Douglas Spencer

Acting

Douglas Spencer

Born 1910-02-10 · Princeton, Illinois, USA

Douglas Spencer (born July 4, 1910 – March 5, 1960) was an American actor, best known for his roles in classic science fiction films and film noirs during the 1940s and 1950s. Spencer was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He was drawn to the entertainment industry early on and began his career in theater before transitioning to films. He often played characters with a tough, no-nonsense edge, making him a popular choice for a variety of roles in films of the time. Spencer's big break came when he landed a role in the influential science fiction film *The Thing from Another World* (1951), directed by Christian Nyby and produced by Howard Hawks. In the film, Spencer played the role of a reporter named Ned Scott, who is among the group of scientists and military personnel investigating a mysterious alien threat in the Arctic. *The Thing from Another World* became a classic of the genre and remains one of Spencer’s most memorable roles. In addition to his work in science fiction, Spencer appeared in several other films across a range of genres. He was frequently cast in supporting roles in film noirs, thrillers, and dramas, and his distinctive, gravelly voice and sharp screen presence made him a recognizable face in Hollywood. Other notable films he appeared in include *The Big Clock* (1948), a crime thriller directed by John Farrow, and *The Green Glove* (1952), a suspenseful drama. Douglas Spencer was married to actress *Ann Wedgeworth*, and their marriage lasted for several years. After the height of his film career, Spencer continued working in television and on stage, although he never achieved the same level of fame as some of his contemporaries. Spencer’s career was cut short when he died from cancer at the age of 49, on March 5, 1960. Despite his relatively brief career, he remains fondly remembered by fans of classic sci-fi and noir films. Douglas Spencer's legacy is primarily tied to his memorable performance in *The Thing from Another World*, but his work across various genres helped solidify him as a dependable and versatile character actor in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. His contributions to the sci-fi and noir genres continue to be appreciated by film enthusiasts today.

Acting credits

Shane poster
7.3

A weary gunfighter attempts to settle down with a homestead family, but a smouldering settler and rancher conflict forces him to act.

Shane

1953

Double Indemnity poster
8.1

An insurance representative is seduced by a dissatisfied housewife into a scheme of insurance fraud and murder that arouses the suspicion of his colleague, a claims investigator.

Double Indemnity

1944

A Place in the Sun poster
7.3

A young social climber wins the heart of a beautiful heiress but his former girlfriend's pregnancy stands in the way of his ambition.

A Place in the Sun

1951

The Lost Weekend poster
7.6

Longtime alcoholic Don Birnam has been sober for ten days and appears to be over the worst... but his craving has just become more insidious. Evading a country weekend planned by his brother and girlfriend, he begins a four-day bender that just might be his last – one way or another.

The Lost Weekend

1945

River of No Return poster
6.7

An itinerant farmer and his young son help a heart-of-gold saloon singer search for her estranged husband.

River of No Return

1954

The Diary of Anne Frank poster
7.2

The true, harrowing story of a young Jewish girl who, with her family and their friends, is forced into hiding in an attic in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam.

The Diary of Anne Frank

1959

This Island Earth poster
6.0

Aliens have landed and are hiding on Earth, but need Earth’s scientists to help them fight an inter-planetary war.

This Island Earth

1955

The Thing from Another World poster
6.7

Scientists and US Air Force officials fend off a blood-thirsty alien organism while investigating at a remote arctic outpost.

The Thing from Another World

1951

The Big Clock poster
7.3

George Stroud, a crime magazine's crusading editor, has to postpone a vacation with his wife - again - when a glamorous blonde is murdered and he is assigned by his publishing boss to find the killer. As the investigation proceeds to its conclusion, Stroud must try to disrupt his ordinarily brilliant investigative team as they increasingly build evidence that he is the killer.

The Big Clock

1948

Father of the Bride poster
7.0

Proud father Stanley Banks remembers the day his daughter, Kay, got married. Starting when she announces her engagement through to the wedding itself, we learn of all the surprises and disasters along the way.

Father of the Bride

1950

Monkey Business poster
6.7

Research chemist Barnaby Fulton works on a fountain of youth pill for a chemical company. One of the labs chimps gets loose in the laboratory and mixes chemicals, but then pours the mix into the water cooler. When trying one of his own samples, washed down with water from the cooler, Fulton begins to act just like a twenty-year-old and believes his potion is working. Soon his wife and boss are also behaving like children.

Monkey Business

1952

A Date with the Falcon poster
6.5

In the second film of the series (and not a second part of anything), Gay Lawrence, aka The Falcon, is about to depart the city to marry his fiancée, Helen Reed, when a mystery girl, Rita Mara, asks for his aid in disposing of a secret formula for making synthetic diamonds. He deliberately allows himself to be kidnapped by the gang for which Rita works. His aide, "Goldy" Locke, trails the kidnappers and brings the police. But the head of the gang escapes, and the Falcon continues the pursuit.

A Date with the Falcon

1942

Saddle the Wind poster
6.7

Steve Sinclair is a world-weary former gunslinger, now living as a peaceful farmer. Things go wrong when his wild younger brother Tony arrives on the scene with his new bride Joan Blake.

Saddle the Wind

1958

The Heiress poster
7.8

In 1840s New York, the uneventful and boring days of the daughter of a wealthy doctor come to an end when she meets a dashing poorer man — who may or may not be after her inheritance.

The Heiress

1949

Houdini poster
6.6

By the early 1900s, the extraordinary Houdini earned an international reputation for his theatrical tricks and daring feats of extrication from shackles, ropes, handcuffs and... Scotland Yard's jails.

Houdini

1953

Christmas in July poster
7.0

An office clerk loves entering contests in the hopes of someday winning a fortune and marrying the girl he loves. His latest attempt is the Maxford House Coffee Slogan Contest. As a joke, some of his co-workers put together a fake telegram which says that he won the $25,000 grand prize.

Christmas in July

1940

Alias Nick Beal poster
6.8

After straight-arrow district attorney Joseph Foster says in frustration that he would sell his soul to bring down a local mob boss, a smooth-talking stranger named Nick Beal shows up with enough evidence to seal a conviction. When that success leads Foster to run for governor, Beal's unearthly hold on him turns the previously honest man corrupt, much to the displeasure of his wife and his steadfast minister.

Alias Nick Beal

1949

The Unholy Wife poster
4.7

A woman marries a man for his wealth, then concocts a plan to kill him, take his money, and run off with her lover. Things go wrong when they accidentally kill the wrong person.

The Unholy Wife

1957

My Friend Irma poster
6.8

Prototype dumb blonde Irma and her slacker, wheeler-dealer boyfriend Al interfere in the love life of Irma's level-headed room mate Jane.

My Friend Irma

1949

A Man Alone poster
5.8

A gunfighter, stranded in the desert, comes across the aftermath of a stage robbery, in which all the passengers were killed. He takes one of the horses to ride to town to report the massacre, but finds himself accused of it. He also finds himself accused of the murder of the local banker, and winds up hiding in the basement of a house where the local sheriff, who is very sick, lives with his daughter.

A Man Alone

1955

The Dark Corner poster
6.6

Ex-con turned private investigator Bradford Galt suspects someone is following him and maybe even trying to kill him. With the assistance of his spunky secretary, Kathleen Stewart, he dives deep into a mystery in search of answers.

The Dark Corner

1946

Pardners poster
6.7

Rich momma's boy Wade Kingsley Jr. an Eastern dude, tries to follow in his murdered father's footsteps by returning to the West to partner up with Slim Moseley Jr.,the son of his father's former partner. Wade overcomes Slim's initial reluctance to accept him by using his fortune to buy a prize cow and new car to help Slim in his job as foreman on the Kingsley family ranch, currently under siege by a gang of outlaws called "masked raiders." Wade generously tries to pay off the ranch's mortgage with $15,000 of his own money, but unfortunately neither "pardner" realizes that respected banker Dan Hollis, the son of their fathers' murderer, is the leader of the gang.

Pardners

1956

Trouble Along the Way poster
6.1

Struggling to retain custody of his daughter following his divorce, football coach Steve Williams finds himself embroiled in a recruiting scandal at the tiny Catholic college he is trying to bring back to football respectability.

Trouble Along the Way

1953

The Three Faces of Eve poster
7.2

A doctor treats a woman suffering from multiple personality disorder.

The Three Faces of Eve

1957