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Dan Dailey

Daniel James Dailey Jr. (December 14, 1913 - October 16, 1978) was an American actor. Born in New York City, he appeared in a minstrel show when very young, and appeared in vaudeville before his Broadway debut in 1937 in Babes in Arms. In 1940 he was signed by MGM to make movies and, although his past career had been in musicals, he was initially cast as a Nazi in The Mortal Storm.

The people at MGM realized their mistake immediately, however, and began casting him in a series of musical films. He served in the United States Army during World War II, then returned to more musicals. His performance in When My Baby Smiles at Me in 1948 garnered him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

As the musical genre began to wane in the mid-1950s, he moved on to various comedic and dramatic roles, and television.


Note: This profile was written in or before 2004.

Dan Dailey Facts

Birth Name Daniel James Dailey
OccupationActor
BirthdayDecember 14, 1913
SignSagittarius
BirthplaceNew York, New York, USA
Date of deathOctober 16, 1978 (age 64)
Awards1970 Golden Globe Awards: Best Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy (for The Governor and JJ)

Selected Filmography

The Wings of Eagles
That's Dancing!
There's No Business Like Show Business
Hemingway's Adventures Of A Young Man
Meet Me In Las Vegas
It's Always Fair Weather
Ford At Fox Collection: John Ford's American Comedies
That's Entertainment II
Ziegfeld Girl
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