Richard Conte | |
|---|---|
 Conte in the 1940s | |
| Born | Nicholas Peter Conte March 24, 1910 Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | April 15, 1975 (aged 65) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1939–1975 |
| Spouses | Ruth Storey
(m. 1943; div. 1963)Shirlee Garner
(m. 1973) |
| Children | 1 |
Nicholas Peter Conte (March 24, 1910 – April 15, 1975), known professionally as Richard Conte, was an American actor.[1] He appeared in more than 100 films[2] from 1939 through the 1970s, including I'll Cry Tomorrow, Ocean's 11, and The Godfather.
Richard Conte was born Nicholas Peter Conte on March 24, 1910 in Jersey City, New Jersey, the son of Italian-Americans Julia (Fina), a seamstress, and Pasquale Conte, a barber.[3] He graduated from William L. Dickinson High School in Jersey City.[4]
Conte worked as a truck driver, messenger, shoe salesman, and singing waiter before starting his acting career. He was discovered by actors Elia Kazan and John Garfield during his job at a Connecticut resort, which led to Conte finding stage work.[citation needed]
He eventually earned a scholarship to study at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City,[5] where he became a standout actor.[citation needed]
Conte was a Republican who campaigned for Dwight Eisenhower during the 1952 presidential election.[6] He was Catholic.[7]
He made his film debut under the name Nicholas Conte in Heaven with a Barbed Wire Fence (1939) at 20th Century Fox. He played Tony, a hobo who meets up with Joe (Glenn Ford who was also making his film debut) and Anita (Jean Rogers). The three of them make their way west hopping trains. They are later joined by Professor B (Raymond Walburn).
He made his Broadway debut in My Heart's in the Highlands (1939) for the Group Theatre. Also for the Group, he was in Clifford Odets' Night Music (1940). He performed in the road company of Golden Boy.[8][9]
On Broadway, he was in Heavenly Express (1941) and Walk Into My Parlor (1941). He was a hit in Jason (1942) then was he Family (1943).[10][11]
During World War II, Conte served in the United States Army, but he was discharged because of eye trouble.[12]
In May 1943, Conte signed a long-term contract with 20th Century Fox, changing his name to Richard Conte. His first Fox film was Guadalcanal Diary (1943), where he was billed fourth.[13]
He followed it with another war drama, The Purple Heart (1944), directed by Lewis Milestone; he was billed second, beneath Dana Andrews.[14]
Conte had a smaller part in Captain Eddie (1945), a biopic about Eddie Rickenbacker, and played an Italian POW in A Bell for Adano (1945).
Conte had the star role in A Walk in the Sun (1945), another war film for Milestone, and he was teamed again with Andrews.
Fox promoted Conte to top billing with the film noir The Spider (1945). Although a B film for the studio, it was successful enough to establish Conte in film noir.[15]
He had supporting roles in Somewhere in the Night (1946), directed by Joseph Mankiewicz, and the spy film 13 Rue Madeleine (1946), directed by Henry Hathaway.
Conte was borrowed by Enterprise Productions for The Other Love (1947) with Barbara Stanwyck and David Niven. Back at Fox, he was in Hathaway's crime drama Call Northside 777 (1948) as the prisoner whose innocence is proved by James Stewart.[16]
Conte was teamed with Victor Mature in Cry of the City (1948). MGM borrowed him for Big Jack (1949), then he did House of Strangers (1949) with Edward G. Robinson, playing Max Monetti, a lawyer who defends his father (Robinson) against government charges of banking irregularities and goes to prison for jury tampering.
Conte was top billed in Thieves' Highway (1949), directed by Jules Dassin, and co-starred with Gene Tierney in Otto Preminger's film noir Whirlpool (1950).[17]
Conte signed a contract with Universal Pictures, and he starred in some crime films: The Sleeping City (1950); Hollywood Story (1951), directed by William Castle; and The Raging Tide (1951).[18]
After doing The Fighter (1952) for United Artists, he returned to Universal for The Raiders (1952).
Conte went to Warner Bros to co-star with Anne Baxter and Ann Sothern in The Blue Gardenia (1953) directed by Fritz Lang. Back at Universal, Conte was in Desert Legion (1953). He made Slaves of Babylon (1953) for Sam Katzman at Columbia. Conte started guest starring on TV shows such as Medallion Theatre, Ford Television Theatre, and General Electric Theater.
In 1953, Conte signed a contract with Bill Broidy to make six films over three years, and he would be paid 25% of the profits.[19][20] The first was the crime drama Highway Dragnet (1954), based on a story by Roger Corman, and he then went to England to make Mask of Dust (1954) for Hammer Films director Terence Fisher. He was going to direct The Wolf Pack for Broidy, but it was not made.[21]
Back in the U.S., Conte did The Big Combo (1955) for Cornel Wilde's company;[22] New York Confidential (1955) for producer Edward Small; and The Big Tip Off (1955) for Broidy.
Conte went to England for Little Red Monkey (1955), RKO for Bengazi (1955), and Warners for a Korean War movie Target Zero (1955).
Conte broke out of B movies with the second lead in I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955), an MGM biopic about Lillian Roth starring Susan Hayward. Conte and director Daniel Mann announced they would make Play by Play, but it was not made.[23]
Conte made a series of films for Columbia. He co-starred with Judy Holliday in Full of Life (1956), played the lead in The Brothers Rico (1957), andn had supporting roles in This Angry Age (1957) and They Came to Cordura (1959).
He continued to guest on TV shows like The 20th Century-Fox Hour and The Twilight Zone ("Perchance to Dream") and played the lead in a TV adaptation of The Gambler, the Nun and the Radio (1960). He had his first regular TV role in The Four Just Men (1959–1960).[24]
Conte supported Frank Sinatra in Ocean's 11 (1961) but then focused on TV: Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Bus Stop, Naked City, Checkmate, Frontier Circus, The DuPont Show of the Week, The Untouchables, Alcoa Premiere, Going My Way, Kraft Mystery Theater, 77 Sunset Strip, The Reporter, Kraft Suspense Theatre and Arrest and Trial.[9]
He had a supporting role in Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? (1963), Circus World (1964) and The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) (playing Barabbas) and the lead in The Eyes of Annie Jones (1964) for Robert L. Lippert. After Synanon (1965), he had the lead in Stay Tuned for Terror (1965), shot in Argentina.
Conte had a supporting role in Assault on a Queen (1966), and he was one of several stars in Hotel (1967). In 1966, Conte landed a supporting role in the short-lived CBS sitcom The Jean Arthur Show.[25]
He appeared as Lieutenant Dave Santini in two crime films with Frank Sinatra: Tony Rome (1967) and Lady in Cement (1968). He also did Sentenza di morte (1968).
In 1968, he released his only film as a director, Operation Cross Eagles, in which he also starred.
Conte's later performances include The Bold Ones: The Lawyers, The Challengers (1970), and The Name of the Game (1970).
Conte had one of his memorable performances in The Godfather (1972) as Don Barzini. He was at one time also considered for the title role, Don Vito Corleone, a role performed by Marlon Brando.
The success of the film led to Conte being cast in a series of "mob" roles: Murder Inferno (1973), The Big Family (1973), Pete, Pearl & the Pole (1973), My Brother Anastasia (1973), The Violent Professionals (1973), No Way Out (1973) with Alain Delon, Anna, quel particolare piacere (1973), Shoot First, Die Later (1974) and Violent Rome (1975). He did the horror films Evil Eye (1975), A Diary of a Murderess (1975) and Naked Exorcism (1975).
Conte was married to actress Ruth Storey,[5] with whom he adopted a son,[26] film editor Mark Conte. In 1950, Conte and Storey were living at 1366 San Ysidro Drive in Beverly Hills.[27] They divorced in 1963.[5] He married his second wife, Shirlee Garner, in 1973; they remained married until Conte's death. His grandson is National Football League free safety Chris Conte. Chris is the son of Mark Conte.[citation needed]
On April 3, 1975, Conte suffered a massive heart attack and a stroke. He was taken to UCLA Medical Center where the staff worked for eight hours to keep him alive. He was put in intensive care and died on April 15.[2] He is buried in the Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles.[28][29]
| Year | Group | Award | Result | Film/Show |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Golden Laurel | Top Action Performance | Nominated | They Came to Cordura (1959) |
| Year | Program | Episode/source |
|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Reader's Digest Radio Edition | Our Lady's Juggler[31] |
| 1946 | Suspense | "Win, Place and Murder"[32] |
| 1953 | Hollywood Star Playhouse | Blackout[33] |
