James Burke
Acting
Born: 1886-09-23 in New York City, New York, USA
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia James Burke (September 24, 1886 – May 23, 1968) was an American film and television actor born in New York City. He made his stage debut in New York around 1912 and went to Hollywood in 1933. He made over 200 film appearances during his career, which ranged from 1932 to 1964; he was more often than not cast as a cop, usually a none-too-bright one, most notably as Sgt. Velie in Columbia's Ellery Queen mysteries in the early 1940s. He appeared in The Maltese Falcon, At the Circus, Lone Star, and many others. One of his best roles was as Charles Ruggles' rowdy rancher pal in Ruggles of Red Gap. In the early 1950s, Burke appeared with Tom Conway in the ABC detective drama series then called Inspector Mark Saber -- Homicide Detective, later renamed, reformatted, and switched to NBC under the title Saber of London. From 1960-1961, Burke appeared in the role of Zeke Bonner in seven episodes of the ABC western television series Stagecoach West, starring Wayne Rogers, Robert Bray, and Richard Eyer. Burke suffered from a heart condition, which took his life at the age of eighty-one.
Known For
The Maltese Falcon
Luke
It Happened One Night
Detective (uncredited)
You Can't Take It with You
Chief Detective (uncredited)
I Love Lucy
Mr. Watson
Nightmare Alley
Rural Marshal (uncredited)
The Big Clock
O'Brien
Anchors Aweigh
Studio Cop
Dead End
Mulligan
The Scarlet Empress
Queen Christina
Blacksmith - 4th Rabble Rouser (uncredited)
Body and Soul
Arnold (uncredited)
Dodge City
Cattle Auctioneer (uncredited)
Twentieth Century
Sheriff (uncredited)
Beau Geste
Lieutenant Dufour
Song of the Thin Man
Policeman Callahan (uncredited)
At the Circus
John Carter
Ruggles of Red Gap
Jeff Tuttle
Treasure Island
Pirate of the Spanish Main
His Kind of Woman
Barkeeper in Nogales (uncredited)
All Through the Night
Police Lt. Forbes
Lassie
The Kennel Murder Case
Policeman Who Lets Dog Out (uncredited)
Bombshell
First Immigration Officer (uncredited)
Call of the Wild
Ole
The Dawn Patrol
Flaherty - Motorcycle Driver
The Mad Miss Manton
Sullivan
Thank Your Lucky Stars
Bill, Intern Guard (uncredited)
Wanted: Dead or Alive
Sheriff John Tatum
Wanted: Dead or Alive
Sheriff M. Comstock
Wanted: Dead or Alive
Sheriff Blore
Lady Killer
Panhandler (uncredited)
Alias Nick Beal
Bum
We're Not Married!
Willie's Sergeant (uncredited)
On Borrowed Time
Sheriff Burlingame
Alias Jesse James
Charlie (uncredited)
Down to Earth
Detective Kelly
Pot o' Gold
Lt. Grady
Little Miss Marker
Detective Reardon (uncredited)
Casanova Brown
O'Leary (uncredited)
The Virginian
Andy Jones (uncredited)