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J.M. Kerrigan

J.M. Kerrigan

Known For Acting
Birthday Dec 16, 1884
Died Apr 29, 1964 (79)
Birthplace Dublin, Ireland
Popularity 0.4 (history)
Updated Aug 05, 2024
Entry Date Apr 13, 2024
Links TMDb IMDb
Biography

Joseph Michael Kerrigan (16 December 1884 – 29 April 1964), better known as J.M. Kerrigan, was an Irish character actor. Kerrigan was born in Dublin, Ireland. He worked as a newspaper reporter until 1907 when he joined the famous Abbey Players. There he became a stalwart, appearing in plays by Lady ... Gregory, William Butler Yeats and John Millington Synge (for whom he played the role of Shawn Keogh in The Playboy of the Western World. His first screen appearance was in the silent film Food of Love in 1916. By the 1920s he was appearing on Broadway, often in plays by Shakespeare, Ibsen, and Sheridan. He settled permanently in Hollywood in 1935, having been recruited along with several other Abbey performers, to appear in John Ford's The Informer. In that film and in Ford's The Long Voyage Home, he plays similar roles, that of a leech who attaches himself to men until they run out of money. Perhaps his best known role was in The General Died at Dawn, where he plays a character actually named Leach, in which he steals scenes from Gary Cooper, Madeleine Carroll and William Frawley. In it he plays a sinister little petty thief who, holding a gun on Cooper, says, "I may be fat, but I'm agile." He had little screen time in films which he starred as minor roles, such as the "First Drayman" in Merely Mary Ann (1931) with Janet Gaynor. One of his most recognizable minor roles was in Gone with the Wind (1939), in which he played John Gallegher, the seemly jovial mill owner who whips his convict labour in to "co-operation". He appeared in Walt Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), the famous film version of Jules Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea in a minor role at the beginning of the film. In 1946, he tried breaking into Broadway shows, playing the discombobulated leprechaun Jackeen J. O'Malley in the show "Barnaby and Mr. O'Malley", based on the Crockett Johnson comic strip. J. M. Kerrigan died in Hollywood on 29 April 1964, aged 79. Kerrigan has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6621 Hollywood Blvd.

Known For

Filmography

The Fastest Gun Alive

The Fastest Gun Alive

1956

as Kevin McGovern

It's a Dog's Life

It's a Dog's Life

1955

as Paddy Corbin

The Silver Whip

The Silver Whip

1953

as Riley

Park Row

Park Row

1952

as Dan O'Rourke

My Cousin Rachel

My Cousin Rachel

1952

as Reverend Pascoe

The Wild North

The Wild North

1952

as Callahan

Sealed Cargo

Sealed Cargo

1951

as Skipper Ben

Mrs. Mike

Mrs. Mike

1949

as Uncle John

The Fighting O'Flynn

The Fighting O'Flynn

1949

as Timothy

The Luck of the Irish

The Luck of the Irish

1948

as Tatie the Innkeeper

Call Northside 777

Call Northside 777

1948

as Sullivan - Court Bailiff (uncredited)

Black Beauty

Black Beauty

1946

as John

Abie's Irish Rose

Abie's Irish Rose

1946

as Patrick Murphy

The Spanish Main

The Spanish Main

1945

as Pillery Gow

She Went to the Races

She Went to the Races

1945

as Jeff Habbard

Tarzan and the Amazons

Tarzan and the Amazons

1945

as Splivens

The Great John L.

The Great John L.

1945

as Father O'Malley

The Crime Doctor's Warning

The Crime Doctor's Warning

1945

as Robert MacPherson (uncredited)

The Fighting Seabees

The Fighting Seabees

1944

as Sawyer Collins

The Big Bonanza

The Big Bonanza

1944

as 'Judge' Jasper Kincaid

Wilson

Wilson

1944

as Edward Sullivan

Action in the North Atlantic

Action in the North Atlantic

1943

as Caviar Jinks (uncredited)

Captains of the Clouds

Captains of the Clouds

1942

as Foster (storekeeper / Emily's father)

The Vanishing Virginian

The Vanishing Virginian

1942

as John Phelps

Appointment for Love

Appointment for Love

1941

as Timothy

The Wolf Man

The Wolf Man

1941

as Charles Conliffe

Congo Maisie

Congo Maisie

1940

as Captain Finch

Untamed

Untamed

1940

as Angus McGavity

No Time for Comedy

No Time for Comedy

1940

as Jim

Curtain Call

Curtain Call

1940

as Mr. Middleton

One Crowded Night

One Crowded Night

1940

as Brother 'Doc' Joseph

The Long Voyage Home

The Long Voyage Home

1940

as Crimp

Young Tom Edison

Young Tom Edison

1940

as Mr. McCarney

The Sea Hawk

The Sea Hawk

1940

as Eli Matson

Undercover Agent

Undercover Agent

1939

as Tom 'Pop' Madison

The Zero Hour

The Zero Hour

1939

as Timothy

Sabotage

Sabotage

1939

as Mel

6,000 Enemies

6,000 Enemies

1939

as Dan Barrett

Two Thoroughbreds

Two Thoroughbreds

1939

as Jack Lenihan

Union Pacific

Union Pacific

1939

as Monahan

Sorority House

Sorority House

1939

as Lew Fisher

The Great Man Votes

The Great Man Votes

1939

as Hot Shot Gillings

Gone with the Wind

Gone with the Wind

1939

as Johnny Gallagher

The Kid From Texas

The Kid From Texas

1939

as Farr

The Flying Irishman

The Flying Irishman

1939

as Mr. Clyde Corrigan Sr.

Little Orphan Annie

Little Orphan Annie

1938

as Tom Jennings

Ride a Crooked Mile

Ride a Crooked Mile

1938

as Sgt. Flynn

Spring Madness

Spring Madness

1938

as Mr. Maloney (uncredited)

London by Night

London by Night

1937

as Tims

Laughing Irish Eyes

Laughing Irish Eyes

1936

as Tim

The General Died at Dawn

The General Died at Dawn

1936

as Leach

Lloyd's of London

Lloyd's of London

1936

as Brook Watson

Colleen

Colleen

1936

as Pop Reilly

The Prisoner of Shark Island

The Prisoner of Shark Island

1936

as Judge Maiben

The Plough and the Stars

The Plough and the Stars

1936

as Uncle Peter

Special Investigator

Special Investigator

1936

as Judge Plumgate

Spendthrift

Spendthrift

1936

as Pop O'Connell

The Informer

The Informer

1935

as Terry

Werewolf of London

Werewolf of London

1935

as Hawkins

A Feather in Her Hat

A Feather in Her Hat

1935

as Pobjoy

Hot Tip

Hot Tip

1935

as Matt

Barbary Coast

Barbary Coast

1935

as Judge Harper

Vanessa: Her Love Story

Vanessa: Her Love Story

1935

as Perkins (uncredited)

The Lost Patrol

The Lost Patrol

1934

as Quincannon

The Key

The Key

1934

as O'Duffy

A Modern Hero

A Modern Hero

1934

as Mr. Ryan

The Fountain

The Fountain

1934

as Shordley

Air Hostess

Air Hostess

1933

as Pop Kearny

Paddy the Next Best Thing

Paddy the Next Best Thing

1933

as Collins

A Study in Scarlet

A Study in Scarlet

1933

as Jabez Wilson

Rockabye

Rockabye

1932

as Fagin

Vanity Street

Vanity Street

1932

as Dan - Irish Cop (uncredited)

Careless Lady

Careless Lady

1932

as Trowbridge

Don't Bet on Women

Don't Bet on Women

1931

as Chipley Duff

The Black Camel

The Black Camel

1931

as Thomas MacMasters

Song o' My Heart

Song o' My Heart

1930

as Peter

Lightnin'

Lightnin'

1930

as Judge Lemuel Townsend

Little Old New York

Little Old New York

1923

as John O'Day

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Organization Category Movie
Television Credits

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Popularity Metrics

Popularity History


Year Month Avg Max Min
2024 6 4 8 2
2024 7 7 13 2
2024 8 9 17 6
2024 9 4 10 1
2024 10 2 6 1
2024 11 2 5 1
2024 12 3 6 1
2025 1 3 5 1
2025 2 2 3 1
2025 3 1 2 1
2025 5 1 2 1
2025 6 1 1 1
2025 7 0 0 0
2025 8 1 4 0
2025 9 0 0 0
2025 10 0 0 0

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