male television actors American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American radio personalities Comedians from Indiana Comedians from Los Angeles Male actors from Indiana Male actors from Los Angeles University of Notre Dame alumni American vaudeville performers