Purnell Pratt

Acting

Purnell Pratt

Born — Died

1885-10-19 — 1941-07-25

Place of birth

Bethel, Illinois, USA

Known for

Acting

Credits

60 titles

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Purnell Pratt (October 20, 1885 – July 25, 1941) was an American film actor. He appeared in 114 films between 1914 and 1941. He was born in Bethel, Illinois and died in Hollywood, California.

Known for

Film credits

1940s · 3 titles

1930s · 48 titles

The Plainsman poster
6.5

Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity Jane, and Buffalo Bill go up against Indians and a gunrunner.

The Plainsman

1936

Scarface poster
7.4

In 1920s Chicago, Italian immigrant and notorious thug, Antonio 'Tony' Camonte, aka Scarface, shoots his way to the top of the mobs while trying to protect his sister from the criminal life.

Scarface

1932

The Public Enemy poster
7.3

Two young Chicago hoodlums, Tom Powers and Matt Doyle, rise up from their poverty-stricken slum life to become petty thieves, bootleggers and cold-blooded killers. But with street notoriety and newfound wealth, the duo feels the heat from the cops and rival gangsters both. Despite his ruthless criminal reputation, Tom tries to remain connected to his family, however, gang warfare and the need for revenge eventually pull him away.

The Public Enemy

1931

Grand Hotel poster
7.0

Guests at a posh Berlin hotel struggle through worry, scandal, and heartache.

Grand Hotel

1932

A Night at the Opera poster
7.4

The Marx Brothers take on high society and the opera world to bring two lovers together. A sly business manager and two wacky friends of two opera singers help them achieve success while humiliating their stuffy and snobbish enemies.

A Night at the Opera

1935

A Night at the Opera poster
7.4

The Marx Brothers take on high society and the opera world to bring two lovers together. A sly business manager and two wacky friends of two opera singers help them achieve success while humiliating their stuffy and snobbish enemies.

A Night at the Opera

1935

Emma poster
6.6

After decades of raising the motherless Smith children, housekeeper Emma Thatcher is faced with resentment when she marries their father.

Emma

1932

Death Flies East poster
7.0

Evelyn Vail (Florence Rice) is a nurse convicted of poisoning a patient. Out on parole, Evelyn decides to fly to Sing-Sing and confront death row inmate who accused her of the deed in the first place. On board the airliner, Evelyn makes the acquaintance of John Robinson Gordon (Nagel), who is transporting a revolutionary munitions formula to Washington, D.C. Another passenger, Baker (Robert Allen), complains of having been poisoned and leaves the plane during a stopover in Dallas. Back in the air, Gordon's bodyguard, Lieutenant O'Brien (Fred Kelsey), suffers the same fate, but this time the poison proves fatal. The plane returns to Dallas, where Police Captain Barrie (William B. Davidson) accused poor Evelyn of the crime. Happily, Gordon can prove otherwise and the real culprit is unmasked.

Death Flies East

1935

The Famous Ferguson Case poster
6.6

A foreword warns against the peril of yellow journalism, and the story illustrates it by following events in the upstate New York town of Cornwall after prominant financier George Ferguson is killed. Two types of New York City journalists descend on Cornwall, one interested in facts, the other in getting sensational "news". Mrs. Ferguson is known to have been friendly with a local banker. The Fergusons quarrel the evening he is killed (by "burglars", his wife tells the police later), and she is arrested, spurred on by the "bad" journalists, who also manage to badger the banker's wife into the hospital. Meanwhile, young Bruce Foster runs the Cornwall Courier, and shows the big city reporters how to dig out real news while they attempt to subvert justice for their own ends.

The Famous Ferguson Case

1932

A Shriek in the Night poster
5.2

Rival newspaper reporters Pat Morgan and Ted Rand find themselves unraveling the mystery behind the death of a millionaire philanthropist who fell from his penthouse balcony. When it is discovered that the plunge was not an accident, the building's residents come under suspicion. Soon, the body count begins to mount as three more murders occur by strangulation.

A Shriek in the Night

1933

High, Wide and Handsome poster
6.2

The setting is a small town in 1870s Pennsylvania. Sally Waterson and her father have stopped in town with their traveling medicine show, but when their wagon catches fire, they find themselves stranded. They're taken in by Mrs. Cortlandt and her grandson, Peter, who is trying to set up a pipeline that will supply oil throughout the state. Sally and Peter soon fall in love and marry. Neither their marriage nor Peter's pipe dreams flow too smoothly.

High, Wide and Handsome

1937

The Chief poster
5.5

The dim-witted son of a heroic fire chief tries to follow in his late father's footsteps, only to become the unknowing pawn of corrupt politicians.

The Chief

1933

Road to Paradise poster
6.4

Loretta Young plays dual roles in this 1930 crime drama about a young thief planning to steal jewels from a wealthy socialite.

Road to Paradise

1930

The Band Plays On poster
8.3

A judge hands four wayward boys to a college football coach who turns them into backfield stars.

The Band Plays On

1934

Behind the Green Lights poster
8.0

A police detective's (Norman Foster) lawyer girlfriend (Judith Allen) works for a crooked criminal lawyer (Sidney Blackmer).

Behind the Green Lights

1935

The Casino Murder Case poster
6.8

After socialite Lynn Llewellyn receives an anonymous threat, he is poisoned at his uncle's casino, and although he recovers, his wife is murdered by the same killer.

The Casino Murder Case

1935

I Cover the Waterfront poster
5.1

An investigative reporter romances a suspected smuggler's daughter.

I Cover the Waterfront

1933

Rosalie poster
6.0

West Point cadet Dick Thorpe falls in love with a girl, who turns out to be a princess from an European kingdom.

Rosalie

1937

Hollywood Boulevard poster
4.5

With a full Hollywood background and settings but more an expose of scandal-and-gossip magazines of the era, has-been actor John Blakeford agrees to write his memoirs for magazine-publisher Jordan Winston. When Blakeford's daughter, Patricia, ask him to desist for the sake of his ex-wife, Carlotta Blakeford, he attempts to break his contract with Winston.

Hollywood Boulevard

1936

Pick-up poster
5.1

The scheme of a pair of married con artists goes awry when their victim dies, and they are both caught and imprisoned. When she gets out of prison, she tries to put her life back together.

Pick-up

1933

Five Star Final poster
6.6

Searching for headlines at any cost, an unscrupulous newspaper owner forces his editor to print a serial based on a past murder, tormenting a woman involved.

Five Star Final

1931

Wives Never Know poster
9.0

The blissful marriage of Homer and Marcia Bigelow is disrupted when Marcia hosts a party for one J. Hugh Ramsay, author of the bestselling book, "Marriage—The Living Death".

Wives Never Know

1936

It's in the Air poster
6.3

Con men Calvin Churchill and Clip McGurk know how to fix a horse-race or boxing match. Calvin wants to go straight and win back his estranged wife, but first the men must dodge a dogged IRS agent and bilk a bunch of aviation investors out of the backing boodle for a balloon excursion into the stratosphere.

It's in the Air

1935

Skyscraper Souls poster
5.5

After bank president David Dwight makes a vast loan to himself to build a remarkable skyscraper, his board questions the propriety of the loan. Despite the devotion of longtime mistress Sarah, the ruthless David, while seeking bank mergers to protect his building, tries to seduce Sarah's secretary, Lynn. David then agrees to a plot by a bank board member to inflate his bank's stock and sell short — just before the market crashes.

Skyscraper Souls

1932

The Billion Dollar Scandal poster
NR

An ex-convict working for a wealthy oil baron uncovers trouble while his brother becomes involved with the boss's daughter.

The Billion Dollar Scandal

1933

Puttin' on the Ritz poster
6.2

A vaudeville and nightclub performer becomes successful and forgets who his friends really are.

Puttin' on the Ritz

1930

Son of a Sailor poster
6.0

A lovesick fool bumbles into espionage and finds a stolen plane.

Son of a Sailor

1933

Dancing Feet poster
6.0

Peyton Wells (Ben Lyon) rescues Judy Jones (Joan Marsh) from a very dull young man, at a sedate party given for her by her multi-millionaire grandfather Silas P. Jones (Purnell Pratt.) Judy refuses to accompany Peyton on a slumming trip to a cheap dance hall, and Peyton dances with several of the dowagers and tells them that Silas is practically dying of scarlet fever. The guests hastily depart and Joan joins Peyton at the Dreamland Dance Hall. She is mistaken by Jimmy Cassidy (Edward J. Nugent) as one of the hostesses and decides to dance with him as a lark. One thing follows another and Judy gets disinherited and takes a job at the dance hall through Jimmy and his friend Mabel(Isabel Jewell.) Jimmy confides to Judy his ambition to become a dance instructor over the radio and Judy decides to help him but can't get the needed financial backing. She gets Peyton to front the money, promising him she will reconsider his offer of marriage if Jimmy's plan fails.

Dancing Feet

1936

Ladies of the Big House poster
6.0

A woman tries to save her husband from the electric chair after both are sent to prison for a murder they didn't commit.

Ladies of the Big House

1931

Paid poster
6.7

Mary Turner gets a three year prison sentence for a crime she didn't commit. Once released, she plots to get back at the man responsible for her conviction.

Paid

1930

Diamond Jim poster
6.5

A loose biopic based on the life of Gilded Age tycoon "Diamond" Jim Brady.

Diamond Jim

1935

$1,000 a Minute poster
5.8

Two rich and wealthy millionaires who have a lot of money bet that reporter Wally Jones can't spend $720,000 in twelve hours.

$1,000 a Minute

1935

Dance, Fools, Dance poster
6.4

When misfortune hits hard on the Jordan family of Chicago's upper class, Bonnie Jordan, a dazzling and witty girl, finds a job as an aspiring reporter; however, her naive younger brother Rodney takes a twisted path and gets involved with the wrong people.

Dance, Fools, Dance

1931

Magnificent Obsession poster
7.4

A playboy tries to redeem himself after his careless behavior causes a great man's death.

Magnificent Obsession

1935

The Roadhouse Murder poster
5.0

After he stumbles across a murder, a young reporter devises an elaborate scene to keep his newspaper stories about the crime front-page news.

The Roadhouse Murder

1932

Wedding Present poster
6.2

Charlie Mason and Rusty Fleming are star reporters on a Chicago tabloid who are romantically involved as well. Although skilled in ferreting out great stories, they often behave in an unprofessional and immature manner. After their shenanigans cause their frustrated city editor to resign, the publisher promotes Charlie to the job, a decision based on the premise that only a slacker would be able crack down on other shirkers and underachievers. His pomposity soon alienates most of his co-workers and causes Rusty to move to New York. Charlie resigns and along with gangster friend Smiles Benson tries to win Rusty back before she marries a stuffy society author.

Wedding Present

1936

The Spider poster
7.0

Lowe plays Chatrand the Great, a magician with great hypnotic and magical powers. During his evening performance at an upscale theater, a murder occurs. A hand wearing a sinister spider ring raises a revolver, the lights go out, and a shot rings out! When the lights come on, the body of a patron is lying on the floor, dying. Who is the mysterious killer? What is the strange secret of Lowe’s clairvoyant, amnesia-plagued assistant? After the police restrain the audience from leaving, Lowe uses his magical powers to help expose the killer. Watch for the terrific séance scene where weird ghost-like creatures float above the stage.

The Spider

1931

Let's Make a Million poster
7.5

A wealthy mama's boy finds himself the victim of con artists involved in an oil stocks racket.

Let's Make a Million

1936

Love, Honor and Oh, Baby! poster
8.0

A lawyer devises a plan to fake a breach of contract suit against a wealthy womanizer.

Love, Honor and Oh, Baby!

1933

The Mystery Squadron poster
6.5

Hank Davis, foreman on a huge dam project, enlists the aid of his two flyer friends when a sinister figure known as The Black Ace leads his Mystery Squadron of masked pilots in an attempt to destroy the dam.

The Mystery Squadron

1933

Lazy River poster
7.0

Ex-convicts try to stop a Chinese smuggling ring.

Lazy River

1934

The Public Defender poster
6.4

A mysterious phantom who calls himself The Reckoner vows to expose the crooked bankers who embezzled their company's funds.

The Public Defender

1931

King of Gamblers poster
7.5

Working for a slick restaurateur who has fallen for her, a down-on-life songstress falls instead for a crusading crime reporter, unaware that her employer is the secret head of the city's major gambling machine racket and has a penchant for murdering anyone who gets in his way.

King of Gamblers

1937

The Hell Cat poster
8.0

Reporter Dan Collins tries to expose a crooked gambling ring, but is waylaid by Geraldine Sloane, a feisty young heiress who feels Collins has insulted her. To get revenge , she disguises herself and gets a job at Collins' paper, where she manages to throw his crusade against the gamblers into disarray.

The Hell Cat

1934

The Return of Sophie Lang poster
6.8

In order to give up her life of crime and go straight, renowned jewel thief Sophie Lang fakes her own death and retires to London. She soon finds a job as a companion to a wealthy old lady who is also a jewel collector. One day her employer decides to take an ocean trip to the US, taking Sophie with her. She also takes along a $200,000 diamond, which she locks up in the ship's safe. Of course, the diamond is soon stolen from the safe. A reporter also happens to be aboard the ship, and he has had his suspicions about who Sophie really is. Sophie has to find the real thief and recover the jewel before the ship docks in New York, because an investigation could reveal her true identity.

The Return of Sophie Lang

1936

Rendezvous at Midnight poster
10.0

There are plenty of suspects when an unscrupulous, blackmailing businessman turns up dead, especially the Police Commissioner's current paramour, who actually confessed to the killing before it was committed.

Rendezvous at Midnight

1935

The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi poster
5.2

A campus flirt who has been "pinned" by most of the boys of Sigma Chi fraternity falls for a no-nonsense athlete who doesn't have time for such diversions as women.

The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi

1933

My Wife's Relatives poster
7.0

It all begins when Joe Higgins, business manager of a prosperous candy-manufacturing firm, is ordered by his pompous boss Ellis to break up the romance between Ellis' son Bill and Joe's daughter Jean. Refusing, Joe quits his job and sets up his own candy company. It's a money-losing enterprise until Joe's wife Lil loses her diamond ring in a batch of candy and offers a $5000 reward to anyone who can retrieve the ring.

My Wife's Relatives

1939

1920s · 8 titles

Phantom Police poster
8.0

Phantom Police is a 1926 American action film serial directed by Robert A. Dillon.

Phantom Police

1926

The Trespasser poster
6.9

A stenographer who works for a lawyer falls in love with and marries a wealthy young man. His family has the marraige annulled, after which she gives birth to a child. Her former boss helps her out to ensure the child's welfare, which starts gossip that she is a "kept woman."

The Trespasser

1929

Alibi poster
5.9

Chick Williams, a prohibition gangster, rejoins his mob soon after being released from prison. When a policeman is murdered during a robbery, he falls under suspicion. The gangster took Joan, a policeman's daughter, to the theater, sneaked out during the intermission to commit the crime, then used her to support his alibi. The detective squad employs its most sophisticated and barbaric techniques, including planting an undercover agent in the gang, to bring him to justice.

Alibi

1929

Fast Life poster
9.0

A man is tried and convicted for the murder of a man who flirted with his wife., and sentenced to death However, it turns out that he is innocent of the murder and that the real killer has close ties to a powerful politician.

Fast Life

1929

The Lady Who Lied poster
9.0

During a carnival in Venice, Horace Pierpont, a wealthy American (Lewis Stone), falls in love with Fay Kennion (Virginia Valli). Their romance is derailed when she goes over to his apartment and finds the vampy Fifi (Nita Naldi) there. Fay goes down to Algiers, where she marries a former sweetheart, Dr. Alan Mortimer (Edward Earle).

The Lady Who Lied

1925

On With the Show! poster
6.2

With unpaid actors and staff, the stage show Phantom Sweetheart seems doomed. To complicate matters, the box office takings have been robbed and the leading lady refuses to appear. Can the show be saved?

On With the Show!

1929

Thru Different Eyes poster
8.0

Harvey Manning is placed on trial for the murder of Jack Winfield, his closest friend, whose body was found in the Manning home. During the trial, the prosecuting and the defense attorneys put forward sharply different versions of the character of Manning and his wife, Viola, and of the events leading up to the murder. The jury returns a verdict of guilty, but a young girl then comes forward and confesses that she killed Winfield for having wronged her.

Thru Different Eyes

1929

The Locked Door poster
6.1

On her first anniversary, Ann Reagan finds that her sister-in-law is involved with a shady character that she used to be intimate with, and determines to intervene.

The Locked Door

1929