Duke Mitchell
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Duke Mitchell (born Dominic Miceli) (May 9, 1926 – December 2, 1981) was an Italian-American film actor, slapstick comedian, crooner and independent film director. Duke Mitchell often performed his nightclub act in and around Palm Springs, California and anointed himself the "King of Palm Springs." Mitchell also provided the Elvis-like "singing voice" of Fred Flintstone in several episodes of the popular cartoon TV series, the Flintstones.
In 1951 Duke Mitchell teamed with teenaged comic Sammy Petrillo for a nightclub act. Mitchell's cabaret-style crooning and Petrillo's manic, rubber-faced clowning bore more than a passing resemblance to the red-hot team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. The act got too close for comfort and Lewis famously threatened to sue the duo. It was Duke Mitchell, however, who pointed out a key flaw in the prosecution's case, and Martin & Lewis's studio, Paramount Pictures, hurriedly dropped the suit.
Movie producer Jack Broder had announced his intention to star Mitchell and Petrillo in a feature-length comedy. Petrillo later recalled his suspicion that Broder never really intended to make the film: Broder expected Paramount to pay him off, but when Paramount dropped the lawsuit, Broder had to follow through! The resulting film was Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla, a silly, jungle-themed comedy co-starring the former "Dracula."
After Mitchell and Petrillo parted as friends (for details, see the Wikipedia entry for Sammy Petrillo), Mitchell stayed in show business, doing nightclub and film work.
Contents |
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Director
- Gone with the Pope (1975)
- The Executioner (1978)
[edit] Actor
- Crime in the Streets (1956) (uncredited)
- Baby Face Nelson (1957)
- Paradise Alley (1962)
- The Executioner (1978)
- Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla (1952)
- Sailor Beware (1952) (uncredited)
