Ralph Meeker
Ralph Meeker (born Ralph Rathgeber; November 21, 1920 – August 5, 1988) was an American actor. He first rose to prominence for his roles in the Broadway productions of Mister Roberts (1948–1951) and Picnic (1953), the former of which earned him a Theatre World Award for his performance. In film, Meeker is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Mike Hammer in Robert Aldrich's 1955 Kiss Me Deadly.
Meeker went on to play a series of roles that used his husky and macho screen presence, including a lead role in Stanley Kubrick's military courtroom drama Paths of Glory (1957), as a troubled mechanic opposite Carroll Baker in Something Wild (1961), as a World War II captain in The Dirty Dozen (1967), and in the gangster film The St. Valentine's Day Massacre (1967). Other credits include supporting roles in I Walk the Line (1970) and Sidney Lumet's The Anderson Tapes (1971).
He also had a prolific career in television, appearing as Sergeant Steve Dekker on the series Not for Hire (1959–1960), and in the television horror film The Night Stalker (1972). After suffering a stroke in 1980, Meeker was forced to retire from acting, and died eight years later of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California.
Known for
Ironside
Climax!
Alex Hill
Climax!
'Griff' Griffith
Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre
Steve Elkins
Cannon
The High Chaparral
Tracy Conlin
Wanted: Dead or Alive
Martin Ash
The F.B.I.
King Hogan
The F.B.I.
Scott Martin
The F.B.I.
Graham Newcomb
Route 66
Studio One
Steve Windom
Studio One
Larry Sheridan
Police Story
Police Woman
The Defenders
Floyd Cooper
The Outer Limits
John Dexter
The Rookies
Winter Kills
Gameboy Baker
The Dirty Dozen
Captain Stuart Kinder
The Texan
Brannigan
Capt. Moretti
The Detective
Curran
The Name of the Game
Senator Goddard
Room 222
Without Warning
Dave
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Carl Spann
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Carl Borden
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Mel Reeves
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
John Forbes
Cry Panic
Chuck Braswell
Desert Sands
Capt. David Malcolm
Paths of Glory
Cpl. Philippe Paris
Kraft Suspense Theatre
Harly Clay
Teresa
Sgt. Dobbs
Tarzan
Jeopardy
Lawson the Fugitive
The Food of the Gods
Bensington
Run of the Arrow
Lieutenant Driscoll
Big House, U.S.A
Geraldo 'Jerry' Barker aka Iceman
Glory Alley
Socks Barbarrosa
Harry O
The Anderson Tapes
Police Captain 'Iron Balls' Delaney
Hi-Riders
Mike
The Green Hornet
Earl Evans
Night Games
Dutch Armbreck
Ada
Colonel Yancey
CHiPs
The 20th Century Fox Hour
Lost Flight
Glenn Walkup
The Naked Spur
Roy Anderson
The Night Stalker
Bernie Jenks
I Walk the Line
Carl McCain
Lux Video Theatre
Nicky Hanks
Lux Video Theatre
Mike
The St. Valentine's Day Massacre
George Clarence 'Bugs' Moran
The Dead Don't Die
Lieutenant Reardon
The Devil's Eight
Burl
A Woman's Devotion
Trevor Stevenson
Shadow in the Sky
Burt
My Boys Are Good Boys
Bert Morton
Going My Way
Los Angeles Plays Itself
Mike Hammer in Kiss Me Deadly (archive footage)
The Men Who Made the Movies: Samuel Fuller
Lt. Driscoll (archive footage)
Four in a Jeep
Sergeant William Long
Kiss Me Deadly
Mike Hammer
Birds of Prey
Jim McAndrew
The Alpha Incident
Charlie
Wall of Noise
Matt Rubio
You'll Never See Me Again
Will Alden
Gentle Giant
Fog Hanson
Kaz
Barbary Coast
Big Lou Hobart
Toma
Custer
The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown
Mike Valla
Letter to Loretta
Joe Martin
Letter to Loretta
Ed James
Letter to Loretta
Pilot Duke Cavanaugh
Letter to Loretta
Willis Cooper
The Reluctant Heroes
Capt. Luke Danvers
Not for Hire
The Mind Snatchers
The Major
Run, Joe, Run
The Eddie Capra Mysteries
The Evil Touch
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Wally Walters
Somebody Loves Me
Benny Fields
Tallahassee 7000
Four Women in Black
Carbine Webb
Primus
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Rich Adams
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Barry Brannon
Something Wild
Mike
Johnny Firecloud
Colby
Angela - Love Comes Quietly
Ben Hoeksema
The Girl on the Late, Late Show
Inspector DeBiesse
Code Two
Chuck O'Flair
A Holster Full Of Law
Frank Clell
The Ed Sullivan Show
Self