J. M. Kerrigan

J. M. Kerrigan

Birth : 1884-12-15, Dublin, Ireland

Death : 1964-04-29

History

Joseph Michael Kerrigan (16 December 1884 – 29 April 1964), better known as J. M. Kerrigan, was an Irish character actor. Kerrigan was born in Dublin, Ireland. He worked as a newspaper reporter until 1907 when he joined the famous Abbey Players. There he became a stalwart, appearing in plays by Lady Gregory, William Butler Yeats and John Millington Synge (for whom he played the role of Shawn Keogh in The Playboy of the Western World. His first screen appearance was in the silent film Food of Love in 1916. By the 1920s he was appearing on Broadway, often in plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, and Sheridan. He settled permanently in Hollywood in 1935, having been recruited along with several other Abbey performers, to appear in John Ford's The Informer. In that film and in Ford's The Long Voyage Home, he plays similar roles, that of a leech who attaches himself to men until they run out of money. Perhaps his best known role was in The General Died at Dawn, where he plays a character actually named Leach, in which he steals scenes from Gary Cooper, Madeleine Carroll and William Frawley. In it he plays a sinister little petty thief who, holding a gun on Cooper, says, "I may be fat, but I'm agile." He had little screen time in films which he starred as minor roles, such as the "First Drayman" in Merely Mary Ann (1931) with Janet Gaynor. One of his most recognizable minor roles was in Gone with the Wind (1939), in which he played John Gallegher, the seemly jovial mill owner who whips his convict labour in to "co-operation". He appeared in Walt Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), the famous film version of Jules Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea in a minor role at the beginning of the film. In 1946, he tried breaking into Broadway shows, playing the discombobulated leprechaun Jackeen J. O'Malley in the show "Barnaby and Mr. O'Malley", based on the Crockett Johnson comic strip. J. M. Kerrigan died in Hollywood on 29 April 1964, aged 79. Kerrigan has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6621 Hollywood Blvd.

Profile

J. M. Kerrigan
J. M. Kerrigan

Movies

The Fastest Gun Alive
Kevin McGovern
Whenever it becomes known how good he is with guns, ex-gunman George and his wife Dora have to flee the town, in fear of all the gunmen who might want to challenge him. Unfortunately he again spills his secret when he's drunk. All citizens swear to keep his secret and support him to give up his guns forever -- but a boy tells the story to a gang of wanted criminals. Their leader threatens to burn down the whole town, if he doesn't duel him.
It's a Dog's Life
Paddy Corbin
A bull terrier tells his life story, from the streets of the Bowery to a life of luxury.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Billy
A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.
The Silver Whip
Riley
Frustrated with the lack of opportunities in his hometown, young Jess Harker plans to leave, but sympathetic stagecoach armed guard Race Crim persuades his boss to give Jess the stage driver job.
My Cousin Rachel
Reverend Pascoe
A young man plots revenge against the woman he believes murdered his cousin, but his plans are shaken when he comes face to face with the enigmatic beauty.
Park Row
Dan O'Rourke
In New York's 1880's newspaper district a dedicated journalist manages to set up his own paper. It is an immediate success but attracts increasing opposition from one of the bigger papers and its newspaper heiress owner.
The Wild North
Callahan
In the Canadian mountains, a trapper goes on the run accused of a crime and is pursued by a rugged and determined lawman of the Royal North-West Mounted Police.
Sealed Cargo
Skipper Ben
A Newfoundland fishingboat comes to the aid of a wrecked Danish sailing ship and tows it to a small village, but eventually the captain of the fishingboat realises that it's a U-boat supply ship in disguise, loaded with torpedoes. So, together with his crew and a group of villagers he sets about a plan to blow the ship as well as any U-boats that approach it. Based on the novel "The Gaunt Woman" by Edmund Gilligan.
Mrs. Mike
Uncle John
This film is based on the novel, Mrs. Mike, which is based on the real life woman, Kathy O'Fallon Flannigan. A Boston teenager is sent to live with her uncle in frontier Canada because of her fragile health. She eventually falls in love with own of the few-if only-young, white males in the region. They marry and depart for the northern wilderness to set up house and home. The rest of the movie is about her struggles and joys of living and travelling in this rugged country.
The Fighting O'Flynn
Timothy
A swashbuckling Irishman opposes French agents during the Napoleonic wars.
The Luck of the Irish
Tatie the Innkeeper
Following American reporter Stephen Fitzgerald from Ireland to New York, a grateful leprechaun acts as the newsman's servant and conscience.
Call Northside 777
Sullivan - Court Bailiff (uncredited)
In 1932, a cop is killed and Frank Wiecek sentenced to life. Eleven years later, a newspaper ad by Frank's mother leads Chicago reporter P.J. O'Neal to look into the case. For some time, O'Neal continues to believe Frank guilty. But when he starts to change his mind, he meets increased resistance from authorities unwilling to be proved wrong.
Abie's Irish Rose
Patrick Murphy
Cultures clash when a Jewish boy wants to marry an Irish girl.
Black Beauty
John
Based on Anna Sewell's novel. In rural England of the 1880's, widower Squire Wendon is rearing his young daughter Anne. Her father has forbidden her to be present when their mare, "Duchess," gives birth. Anne sneaks out to the stable, however, and is discovered by her father who forbids her ever to ride Duchess again. Despite this punishment, he gives Anne Duchess's colt because it is her birthday, and she names him "Black Beauty."
She Went to the Races
Jeff Habbard
A group of scientists develop a system to pick winners at the racetrack. Comedy.
The Spanish Main
Pillery Gow
Laurent van Horn is the leader of a band of Dutch refugees on a ship seeking freedom in the Carolinas, when the ship is wrecked on the coast of Cartagene. governed by Don Juan Alvardo, Spainish ruler. Alvarado has Laurent thrown in prison, but the latter escapes, and five-years later is a pirate leader. He poses as the navigator on a ship in which Contessa Francesca, daughter of a Mexican noble, is traveling on her way to marry Alvarado, whom she has never seen. Laurent's pirates capture the ship and Francesa, in order to save another ship, gives her hand-in-marriage to Laurent, who sails her to the pirate hideout. This irks the jealous Anne Bonney and,also, Captain Benjamin Black, who was already irked, anyway. They overpower Laurent and send Francesa to Alvarado, and then Mario du Billar, trusted right-hand man, makes a deal to deliver Laurent to Alvarado also.
The Crime Doctor's Warning
Robert MacPherson (uncredited)
A criminal psychologist treats an artist whose blackouts coincide with a series of murders.
The Great John L.
Father O'Malley
Portrait of legendary fighter John L. Sullivan, aka "The Boston Strong Boy", and his meteoric rise to become the first gloved World Heavyweight Champion. But the famed boxer is no match for the two women with holds on him, love struck actress Kathy Harkness and the real love of his life, beautiful but unyielding Anne Livingstone.
Tarzan and the Amazons
Splivens
A group of archaeologists asks Tarzan to help them find an ancient city in a hidden valley of women. He refuses, but Boy is tricked into doing the job. The queen of the women asks Tarzan to help them.
The Big Bonanza
'Judge' Jasper Kincaid
Having been falsely court marshaled for cowardice and sentenced to prison by the Army, Jed Kilton escapes and heads to Nevada Springs to see his kid brother. There he meets his old school friend Sam Ballou. But the two old friends soon find themselves on opposite sides and Sam has Jed arrested. Then when Jed's young brother sees one of Sam's men kill another man, the boy becomes Sam's intended victim.
Wilson
Edward Sullivan
The political career of Woodrow Wilson is chronicled, beginning with his decision to leave his post at Princeton to run for Governor of New Jersey, and his subsequent ascent to the Presidency of the United States. During his terms in office, Wilson must deal with the death of his first wife, the onslaught of German hostilities leading to American involvement in the Great War, and his own country's reticence to join the League of Nations.
The Fighting Seabees
Sawyer Collins
Construction workers in World War II in the Pacific are needed to build military sites, but the work is dangerous and they doubt the ability of the Navy to protect them. After a series of attacks by the Japanese, something new is tried, Construction Battalions (CBs=Seabees). The new CBs have to both build and be ready to fight.
Mr. Lucky
Mr. McDougal (uncredited)
A conman poses as a war relief fundraiser, but when he falls for a charity worker, his conscience begins to trouble him.
Action in the North Atlantic
Caviar Jinks (uncredited)
Merchant Marine sailors Joe Rossi (Humphrey Bogart) and Steve Jarvis (Raymond Massey) are charged with getting a supply vessel to Russian allies as part of a sea convoy. When the group of ships comes under attack from a German U-boat, Rossi and Jarvis navigate through dangerous waters to evade Nazi naval forces. Though their mission across the Atlantic is extremely treacherous, they are motivated by the opportunity to strike back at the Germans, who sank one of their earlier ships.
Captains of the Clouds
Foster (storekeeper / Emily's father)
Inspired by Churchill's Dunkirk speech, brash, undisciplined Canadian bush pilot Brian MacLean and three friends enlist in the RCAF.
The Vanishing Virginian
John Phelps
The perineal District Attorney and conservative southern patriarch cherishes the old ways and does his best to adjust to change.
The Wolf Man
Charles Conliffe
After his brother's death, Larry Talbot returns home to his father and the family estate. Events soon take a turn for the worse when Larry is bitten by a werewolf.
Appointment for Love
Timothy
Charming Andre Cassil woos physician Jane Alexander and the two impulsively get married. The honeymoon ends very quickly when Jane voices her progressive views on marriage which include the two having separate apartments. Andre then tries to make his wife jealous in order to lure her into his bedroom.
The Long Voyage Home
Crimp
The crew of the merchant ship Glencairn hope to survive a transatlantic crossing during World War II. Adapted from four Eugene O'Neill one-act plays.
Untamed
Angus McGavity
A courageous doctor braves a fierce blizzard in the Canadian wilderness to save a remote community from a deadly epidemic. He has come North to visit and ends up stealing a wife from her husband. When the epidemic hits, he and the wife begin their arduous journey.
No Time for Comedy
Jim
Director William Keighley's 1940 film adaptation of S. N. Behrman's stage hit, about an aspiring playwright who finds himself an overnight Broadway success, stars James Stewart, Rosalind Russell, Genevieve Tobin, Louise Beavers, Charles Ruggles and Allyn Joslyn.
The Sea Hawk
Eli Matson
Dashing pirate Geoffrey Thorpe plunders Spanish ships for Queen Elizabeth I and falls in love with Dona Maria, a beautiful Spanish royal he captures.
One Crowded Night
Brother 'Doc' Joseph
The future of a group of strangely connected lives is determined on one crucial night at a dinky motel in the desert.
Curtain Call
Mr. Middleton
Two theatrical producers plan to get even with a demanding actress by tricking her into starring in the worst play they can find.
Young Tom Edison
Mr. McCarney
Inventor Thomas Edison's boyhood is chronicled and shows him as a lad whose early inventions and scientific experiments usually end up causing disastrous results. As a result, the towns folk all think Tom is crazy, and creating a strained relationship between Tom and his father. Tom's only solace is his understanding mother who believes he's headed to do great things.
Congo Maisie
Captain Finch
Maisie gets lost in a jungle in Africa and the jungle of romance. The African jungle has snakes, crocodiles and witch doctors. The romantic jungle has a dedicated doctor with an un-dedicated wife and an embittered doctor who is dedicated to no one.
Gone with the Wind
Johnny Gallagher
The spoiled daughter of a Georgia plantation owner conducts a tumultuous romance with a cynical profiteer during the American Civil War and Reconstruction Era.
Two Thoroughbreds
Jack Lenihan
A farm boy trains a wild colt on his own.
Sabotage
Mel
The night before his grandson, Tommy Grayson, a mechanic at the Midland Aircraft Corporation, is to marry Gail, a former showgirl, Major Matt Grayson, a war veteran and watchman at the plant, catches two men breaking into the machine shop. The men run, but the major shoots one of them.....
6,000 Enemies
Dan Barrett
A tough prosecutor who has sent dozens of criminals to prison finds himself framed on a bribery charge and winds up in prison himself.
The Zero Hour
Timothy
A celebrated Broadway actress and a wealthy widowed businessman are brought together through their shared affection for a young orphan.
Sorority House
Lew Fisher
A young girl begins to wonder if she really fits into the upper-class sorority she's trying to join.
Union Pacific
Monahan
One of the last bills signed by President Lincoln authorizes pushing the Union Pacific Railroad across the wilderness to California. But financial opportunist Asa Barrows hopes to profit from obstructing it. Chief troubleshooter Jeff Butler has his hands full fighting Barrows' agent, gambler Sid Campeau; Campeau's partner Dick Allen is Jeff's war buddy and rival suitor for engineer's daughter Molly Monahan. Who will survive the effort to push the railroad through at any cost?
Undercover Agent
Tom 'Pop' Madison
A railway postal clerk goes after a sweepstakes counterfeiting ring.
The Kid From Texas
Farr
A loud-mouthed Texas cowpuncher tries his hand at polo finding himself at odds with high society and trying to save a floundering Wild West show.
The Flying Irishman
Mr. Clyde Corrigan Sr.
This is the story of the historic 1938 flight of Douglas 'Wrong Way' Corrigan. Mr. Corrigan starred in this film, which chronicled his infamous flight. On July 17, 1938, Mr. Corrigan loaded 320 gallons of gasoline (40 hours worth) into the tiny, single engine plane. While expressing his intent to fly west to Long Beach, CA, Mr. Corrigan flew out of Floyd Bennett Field heading east over the Atlantic. Instrumentation in the plane included two compasses (both malfunctioned) and a turn-and-bank indicator. The cabin door was held shut with baling wire. Nearly 29 hours later, he landed in Baldonnel near Dublin. He forever claimed to be surprised at arriving in Ireland rather than California. He returned to the US as a hero, with a ticker tape parade in New York and received numerous medals and awards.
The Great Man Votes
Hot Shot Gillings
In 1923, Gregory Vance, a widower with two children, is a former scholar who has turned from book to bottle. He works, slightly, as a night-watchman, and his children, who know him for what he is and what he isn't, are his only admirers. Then, it is discovered that he is the only registered voter in a key precinct and the politicians, from both parties, arrive in droves bearing inducements. What he does about this situation, and the relatives who want to take his children away from him make up the story.
Ride a Crooked Mile
Sgt. Flynn
The son of a cattle-rustling Cossack immigrant must choose between following the straight path and helping his father escape from prison.
Little Orphan Annie
Tom Jennings
Annie (Ann Gillis), an orphan, (based on Harold Gray's comic strip but who is at no point in the film called 'Little Orphan Annie), is befriended by a fight manager, 'Pop' Corrigan (J. Farrell MacDonald). She brings him Johnny Adams (Robert Kent), a promising prizefighter. Annie gets the people of the neighborhood to finance his training. But on the night of Johnny's big fight, a gambling syndicate locks him in a gymnasium and it appears the neighborhood folks will lose their investment.
Spring Madness
Mr. Maloney (uncredited)
Harvard senior Sam Thatcher (Lew Ayres) and his best friend and roommate, known as "The Lippencott" (Burgess Meredith), plan to go to Russia after graduation, a decision Sam has kept from his girlfriend, Alexandra Benson (Maureen O'Sullivan).
London by Night
Tims
A newspaperman, his canine companion, and an adventurous socialite investigate an umbrella-wielding murderer who is terrorizing a London neighborhood.
The Plough and the Stars
Uncle Peter
A husband clashes with his wife over his membership to the Irish citizen army during the Easter rebellion.
Lloyd's of London
Brook Watson
Norfolk, England, 1770. The nephew of an innkeeper and the son of a reverend maintain a very close friendship until, after living a great adventure, they must separate their paths. The former will head his footsteps to London and bound his destiny to Lloyd's, a thriving insurance company; the latter will eventually become one of the greatest heroes in the history of the British Empire.
The General Died at Dawn
Leach
China, 1930s, during the ravaging civil war. General Pen entrusts O'Hara, an intrepid American adventurer, with the mission of providing a large sum of money to Mr. Wu with the task of buying weapons in Shanghai to help end General Yang's tyranny that keeps an entire province under his ruthless iron boot.
Spendthrift
Pop O'Connell
A profligate, polo-playing playboy (Henry Fonda) is married to a beautiful but superficial heiress (Mary Brian). They divorce, and the wife gets all the money. But the humbled (and impoverished) Fonda finds true love in the arms of Pat Paterson, who cares nothing for material things.
Special Investigator
Judge Plumgate
A lawyer changes from defending public enemies to bringing them to justice after his brother is killed.
Colleen
Pop Reilly
Musical about dingaling millionaire businessman Cedric Ames and his various employees
Laughing Irish Eyes
Tim
An Irish crooner flirts with prize-fighting.
The Prisoner of Shark Island
Judge Maiben
After healing the leg of the murderer John Wilkes Booth, responsible for the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, perpetrated on April 14, 1865, during a performance at Ford's Theatre in Washington; Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, considered part of the atrocious conspiracy, is sentenced to life imprisonment and sent to the sinister Shark Island Prison.
A Feather in Her Hat
Pobjoy
After the woman who raised him claims he's not her son, Richard searches for clues about his identity. Urged on by his mentor, Capt. Randolph Courtney, Richard focuses on Julia Trent Anders, a middle-aged actress who just might be his real mother. But soon, Richard begins to fall for Julia's stepdaughter. Amidst the upheaval, Richard schemes to return Julia to the stage -- but he's in for another big surprise.
Barbary Coast
Judge Harper
Mary Rutledge arrives from the east, finds her fiancé dead, and goes to work at the roulette wheel of Luis Chamalis' Bella Donna, a rowdy gambling house in San Francisco in the 1850s. She falls in love with miner Jim Carmichael and takes his gold dust at the wheel. She goes after him, Chamalis goes after her with intent to harm Carmichael.
Hot Tip
Matt
An amateur handicapper must help his future son-in-law recoup the money he lost while playing the ponies.
Werewolf of London
Hawkins
A strange animal attack turns a botanist into a bloodthirsty monster.
The Informer
Terry
Gypo Nolan is a former Irish Republican Army man who drowns his sorrows in the bottle. He's desperate to escape his bleak Dublin life and start over in America with his girlfriend. So when British authorities advertise a reward for information about his best friend, current IRA member Frankie, Gypo cooperates. Now Gypo can buy two tickets on a boat bound for the States, but can he escape the overwhelming guilt he feels for betraying his buddy?
Vanessa: Her Love Story
Perkins (uncredited)
The Victorian wife of a mad baron waits years for a British soldier sent to Egypt.
The Fountain
Shordley
Set during the first World War in neutral, but pro-German, Holland, Lewis Allison, an interned British officer, is paroled to the castle of Baron Von Leyden and finds living there, but now married to German officer Rupert Von Narwitz, his childhood sweetheart Julie. Long discussions between Julie and Allison, centering on family conflicts that kept them apart, take place before the severely wounded Von Narwitz returns to the castle and more long discussions ensue.
The Key
O'Duffy
A British officer stationed in Ireland falls for the wife of an intelligence man.
A Modern Hero
Mr. Ryan
A 1920s circus performer uses every means at his disposal to achieve fame and fortune at the expense of others.
The Lost Patrol
Quincannon
A World War I British Army patrol is crossing the Mesopotamian desert when their commanding officer, the only one who knows their destination, is killed by the bullet of unseen bandits. The patrol's sergeant keeps them heading north on the assumption that they will hit their brigade. They stop for the night at an oasis and awaken the next morning to find their horses stolen, their sentry dead, the oasis surrounded and survival difficult.
Paddy the Next Best Thing
Collins
This one has Janet Gaynor as Walter Connolly's spunky Irish daughter, whose older sister (nicely played by Margaret Lindsay) is about to marry Baxter for his money and thus retire Connolly's debts, though she loves Harvey Stephens, who is in fact infinitely more appealing than Warner Baxter.
A Study in Scarlet
Jabez Wilson
In London, a secret society led by lawyer Thaddeus Merrydew collects the assets of any of its deceased members and divides them among the remaining members. Society members start dropping like flies. Sherlock Holmes is approached by member James Murphy's widow, who is miffed at being left penniless by her husband. When Captain Pyke is shot, Holmes keys in on his mysterious Chinese widow as well as the shady Merrydew. Other members keep dying: Malcom Dearing first, then Mr. Baker. There is also an attempt on the life of young Eileen Forrester, who became a reluctant society member upon the death of her father. Holmes' uncanny observations and insights are put to the test.
Air Hostess
Pop Kearny
A plucky stewardess risks her life marrying a daredevil pilot.
Rockabye
Fagin
A Broadway actress with a problematic past falls hard for the author of her new play.
Vanity Street
Dan - Irish Cop (uncredited)
A New York policeman helps a hungry and penniless young woman start life anew by arranging to get her a job in "The Follies".
Careless Lady
Trowbridge
Innocent Sally Brown thinks men are only attracted to experienced women, so she poses as the wife of an unmarried businessman on a trip to Paris.
The Black Camel
MacMaster
Movie star Shelah Fane is seeing wealthy Alan Jaynes while filming in Honolulu, Hawaii, but won't marry him without consulting famed psychic Tanaverro first. Tanaverro confronts her about the unsolved murder of fellow film star Denny Mayo three years earlier, and she decides to reject Jaynes' proposal. When Shelah is found shot to death in her beach-front pavilion, Charlie Chan of the Honolulu Police investigates.
Don't Bet on Women
Chipley Duff
At a big party, Roger Fallon, now a woman-hater, right to the core - this all due to a failed marriage and disastrous love affairs - talks to Herbert Drake. Herbert who is happily married, bets Fallon that the next woman who walks into the room, whoever she is, won't let Fallon kiss her for 48 hours. Fallon takes the bet. Suddenly, a very beautiful and sexy woman walks in. It's Herbert's wife, Jeanne Drake...
Lightnin'
Judge Lemuel Townsend
Lightnin' and Mary Jones are co-owners of a hotel built right on a state border, used by divorcing wives so they can pretend to be in California while establishing residency in Nevada. When Lightnin' refuses to sell his share of the hotel to a gang of crooks, Mary is coerced into divorcing her husband so that she can sign over the deed herself.
Song o' My Heart
Peter
Broken hearts in Ireland. Sean is a great tenor, in semi-retirement, living in a village close to Mary, the woman he’s always loved. Mary’s aunt convinced her to marry a man for his money; he has recently deserted her, leaving her penniless. She and her two children, Eileen and Tad, move in with the selfish and austere aunt. Eileen is falling in love with Fergus, a young man who’s off to Dublin to seek his fortune. Sean is drawn out of retirement and goes on tour in America. At his first concert, he’s nervous and out of sorts until the last song, when peace descends on him like a gift. What has happened, and can family life be set right?
New Movietone Follies of 1930
Minimum plot. Maximum stars of early cinema. Rich young Conrad Sterling (William Collier Jr.) is in love with struggling actress Mary Mason (Miriam Seeger). To prove his love, he hires Mary and the entire company of the show in which she is appearing to entertain his weekend guests at his lavish mansion.
Lucky In Love
Michael O'More, an American who lives in Ireland with his uncle, a horsetrainer for the Earl of Balkerry, loves Lady Mary Cardigan, granddaughter of the Earl. He finds a rival in Capt. Brian Fitzroy, a rake who intends to buy the impoverished earl's castle and marry Lady Mary. After nearly killing Fitzroy in a brawl over Lady Mary, Michael flees to the United States. There he becomes financially secure when department store magnate Abe Feinberg offers him a job. Feinberg commissions Michael to establish a linen mill on the earl's estate. He and Mary, who is in the United States evading Fitzroy, return to Ireland and marry.
Little Old New York
John O'Day
An Irish girl comes to America disguised as a boy to claim a fortune left to her brother who has died.