Hurd Hatfield

Hurd Hatfield

Known for: Acting
Biography: 1917-12-07
Deathday: 1998-12-26 (81 years old)

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Biography

William Rukard Hurd Hatfield was an American actor, best known for often playing characters of handsome, narcissistic young men, most notably Dorian Gray in the film The Picture of Dorian Gray. Hatfield was born in New York City to William Henry Hatfield, who died in 1954, an attorney who served as deputy attorney general for New York, and his wife, Adele (née McGuire). Hurd was educated at Columbia University, then moved to London, England where he studied drama and began acting in theatre.


He returned to America for his film debut in Dragon Seed, in which he and his co-stars (Katharine Hepburn, Akim Tamiroff, Aline MacMahon, Turhan Bey) portrayed Chinese peasants, some more convincingly than others. Hatfield's second film, The Picture of Dorian Gray, made him a star. As Oscar Wilde's ageless anti-hero, Hatfield received widespread acclaim for his dark good looks as much as for his acting ability. However, the actor was ambivalent about the role and his performance. "The film didn't make me popular in Hollywood," he commented later. "It was too odd, too avant-garde, too ahead of its time. The decadence, the hints of bisexuality and so on, made me a leper! Nobody knew I had a sense of humor, and people wouldn't even have lunch with me."


His follow-up films, The Diary of a Chambermaid, The Beginning or the End, and The Unsuspected), were successful, but Joan of Arc was a critical and financial failure. Hatfield's film career began to lose momentum very quickly in the 1950s, and he returned to the stage. Subsequent movies included supporting roles in The Left Handed Gun, King of Kings (as Pontius Pilate), El Cid, Harlow (as Paul Bern), and The Boston Strangler. He cut back on performing in the 1970s. His later movies included King David and Her Alibi.


He appeared frequently on television and received an Emmy Award nomination for the Hallmark Hall of Fame videotaped play The Invincible Mr. Disraeli). In 1957, he appeared in Beyond This Place, directed by Sidney Lumet. Other television credits include three guest appearances on Murder She Wrote, opposite his Picture of Dorian Gray costar Angela Lansbury, who had become a lifelong friend. He also appeared as the villain in the second episode of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea. He appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Presents in "None Are So Blind".


In 1952, Hatfield appeared as Joseph in Westinghouse Studio One's The Nativity. This was a rare commercial network staging of a 14th-century mystery play, adapted from the York and Chester plays.


According to the magazine Films in Review, Hatfield was ambivalent about having played Dorian Gray, feeling that it had typecast him. "You know, I was never a great beauty in Gray...and I never understood why I got the part and have spent my career regretting it", he is reported to have said.


He died in his sleep of a heart attack at a friend's home, aged 81, after celebrating Christmas dinner.


Description above from the Wikipedia article Hurd Hatfield, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Filmography

all 61

Movies 36

TV Shows 25

Narrator 2

self 2

Dorian Gray (archive footage)
Dorian Gray: A Portrait of Oscar Wilde

Dorian Gray: A Portrait of Oscar Wilde (2020)

Movie
Gil Selwyn
Lies of the Twins

Lies of the Twins (1991)

Movie
Troppa
Her Alibi

Her Alibi (1989)

Movie
6
Old Granddaddy
Crimes of the Heart

Crimes of the Heart (1986)

Movie
Blacke's Magic

Blacke's Magic (1986)

TV
Logan Webb
Amazing Stories

Amazing Stories (1985)

TV
5.33
Lime Street

Lime Street (1985)

TV
Ahimelech
King David

King David (1985)

Movie
(himself)
Mellow Moon

Mellow Moon (1985)

Movie
Leo Peterson / William Readford / Jean-Pierre Dusant
Murder, She Wrote

Murder, She Wrote (1984)

TV
7
Ariel Marsden
Knight Rider

Knight Rider (1982)

TV
7.1
Foxhall Edwards
You Can't Go Home Again

You Can't Go Home Again (1979)

Movie
Cedric Plummer
The Word

The Word (1978)

TV
John Church
The Lives of Benjamin Franklin

The Lives of Benjamin Franklin (1974)

TV
Don Luiz Cabrillo
Kojak

Kojak (1973)

TV
6
Warlock
The House and the Brain

The House and the Brain (1973)

Movie
Charles Langdon
The Norliss Tapes

The Norliss Tapes (1973)

Movie
Search

Search (1972)

TV
Herman Gray
Thief

Thief (1971)

Movie
Anthony Fokker
Von Richthofen and Brown

Von Richthofen and Brown (1971)

Movie
Salcedo
Montserrat

Montserrat (1971)

Movie
Terence Huntley
The Boston Strangler

The Boston Strangler (1968)

Movie
6
Jacques Casanova
Ten Blocks on the Camino Real

Ten Blocks on the Camino Real (1966)

Movie
Father
The Double-Barrelled Detective Story

The Double-Barrelled Detective Story (1965)

Movie
Castle
Mickey One

Mickey One (1965)

Movie
Karole Schumann
The F.B.I.

The F.B.I. (1965)

TV
Liston Day
The Wild Wild West

The Wild Wild West (1965)

TV
5.75
Paul Bern
Harlow

Harlow (1965)

Movie
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964)

TV
6
Prince Frederick
A Cry of Angels

A Cry of Angels (1963)

Movie
Tsezar
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre

Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963)

TV
Lionel Rothschild
The Invincible Mr. Disraeli

The Invincible Mr. Disraeli (1963)

Movie
Actor
Héroes de blanco

Héroes de blanco (1962)

Movie
Arias
El Cid

El Cid (1961)

Movie
2
Pontius Pilate
King of Kings

King of Kings (1961)

Movie
1
The Duke / Dr. Sanson Carrasco
I, Don Quixote

I, Don Quixote (1959)

Movie
Moultrie
The Left Handed Gun

The Left Handed Gun (1958)

Movie
Dr. Sanson Carrasco / Edmund Dantes / Oswald
DuPont Show of the Month

DuPont Show of the Month (1957)

TV
Paul Tallendier / Seymour Johnston
Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955)

TV
4.75
Jack Miner
The Millionaire

The Millionaire (1955)

TV
Ted / Paul Randolph / Morini
Climax!

Climax! (1954)

TV
Narrator
The Play of the Nativity of the Child Jesus

The Play of the Nativity of the Child Jesus (1952)

Movie
Prince Frederic / Sagredo Niccolini / Lionel Rothschild
Hallmark Hall of Fame

Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951)

TV
8.33
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (1951)

TV
Self - film clip from 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'
The Cinematographer

The Cinematographer (1951)

Movie
Dobbins
Lux Video Theatre

Lux Video Theatre (1950)

TV
Prince of the Lionians
Tarzan and the Slave Girl

Tarzan and the Slave Girl (1950)

Movie
Stretch Norton
Destination Murder

Destination Murder (1950)

Movie
Gringoire
Robert Montgomery Presents

Robert Montgomery Presents (1950)

TV
Clifford Ward
Chinatown at Midnight

Chinatown at Midnight (1949)

Movie
Lights Out

Lights Out (1949)

TV
Suspense

Suspense (1949)

TV
Father Pasquerel, Joan's Chaplain
Joan of Arc

Joan of Arc (1948)

Movie
Narrator (uncredited) / Harry Vane
Studio One

Studio One (1948)

TV
Steve 'Creepy' Bolin
The Checkered Coat

The Checkered Coat (1948)

Movie
Self
The Ed Sullivan Show

The Ed Sullivan Show (1948)

TV
6
Oliver Keane
The Unsuspected

The Unsuspected (1947)

Movie
Dr. John Wyatt
The Beginning or the End

The Beginning or the End (1947)

Movie
Georges Lanlaire
The Diary of a Chambermaid

The Diary of a Chambermaid (1946)

Movie
6
Dorian Gray
The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945)

Movie
Lao San Tan - Youngest Son
Dragon Seed

Dragon Seed (1944)

Movie
6

Ratings

Average 5.74
Based on 209 Thousand movie and tv ratings over time
1944
1951
1963
1955
2020
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Hurd HatfieldHurd HatfieldHurd HatfieldHurd Hatfield

Information

Known For
Acting

Gender
Male

Birthday
1917-12-07

Deathday
1998-12-26 (81 years old)

Birth Place
New York City, United States of America

Citizenships
United States of America, Republic of Ireland

Also Known As
William Rukard Hurd Hatfield


This article uses material from Wikipedia.
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