Dick Purcell

Richard Gerold Purcell Jr. was an American stage and screen actor born on August 6, 1905, in Greenwich, Connecticut. One of five children, he attended Catholic grade school and high school before enrolling at Fordham University in the Bronx. He is perhaps best remembered for taking the title role in the 1944 Republic film serial Captain America, co-starring with Lorna Gray and Lionel Atwill.

Purcell launched his professional career on the New York stage, appearing in at least three productions: Men in White, Sailor, Beware!, and Paths of Glory. His 1935 Broadway appearance in Paths of Glory proved pivotal when a talent scout in the audience arranged for him to be cast in a small part in the 1936 film Ceiling Zero. His follow-up picture that same year, Man Hunt, gave him a more substantial role as a newspaper reporter, and he went on to appear in eleven films over the course of 1936 alone.

His screen work across the late 1930s and early 1940s included Tough Kid (1938), Accidents Will Happen (1938), Heroes in Blue (1939), Irish Luck (1939), The Bank Dick (1940), and King of the Zombies (1941). Purcell was cast as Captain America in Republic's 1944 serial despite being considered somewhat overweight for the part. The production, loosely adapted from the Marvel Comics character, followed District Attorney Grant Gardner as he worked to prevent the villainous Scarab — the alter ego of museum curator Dr. Cyrus Maldor — from obtaining two super weapons, the Dynamic Vibrator and the Electronic Firebolt. The serial became a box office success and stands as both Republic's most expensive superhero serial and its last of the genre.

In his personal life, Purcell eloped to Las Vegas with actress Ethelind Terry, and the two were married on March 3, 1942. The marriage ended in divorce on August 26 of the same year.

Purcell died on April 10, 1944, collapsing in the locker room of a Hollywood country club shortly after completing a round of golf. He had finished filming Captain America just before his death, which occurred prior to the serial's general release. Film historian Raymond Stedman speculated that the physical demands of filming the serial had placed excessive strain on his heart. Purcell was 38 years old. His remains were interred at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.