LEO GORCEY BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

Leo Gorcey was born on June 3rd, 1917 in New York City, New York with the birth name Leo Bernard Gorcey.  His parents were Bernard Gorcey and Josephine Condon who both worked in vaudeville.  His mother was only sixteen when she gave birth to him and she already had one son from when she gave birth at the age of fourteen.  His father was thirty one years old.   
 
Leo was working as a plumber and was fired from his job, so he accompanied his brother to an audition with his father and he was given a part.  In 1935 he appeared on stage with his brother in the play, "Dead End" which became a movie in 1937 and this was his big break into the industry, starring Humphrey Bogart, Joel McCrea, and Sylvia Sidney, Wendy Barrie, Claire Trevor, Allen Jenkins and Marjorie Main and the Dead End Kids including Billy Halop, Huntz Hall, Bobby Jordan, Gabriel Dell and Bernard Punsly. 

Between 1939 and 1939, Leo starred in seven Dead End Kids movies followed by 21 East Side Kids films between 1940-1945 and then he was cast again in a total of 41 Bowery Boys movies between 1946 and 1956.  Leo's father was in the Bowery Boys movies with him playing the character Louie Dumbrowski and his brother was in them as well.
 
Leo also did some other work such as having a recurring role in the radio show called, "Pabst Blue Ribbon Town" (1944) and appeared in the film, "So This is New York" (1948) starring with Harry Morgan, Rudy Vallee, Virginia Grey, Frank Orth and Jerome Cowan.  When he lost his father in 1955 due to a car accident, he turned to alcohol to relieve his depression, therefore in the end causing his professional career to suffer.  He left the Bowery Boys series before it was complete in filming.
 
As his career entered the 1960's, he did not do so much acting, but he did appear in, "it's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" (1963) starring alongside Spencer Tracy, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Dick Shawn, Ethel Merman, Mickey Rooney, Phil Silvers, Terry-Thomas, Jonathan Winters, Edie Adams, Paul Ford, Peter Falk, Buster Keaton, Dorothy Provine and Jimmy Durante, along with two final film appearances on, "Second Fiddle to a Steel Guitar" (1966) with Pamela Hayes, Arnold Stang and Huntz Hall and "The Phynx" (1970) starring Lou Antonio, Mike Kellin, Michael Ansara, George Tobias, Joan Blondell, Pat McCormick, Rich Little, Susan Bernard, John Hart, Jay Silverheels and Sally Struthers.
 
He published his autobiography titled, "An Original Dead End Kid Presents: Dead End Yells, Wedding Bells, Cockle Shells, and Dizzy Spells" (1967) and his son Leo Gorcey Jr. also published his own book titled, "Me and the Dead End Kid" in 2003. 
 
Leo Gorcey was married a number of times.  First to Kay Marvis from 1939 through 1944.  His second marriage was to Evalene Bankston from 1945 through 1948.  He then married for a third time to Amelita Ward from 1949 through 1956 and they had two children together.  Seeing as though his personal life was not so successful, it was surprising to know he would again marry for the fourth time to a woman by the name of Brandy and they were together from 1956 through 1962 and again he had another child.  His fifth and final marriage was to Mary Gannon from 1968 till June 2nd, 1969 when he passed away in Oakland, California from liver failure.
 
He is interred at Molinos Cemetery in Los Molinos, California.  
 

Filmography

1966 Second Fiddle to a Steel Guitar 
1963 It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World
1962 Mr. Smith Goes to Washington 
1962 The Dick Powell Theatre
1956 Crashing Las Vegas
1955 Dig That Uranium 
1955 Jail Busters
1955 Spy Chasers
1955 High Society
1955 Bowery to Bagdad
1954 Jungle Gents 
1954 The Bowery Boys Meet the Monsters
1954 Paris Playboys
1953 Private Eyes
1953 Clipped Wings
1953 Loose in London
1953 Jalopy
1952 No Holds Barred
1952 Feudin' Fools
1952 Here Come the Marines
1952 Hold That Line
1951 Crazy Over Horses
1951 Let's Go Navy!
1951 Ghost Chasers
1951 Bowery Battalion 
1950 Blues Busters 
1950 Triple Trouble 
1950 Lucky Losers
1950 Blonde Dynamite  
1949 Master Minds
1949 Angels in Disguise 
1949 Hold That Baby!
1949 Fighting Fools
1948 Trouble Makers 
1948 Smugglers' Cove
1948 So This Is New York
1948 Jinx Money
1948 Angels' Alley
1947 Bowery Buckaroos
1947 News Hounds
1947 Hard Boiled Mahoney 
1946 Mr. Hex 
1946 Spook Busters
1946 Bowery Bombshell
1946 In Fast Company
1946 Live Wires 
1945 Come Out Fighting
1945 Midnight Manhunt 
1945 Mr. Muggs Rides Again 
1945 Docks of New York 
1944 Bowery Champs
1944 Block Busters
1944 Follow the Leader 
1944 Million Dollar Kid
1943 Mr. Muggs Steps Out
1943 Destroyer
1943 Ghosts on the Loose 
1943 Clancy Street Boys 
1943 Kid Dynamite 
1942 'Neath Brooklyn Bridge 
1942 Smart Alecks 
1942 Maisie Gets Her Man 
1942 Let's Get Tough! 
1942 Sunday Punch 
1942 Mr. Wise Guy 
1942 Born to Sing 
1941 Spooks Run Wild 
1941 Down in San Diego 
1941 Bowery Blitzkrieg 
1941 Out of the Fog
1941 Angels with Broken Wings 
1941 Flying Wild 
1940 Pride of the Bowery 
1940 Gallant Sons 
1940 Hullabaloo 
1940 That Gang of Mine
1940 Boys of the City
1939 Invisible Stripes 
1939 Private Detective 
1939 Dead End Kids at Military School 
1939 The Angels Wash Their Faces 
1939 Hell's Kitchen 
1939 They Made Me a Criminal 
1938 Angels with Dirty Faces
1938 Crime School
1938 The Beloved Brat 
1937 Mannequin
1937 Headin' East 
1937 Portia on Trial 
1937 Dead End