David Sharpe (actor)
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Dave Sharpe | |
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| Born | David Hardin Sharpe February 2, 1910 St. Louis, Missouri |
| Died | March 30, 1980 (aged 70) Altadena, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Stunt performer, Actor |
| Years active | 1922–1978 |
| Spouse(s) | Margaret Messinger Gertrude Messinger Jean |
| Children | Virginia |
David Hardin Sharpe (February 2, 1910 – March 30, 1980) was an American actor and stunt performer, sometimes billed as Davy Sharpe.
He was called the "Crown Prince of Daredevils"[according to whom?] and ranks alongside Yakima Canutt as one of Hollywood's all-time greatest stuntmen. He appeared in more than 5,000 films over six decades, although most were uncredited appearances.
Biography[]
Sharpe won the US National Tumbling Championship in 1925 and 1926. He began his film career as a child actor in the 1920s. He was married for a short time to film actress Gertrude Messinger. Eventually he became the "Ramrod" (stunt coordinator) for Republic Pictures from 1939 until mid-1942 when America entered World War II. He was replaced in this role by Tom Steele while Sharpe joined the Army Air Corps in 1943. Gertrude Messinger's brother, Buddy, died in 1965. Sharpe married Buddy's widow, Margaret Messinger.
He died in 1980 of Lou Gehrig's disease. Tony Curtis gave the eulogy at his funeral. His ashes were either given to a friend or family.
Recognition[]
In 1979, Sharpe received the Yakima Canutt Award, which honors stuntmen.[1] Sharpe was inducted into the Stuntman's Hall of Fame in 1980.[citation needed]
Selected filmography[]
- Air Tight (1931)
- Call a Cop! (1931)
- Too Many Women (1932)
- Social Error (1935)
- Ghost Town (1936)
- Idaho Kid (1936)
- Santa Fe Rides (1937)
- Melody of the Plains (1937)
- Galloping Dynamite (1937)
- Where Trails Divide (1937)
- Young Dynamite (1937)
- Daredevils of the Red Circle (1939)
- Dick Tracy Returns (1938)
- Man's Country (1938)
- Covered Wagon Trails (1940)
- Silver Stallion (1941)
- Texas to Bataan (1942)
- Trail Riders (1942)
- Two Fisted Justice (1943)
- Haunted Ranch (1943)
- The Good Humor Man (1950)
References[]
- ^ "Stuntman Sharpe Gets Canutt Award". The Los Angeles Times. California, Los Angeles. May 28, 1979. p. 14 – Part IV. Retrieved 30 June 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
External links[]
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- 1910 births
- 1980 deaths
- Male actors from St. Louis
- American stunt performers
- American male film actors
- Male film serial actors
- Male Western (genre) film actors
- American male child actors
- Deaths from motor neuron disease
- United States Army Air Forces soldiers
- United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II
- 20th-century American male actors
- American film actor, 1910s birth stubs