Broderick Crawford

Broderick Crawford
Gerehty

Stars

Broderick Crawford
TV: South side of the 6700 block of Hollywood Boulevard
Broderick Crawford
Film: North side of the 6900 block of Hollywood Boulevard
Actor
Born William Broderick Crawford on Dec. 9, 1911 in Philadelphia, PA
Died April 26, 1986 of stroke in Rancho Mirage, CA

Broderick Crawford won an Academy Award as best actor of 1949 for his role as a ruthless, scheming Southern political boss in "All the King's Men" but was better-known to later generations as the beefy chief of television's "Highway Patrol."

The gravel-voiced Crawford was comparatively unknown to film audiences at the time that he was chosen to portray the uncouth but guileful Willie Stark in the film version of Robert Penn Warren's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. He attracted rave reviews for his performance in what Life magazine called the "most exciting film to come out of Hollywood" that year.

However, Crawford's greatest popularity came not as a film actor but as a television performer. From 1955 to 1959, he played the fast-talking Sgt. Dan Matthews in "Highway Patrol." He later made two other television series, neither of which had the impact of the one in which his trademark was the expression "Ten-Four, Ten-Four," which in police talk means, "I understand."

— Jerry Cohen in the Los Angeles Times April 27, 1986

Related stars

Points of interest

Click for more information

    Academy Awards

    Year Category Work
    1949 Best Actor All the King's Men Win

    One thought about Broderick Crawford

    Share a thought about Broderick Crawford

    • Did you ever meet Broderick Crawford? Share your memory.
    • Which other stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame have connections to Broderick Crawford?
    • Are other places in the world important to Broderick Crawford?
    • Does Broderick Crawford deserve this star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?

      Required
      Optional