# Tom Keene (actor)

Tom Keene (born George Duryea; December 30, 1896 – August 4, 1963) was an American actor known mostly for his roles in B Westerns. During his almost 40-year career in motion pictures Tom Keene worked under three different names. From 1923, when he made his first picture, until 1930 he worked under his birth name, George Duryea. The last film he made under this name was Pardon My Gun. Beginning with the 1930 film Tol'able David, he used Tom Keene as his moniker. This name he used until 1944 when he changed it to Richard Powers. The first film he used this name in was Up in Arms. He continued to primarily use this name for the rest of his film career, though still used Tom Keene on occasion.

## Early life and career

Born George Duryea (no known relation to fellow actor Dan Duryea despite a resemblance) in Rochester, New York, Keene studied at Columbia University and Carnegie Tech before embarking on an acting career. He made his film debut in the 1923 short film The Just a Little Late Club. Keene followed with roles in The Godless Girl (1929) directed by Cecil B. DeMille; Tide of Empire (1929) with Renée Adorée; Thunder with Lon Chaney, Sr.; Tol'able David (1930) and Sundown Trail (1931).
In 1934, King Vidor cast him in the socially conscious Depression oriented classic Our Daily Bread with Karen Morley.
During the 1940s, Keene appeared in the film serial The Great Alaskan Mystery and two Dick Tracy films Dick Tracy's Dilemma and Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947). In the 1950s, he moved on to television with guest roles on The Range Rider; Buffalo Bill, Jr.; Fury; Judge Roy Bean and The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. Keene's last film role was in Ed Wood's cult film Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957). He retired soon after this and focused on real estate and the insurance business.

## Death

Keene died of cancer on August 4, 1963, aged 66. He was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

## Filmography

Later in his career (after 1944), Keene was often credited as Richard Powers, and once as Dick Powers.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1928 | The Godless Girl | Bob Hathaway | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1928 | Marked Money | Clyde | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1929 | Tide of Empire | Dermod D'Arcy | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1929 | Honky Tonk | Freddie Gilmore | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1929 | Thunder | Jim | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1929 | In Old California | Lt. Tony Hopkins | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1930 | Beau Bandit | W.S. "Bill" Howard | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1930 | The Dude Wrangler | Wally McCann | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1930 | Night Work | Harvey Vanderman | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1930 | Pardon My Gun | Ted Duncan | Credited as George Duryea |
| 1930 | Tol'able David | Alan Kinemon | |
| 1931 | Sundown Trail | Buck Sawyer | |
| 1931 | Freighters of Destiny | Steve Macey | |
| 1931 | Suicide Fleet | Lt. James Keene | Uncredited |
| 1932 | Partners | Dick Barstow | |
| 1932 | The Saddle Buster | Montana ("Monty") | |
| 1932 | Ghost Valley | Jerry Long | |
| 1932 | Beyond the Rockies | Blackjack | |
| 1932 | Come on Danger! | Larry Madden, Texas Ranger | |
| 1932 | Renegades of the West | Tom Bagby | |
| 1933 | The Cheyenne Kid | Tom Larkin | |
| 1933 | Scarlet River | Tom Baxter | |
| 1933 | Son of the Border | Tom Owens | |
| 1933 | Sunset Pass | Jack Rock / Jim Collins | |
| 1933 | Cross Fire | Tom 'Jack' Allen | |
| 1934 | Our Daily Bread | John Sims | Alternative title: Hell's Crossroads |
| 1935 | Hong Kong Nights | Himself | |
| 1936 | Timothy's Quest | David Masters | |
| 1936 | Drift Fence | Jim Travis | |
| 1936 | Desert Gold | Randolph Gale | |
| 1936 | The Glory Trail | Captain John Carroll | |
| 1936 | Rebellion | Captain John Carroll | |
| 1937 | Battle of Greed | John Storm | |
| 1937 | Old Louisiana | John Colfax | |
| 1937 | Under Strange Flags | Tom Kenyon | |
| 1937 | The Law Commands | Dr. Keith Kenton | |
| 1937 | Drums of Destiny | Capt. Jerry Crawford | |
| 1937 | Raw Timber | Tom Corbin | |
| 1937 | God's Country and the Man | Jim Reid | |
| 1937 | Where Trails Divide | Tom Allen | |
| 1937 | Romance of the Rockies | Dr. Tom Foster | |
| 1938 | The Painted Trail | Tom Gray posing as the Pecos Kid | |
| 1941 | Wanderers of the West | Tom Mallory posing as The Arizona Kid | |
| 1941 | Dynamite Canyon | Marshal Tom Evans Posing as Ed 'Trigger' Jones | |
| 1941 | The Drifin' Kid | Tom Sterling | |
| 1941 | Riding the Sunset Trail | Tom Sterling | |
| 1941 | Lone Star Law Men | Tom Sterling | |
| 1942 | Western Mail | Tom Allen | |
| 1942 | Arizona Roundup | Tom Kenyon | |
| 1942 | Where Trails End | Tom Kenyon | |
| 1944 | Up in Arms | Ashley's Aide | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1944 | The Navy Way | Steve Appleby | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1944 | The Great Alaskan Mystery | Burger | Serial [Ch. 11], Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1944 | Jungle Woman | Joe - Fingerprint Man | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1944 | Goodnight, Sweetheart | Reporter | Uncredited |
| 1944 | The Port of 40 Thieves | Scott Barton | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1944 | San Diego, I Love You | Reporter | Uncredited |
| 1944 | Lights of Old Santa Fe | Frank Madden | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1944 | Sergeant Mike | Reed | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1945 | Dangerous Intruder | Curtis | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1945 | Girls of the Big House | Barton Sturgis | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1946 | San Quentin | Hal Schaeffer, Robbery Detail | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1947 | Dick Tracy's Dilemma | Fred | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1947 | Seven Keys to Baldpate | Steve Bland | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1947 | Thunder Mountain | Johnny Blue | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1947 | Crossfire | Detective | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1947 | Under the Tonto Rim | John Dennison | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1947 | Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome | Dr. Frankey | Uncredited |
| 1947 | Wild Horse Mesa | Hod Slack | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1948 | The Judge Steps Out | Mrs. Winthrop's Attorney | Uncredited |
| 1948 | Western Heritage | Spade Thorne | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1948 | Berlin Express | Major | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1948 | Race Street | Al | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1948 | Return of the Bad Men | Jim Younger | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1948 | Blood on the Moon | Ted Elser | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1948 | Indian Agent | Monty Hutchins | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1949 | Brothers in the Saddle | Nash Prescott | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1950 | Storm over Wyoming | Tug Caldwell | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1950 | Desperadoes of the West | Ward Gordon | Serial, Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1950 | The Milkman | Duzik | Uncredited |
| 1950 | Trail of Robin Hood | Himself | Credited as Tom Keene |
| 1951 | Texans Never Cry | Tracy Wyatt | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1951 | The Fat Man | Mac | Uncredited |
| 1951 | Home Town Story | Abbott, Bob's campaign manager | Uncredited |
| 1951 | The Stu Erwin Show | Arthur Hale | Episode: "The Big Game" |
| 1951 | The Range Rider | Lang | Episode: "The Grand Fleece" |
| 1952 | Red Planet Mars | Major General George Burdette | Uncredited |
| 1952 | Sky King | Sheriff | 2 episodes Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1953 | The Moonlighter | Sheriff | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1953 | The Abbott and Costello Show | Joe | 2 episodes Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1953 | General Electric Theater | Slocum | Episode: "Woman's World" Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1953 | Crossroad Avenger | The Tucson Kid | TV Movie Credited as Tom Keene |
| 1954 | Outlaw's Daughter | Bank Manager | Uncredited |
| 1954 | Hopalong Cassidy | Bill Bricker | Episode: "Steel Trails West" Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1955 | Dig That Uranium | Frank Loomis | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1955 | The Millionaire | Attorney Marlowe | Episode: "The Uncle Robby Story" |
| 1956 | Wetbacks | Highway Patrol Inspector | Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1956 | Tension at Table Rock | Man Killed by Sam | Uncredited |
| 1957 | Plan 9 from Outer Space | Col. Tom Edwards | Credited as Tom Keene |
| 1958 | Once Upon a Horse... | Himself | Credited as Tom Keene |
| 1958 | Casey Jones | John Patrick | Episode: "The Silk Train" Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1958 | Tales of the Texas Rangers | Morgan Thorpe | Episode: "Traitor's Gold" Credited as Richard Powers |
| 1959 | Death Valley Days | Charlie Duff | Episode: "Stagecoach Spy" Credited as Richard Powers |