William J. O'Brien

Birth : 1884-01-31, Massachusetts, USA

Death : 1953-02-14

Movies

Everything I Have Is Yours
Passerby on Street (Uncredited)
A husband and wife act are hoping to find success on Broadway.
Something to Live For
Bar Customer (uncredited)
Aging advertising executive Alan Miller is a recovered alcoholic who now does interventions on behalf of Alcoholics Anonymous, is called by the elevator operator of a residential hotel to come and intervene in the case of one of the guests, struggling Broadway actress Jenny Carey. The two find they have even more in common than their taste for drink. But Jenny wants to put an end to their romance because Alan is a married man, who moreover is the father of two children. How will Jenny and Alan resolve their feelings without destroying Alan's marriage?
I'll See You in My Dreams
Waiter (uncredited)
Songwriter Gus Kahn fights to make his name, then has to fight again to survive the Depression.
The Racket
Counterman / Short Order Cook (uncredited)
Mobster Nick Scanlon has managed to buy several of the local government and law-enforcement officials. However, he can't seem to touch the incorruptible police captain Tom McQuigg, who refuses all attempts at bribery. Prosecuting attorney, Welch, and a police detective, Turck, are crooked and make McQuigg's job as an honest officer nearly impossible.
Roadblock
Waiter (uncredited)
An insurance agent's greedy girlfriend with a taste for mink leads him to a life of crime.
Hard, Fast and Beautiful
Bartender (uncredited)
When most people look at Florence Farley, they see a pretty teenager. But when Milly Farley looks at her daughter she sees something else: a tennis prodigy who could be Milly’s ticket to money and fame.
Gambling House
Stage Manager (uncredited)
A gambler faces deportation when he gets mixed up with murder.
Frenchie
Townsman (uncredited)
Frenchie Fontaine sells her successful business in New Orleans to come West. Her reason? Find the men who killed her father, Frank Dawson. But she only knows one of the two who did and she's determined to find out the other.
Woman on the Run
Waiter at Sullivan's Grotto (uncredited)
Frank Johnson, a sole witness to a gangland murder, goes into hiding and is trailed by Police Inspector Ferris, on the theory that Frank is trying to escape from possible retaliation. Frank's wife, Eleanor, suspects he is actually running away from their unsuccessful marriage. Aided by a newspaperman, Danny Leggett, Eleanor sets out to locate her husband. The killer is also looking for him, and keeps close tabs on Eleanor.
Born to Be Bad
Bartender at Charity Ball (Uncredited)
Christabel Caine has the face of angel and the heart of a swamp rat. She'll step on anyone to get what she wants, including her own family. A master of manipulation, she covertly breaks off the engagement of her trusting cousin, Donna, to her fabulously wealthy beau, Curtis Carey. Once married to Curtis herself, Christabel continues her affair with novelist Nick Bradley, who knows she's evil, but loves her anyway.
Outrage
Man Drawing Shade in Window (uncredited)
A young woman who has just become engaged has her life completely shattered when she is raped while on her way home from work.
The Underworld Story
Townsman on Street / In Coffee Shop (uncredited)
A blacklisted reporter brings his shady ways to a small-town newspaper after being fired from a big city daily.
The Secret Fury
Wedding Guest (uncredited)
The wedding of Ellen and David is halted by a stranger who insists that the bride is already married to someone else. Though the flabbergasted Ellen denies the charge, the interloper produces enough evidence that his accusation must be investigated. Ellen and David travel to the small coastal town where her first wedding allegedly occurred. There, they meet a number of individuals whose stories make Ellen question her own sanity.
Gun Crazy
Customer at Sharpshooting Act (uncredited)
Bart Tare is an ex-Army man who has a lifelong fixation with guns, he meets a kindred spirit in sharpshooter Annie Starr and goes to work at a carnival. After upsetting the carnival owner who lusts after Starr, they both get fired. Soon, on Starr's behest, they embark on a crime spree for cash.
Holiday Affair
Peanut Vendor (uncredited)
Just before Christmas, department store clerk Steve Mason meets big spending customer Connie Ennis, who's actually a comparison shopper sent by another store. Steve lets her go, which gets him fired. They spend the afternoon together, which doesn't sit well with Connie's steady suitor, Carl, when he finds out, but delights her young son Timmy, who quickly takes to Steve.
A Dangerous Profession
A cop-turned-bail bondsman gets involved in a murder investigation.
Dancing in the Dark
Waiter at Party
Emery Slade was one of the brightest stars in Hollywood in 1932, but by 1949 his career has hit the skids. Fortunately, he is able to convince studio head Melville Crossman to cast him in the adaptation of a hit Broadway show. Crossman has one condition: Slade must travel to New York and convince the female star of the stage production to join the film. Slade goes, but, when he eyes the winsome Julie Clarke, he hatches a different scheme.
Easy Living
Vendor Eating Hot Dog (uncredited)
A football halfback has a heart condition, a nagging wife and a team secretary who loves him.
It's a Great Feeling
Saloon Waiter (uncredited)
A waitress at the Warner Brothers commissary is anxious to break into pictures. She thinks her big break may have arrived when actors Jack Carson and Dennis Morgan agree to help her.
The Set-Up
Pitchman (uncredited)
Expecting the usual loss, a boxing manager takes bribes from a betting gangster without telling his fighter.
The Accused
Police Detective (uncredited)
A prim psychology professor fights to hide a murder she committed in self-defense.
Joe Palooka in Winner Take All
Fight Spetator
Joe is scheduled for the big fight as usual. This one has more fight sequences than plot.
The Noose Hangs High
Passerby (uncredited)
Two window washers who are mistaken by Nick Craig, a bookie, as the messengers he sent for to pick up $50,000. Now the person he sent them to sent two of his men to get the money back but they found out about it. So they try to mail to Craig but a mix up has the money sent somewhere else and the woman who got it spent it. Now Craig needs the money to pay off one of his clients.
Badman's Territory
Man in Barber Chair (uncredited)
After some gun play with a posse, the James Gang head for Quinto in a section of land which is not a part of America. Anyone there is beyond the law so the town is populated with outlaws. Next to arrive is Sheriff Rowley, following his brother whom the Gang have brought in injured. Rowley has no authority and gets on well enough with the James boys but is soon involved in other local goings-on, including a move to vote for annexation with Oklahoma which would allow the law well and truly in.
The Blue Dahlia
Man at Cavendish Apartments (uncredited)
Soon after a veteran's return from war his cheating wife is found dead. He evades police in an attempt to find the real murderer.
Deadline at Dawn
Man (uncredited)
A young Navy sailor has one night to find out why a woman was killed and he ended up with a bag of money after a drinking blackout.
The Falcon in San Francisco
Train Passenger (uncredited)
While on vacation, the Falcon is arrested for kidnapping after striking up a friendship with a girl who's nurse has been recently murdered.
Flame of Barbary Coast
Waiter
Duke Fergus falls for Ann 'Flaxen' Tarry in the Barbary Coast in turn-of-the-century San Francisco. He loses money to crooked gambler Boss Tito Morell, goes home, learns to gamble, and returns. After he makes a fortune, he opens his own place with Flaxen as the entertainer; but the 1906 quake destroys his place.
The Invisible Man's Revenge
Pub Extra
A fugitive, dangerous madman reaches an English village where he confronts his former partner who left him for dead in the jungle after their discovery of a diamond mine. When the former partner also claims to have since lost the mine and all its wealth, which he took all for himself, and though the partmer is still living in a state of luxury , the madman takes up an offer from a crazed scientist to make him invisible, something the scientist has already done with experimental animals, so that he can take revenge.
Happy Land
Chris
An Iowa drugstore owner becomes embittered when his son is killed in World War II. The druggist believes that the boy's life was cut short before he had an opportunity to truly appreciate his existence.
Crazy House
Bald Man
Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson are Broadway stars who return to Universal Studios to make another movie. The mere mention of Olsen and Johnson's names evacuates the studio and terrorizes the management and personnel. Undaunted, the comedians hire an assistant director and unknown talent, and set out to make their own movie.
Gildersleeve's Bad Day
Juror (uncredited)
Gildersleeve has jury duty.
This Land Is Mine
Night Switchman
Somewhere in Europe, in a city occupied by the Nazis, a gentle school teacher finds himself torn between collaboration and resistance, cowardice and courage.
I Wake Up Screaming
Man hosing sidewalk (uncredited)
A young promoter is accused of the murder of Vicky Lynn, a young actress he "discovered" as a waitress while out with ex-actor Robin Ray and gossip columnist Larry Evans.
Tom, Dick and Harry
Bartender (uncredited)
Janie is a telephone operator who is caught up in the lines of love of three men: car salesman Tom, Chicago millionaire Dick and auto mechanic Harry. But Janie just can't seem to make up her mind between them. While fantasizing about her futures with each of the men, Janie spends her time desperately trying to juggle between them until she can make a decision.
The Bank Dick
Townsman Onlooker (uncredited)
Egbert Sousé becomes an unexpected hero when a bank robber falls over a bench he's occupying. Now considered brave, Egbert is given a job as a bank guard. Soon, he is approached by charlatan J. Frothingham Waterbury about buying shares in a mining company. Egbert persuades teller Og Oggilby to lend him bank money, to be returned when the scheme pays off. Unfortunately, bank inspector Snoopington then makes a surprise appearance.
Phantom of Chinatown
Extra in Audience at Benton's Lecture
In the middle of a pictorial lecture on his recent expedition to the Mongolian Desert, Dr. John Benton,the famous explorer, drinks from the water bottle on his lecture table, collapses and dies. His last words "Eternal Fire" are the only clue Chinese detective Jimmy Wong and Captain Street of the police department have to work on.
Triple Justice
Tim - Proprietor
Brad Henderson arrives in Star City just in time to witness three men rob a bank of $30,000 and kill a teller. Charged for the crime and jailed, Brad realizes he must escape and track down the real killers since the only one who can prove his innocence is his friend, Sheriff Bill Gregory, who has been shot and will not soon regain consciousness. Chasing down the robbers one by one, he eventually discovers the identity of the gang's ringleader.
Dance, Girl, Dance
Burlesk House Spectator (uncredited)
Judy O'Brien is an aspiring ballerina in a dance troupe. Also in the company is Bubbles, a brash mantrap who leaves the struggling troupe for a career in burlesque. When the company disbands, Bubbles gives Judy a thankless job as her stooge. The two eventually clash when both fall for the same man.
Stage to Chino
Townsman in Saloon (uncredited)
To investigate a gold-shipping scam, a postal inspector goes undercover and tries to infiltrate the gang he believes is responsible.
Mexican Spitfire
Party Waiter
Newlyweds Dennis and Carmelita have several obstacles to deal with in their new marriage: Carmelita's fiery Latin temper, a meddling aunt and a conniving ex-fiancee who's determined to break up their marriage.
Lucky Night
Casino Gambler (uncredited)
Cora, an heiress who gives it all up for the excitement of looking for a job and living on her own, meets up with unemployed and flat broke Dick. The two of them embark on a wild night of gambling and winning, where everything they touch turns to gold. Pretty soon they're in love and, to the horror of Cora's father, married.
Zenobia
Barker
A modest country doctor in the antebellum South has to contend with his daughter's upcoming marriage and an affectionate medicine show elephant.
Silver on the Sage
Card Player
Hoppy goes undercover as a gambler from the East when Bar 20 cattle are stolen by unknown rustlers. Brennan/Talbot are twin brothers (one a casino owner, the other a rancher) and Hoppy believes they provide alibis for each other while one is out committing crimes. Hoppy gets a job in the casino to learn more but is exposed when a gambling gunslinger notices him.
Tarnished Angel
Extra Sitting Next to Cramer at Two Meetings
A showgirl with a dubious reputation flees the cops and transforms herself into a phony evangelist offering "cures" to the sick and disabled.
Fugitives for a Night
Bald Gambler
A faded star is suspected of killing a studio executive.
Night Spot
Counterman at Diner
A young singer, Marge Dexter, becomes involved in trouble when she works in a nightclub in which two of the band-members are in reality undercover-police officers who believe that the club is the headquarters of a dangerous gang of crooks.
Portia on Trial
Juror
Lady lawyer Portia Merryman (Frieda Inescourt) defends woebegone Elizabeth Manners (Heather Angel), who is on trial for shooting her lover Earle Condon (Neil Hamilton). Ironically, Portia herself had once had a relationship with Earle Condon, but Earle's father, powerful publisher John Condon (Clarence Kolb), forced them apart. She has a pretty good idea of what is going on in Elizabeth's head, since she herself was on the verge of killing Earle Condon when his father ruthlessly took custody of her illegitimate son. As Portia toils and strains to free her client, she carries on a romance with Dan Foster (Walter Abel) -- the attorney for the prosecution. LA Law and The Practice have nothing on this one!
The Great O'Malley
Man Whistling in Hospital Zone (uncredited)
His role in the plight of an unemployed man (Humphrey Bogart) and his disabled daughter profoundly affects an intractable Irish policeman (Pat O'Brien).
Great Guy
Meat Clerk (Uncredited)
A meat inspector sets out to rid his town of payoff deals affecting the quality of meat being sold to the public.
Hopalong Cassidy Returns
Sandy
A crusading newspaper editor recruits his old friend Hoppy to take the job of Marshall in a town rife with vice and murder directed at helpless miners.
The Bridge of Sighs
Juror (uncredited)
Assistant District Attorney Jeffery Powell has just sent an innocent man to prison for the murder of a gambler. Powell is in love with, Marion Courtney, but he's unaware that Marion is the sister of the innocent man he sent to prison. Marion gets herself committed to a women's prison to get proof from inmate, Evelyn 'Duchess' Thane, that her brother is innocent. Powell learns of Marion's plight and believes she's in love with the man he sent to prison.
Lilly Turner
Man at Carnival (uncredited)
One woman faces many trials on the road to romance after unwittingly marrying a bigamist, then a carnival's barker and then falling for a young engineer.
Mr. Bride
Musician
Charley's boss "rehearses" for his honeymoon--with Charley.
The Soilers
Bald Juror (uncredited)
Zasu and Thelma are working their way through college by selling magazine subscriptions. Finding little success going door-to-door, the pair decide to use their charms to sell to men at their places of work.
War Mamas
Heinrich, General's Aide (uncredited)
During WW1, the girls become spies when they spend the evening with two German officers.
Hell Bound
Bilmey
Lane and Diane are a young married couple living in a coastal town whose lives are about to be torn apart by an old book of magic.
The Mysterious Dr. Fu Manchu
A Chinese doctor vows revenge against the allied troops who killed his wife and child during the Boxer Rebellion.