Want to know the best William Bendix movies? How about the worst William Bendix movies? Curious about William Bendix box office grosses or which William Bendix movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which William Bendix movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences and which got the worst reviews? Well, you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
William Bendix (1906-1964) was an Osca®r-nominated American film, radio, and television actor, who typically played rough, blue-collar characters. He was one of the busiest actors in the 1940s, appearing in over 40 movies in that decade. His IMDb page shows 92 acting credits between 1940 and 1964. This page will rank William Bendix movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Television shows, shorts, cameos, uncredited roles, and movies that were not released in North American were not included in the rankings.
William Bendix Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
Year
Movie (Year)
Rating
S
Year Movie (Year) Rating S
1942
Woman of the Year (1942)
1946
The Blue Dahlia (1946)
1942
Wake Island (1942)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Supp Actor Nom
1942
Who Done It? (1942)
1951
Detective Story (1951)
1943
Guadalcanal Diary (1943)
1946
Calcutta (1946)
1946
Two Years Before The Mast (1946)
1945
Duffy's Tavern (1945)
1948
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1948)
1944
Lifeboat (1944)
1945
A Bell for Adano (1945)
1947
Where There's Life (1947)
1947
Variety Girl (1947)
1943
China (1943)
1942
Star Spangled Rhythm (1942)
1944
Greenwich Villiage (1944)
1946
Sentimental Journey (1946)
1944
The Hairy Ape (1944)
1948
The Babe Ruth Story (1948)
1962
Boys' Night Out (1962)
1947
Blaze of Noon (1947)
1942
The Glass Key (1942)
1946
The Dark Corner (1946)
1947
The Web (1947)
1949
The Big Steal (1949)
1945
It's In The Bag! (1945)
1949
Johnny Holiday (1949)
1948
The Time of Your Life (1948)
1949
Streets of Laredo (1949)
1943
Hostages (1943)
1950
Kill the Umpire (1950)
1949
The Life Of Riley (1949)
1945
Don Juan Quilligan (1945)
1951
Submarine Command (1951)
1963
For Love or Money (1963)
1948
Race Street (1948)
1952
Blackbeard, the Pirate (1952)
1946
White Tie and Tails (1946)
1947
I'll Be Yours (1947)
1944
Abroad with Two Yanks (1944)
1955
Crashout (1955)
1952
Macao (1952)
1954
Dangerous Mission (1954)
1950
Gambling House (1950)
1949
Cover Up (1949)
1942
Brooklyn Orchid (1942)
1964
Law of the Lawless (1964)
1952
A Girl in Every Port (1952)
1943
The Crystal Ball (1943)
1943
Taxi, Mister (1943)
1963
The Young And The Brave (1963)
1942
The McGuerins from Brooklyn (1942)
1964
Young Fury (1964)
1961
Johnny Nobody (1961)
1956
Battle Stations (1956)
1959
Portrait of a Sinner (1959)
1958
The Deep Six (1958)
William Bendix Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort William Bendix movies by his co-stars
- Sort William Bendix movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost.
- Sort William Bendix movies by domestic yearly box office rank
- Sort William Bendix movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each William Bendix movie received.
- Sort William Bendix movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | S |
3 | Woman of the Year (1942) | Spencer Tracy & Katharine Hepburn |
5.50 | 205.5 | 287.60 | 32 | 81 | 02 / 01 | 98.1 | |
2 | The Blue Dahlia (1946) | Alan Ladd & Veronica Lake |
7.40 | 228.9 | 228.90 | 47 | 79 | 01 / 00 | 97.3 | |
1 | Wake Island (1942) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Supp Actor Nom |
Robert Preston | 10.00 | 371.7 | 371.70 | 10 | 70 | 04 / 00 | 97.3 | |
4 | Who Done It? (1942) | Bud Abbott & Abbott & Costello |
5.00 | 185.9 | 185.90 | 43 | 81 | 00 / 00 | 96.7 | |
5 | Detective Story (1951) | Kirk Douglas & Eleanor Parker |
8.00 | 172.5 | 172.50 | 15 | 72 | 04 / 00 | 94.2 | |
5 | Guadalcanal Diary (1943) | Anthony Quinn & Preston Foster |
8.60 | 308.0 | 308.00 | 15 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 93.9 | |
7 | Calcutta (1946) | Alan Ladd & Gail Russell |
7.60 | 233.1 | 233.10 | 39 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 93.9 | |
6 | Two Years Before The Mast (1946) | Alan Ladd & Brian Donlevy |
11.90 | 366.3 | 366.30 | 10 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 93.9 | |
8 | Duffy's Tavern (1945) | Betty Hutton & Paulette Goddard |
7.70 | 242.9 | 242.90 | 34 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 93.3 | |
10 | A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1948) | Bing Crosby & Rhonda Fleming |
7.90 | 212.8 | 212.80 | 20 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 93.2 | |
11 | Lifeboat (1944) | Tallulah Bankhead & Directed by Alfred Hitchcock |
3.20 | 108.7 | 108.70 | 98 | 86 | 03 / 00 | 92.1 | |
11 | A Bell for Adano (1945) | Gene Tierney & John Hodiak |
6.90 | 220.2 | 220.20 | 39 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 92.0 | |
13 | Where There's Life (1947) | Bob Hope | 8.10 | 236.2 | 236.20 | 30 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 92.0 | |
14 | Variety Girl (1947) | Alan Ladd & Paulette Goddard |
9.70 | 283.5 | 283.50 | 18 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 92.0 | |
15 | China (1943) | Alan Ladd & Loretta Young |
7.10 | 256.7 | 256.70 | 30 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 91.7 | |
16 | Star Spangled Rhythm (1942) | Bob Hope & Alan Ladd |
8.30 | 308.0 | 308.00 | 13 | 55 | 02 / 00 | 91.4 | |
18 | Greenwich Villiage (1944) | Don Ameche | 6.00 | 201.0 | 201.00 | 51 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 91.3 | |
16 | Sentimental Journey (1946) | Maureen O'Hara | 8.10 | 248.9 | 248.90 | 34 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 90.3 | |
19 | The Hairy Ape (1944) | Susan Hayward | 3.90 | 130.4 | 130.40 | 87 | 71 | 01 / 00 | 89.0 | |
20 | The Babe Ruth Story (1948) | Baseball Movies & Charles Bickford |
6.30 | 170.2 | 170.20 | 41 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 88.3 | |
22 | Boys' Night Out (1962) | James Garner & Tony Randall |
9.70 | 139.6 | 139.60 | 26 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 87.2 | |
23 | Blaze of Noon (1947) | William Holden & Anne Baxter |
5.00 | 145.7 | 145.70 | 68 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 87.1 | |
21 | The Glass Key (1942) | Alan Ladd & Veronica Lake |
2.80 | 105.1 | 105.10 | 102 | 74 | 00 / 00 | 86.9 | |
24 | The Dark Corner (1946) | Lucille Ball & Clifton Webb |
2.70 | 83.2 | 83.20 | 108 | 78 | 00 / 00 | 85.8 | |
25 | The Web (1947) | Edmond O'Brien & Vincent Price |
2.70 | 78.4 | 78.40 | 126 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 82.6 | |
26 | The Big Steal (1949) | Robert Mitchum | 4.00 | 99.2 | 128.80 | 91 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 81.9 | |
27 | It's In The Bag! (1945) | Don Ameche | 2.50 | 79.1 | 79.10 | 112 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 80.2 | |
28 | Johnny Holiday (1949) | Stanley Clements | 2.40 | 59.2 | 59.20 | 129 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 78.8 | |
29 | The Time of Your Life (1948) | James Cagney & William Bendix |
4.20 | 113.5 | 113.50 | 86 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 78.6 | |
30 | Streets of Laredo (1949) | William Holden | 6.00 | 149.7 | 149.70 | 37 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 76.1 | |
30 | Hostages (1943) | Luise Rainer & Paul Lukas |
1.80 | 64.2 | 64.20 | 119 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 76.0 | |
31 | Kill the Umpire (1950) | Baseball Movies | 2.30 | 51.3 | 51.30 | 138 | 70 | 00 / 00 | 74.1 | |
32 | The Life Of Riley (1949) | Rosemary DeCamp | 2.50 | 62.8 | 62.80 | 124 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 73.6 | |
34 | Don Juan Quilligan (1945) | Joan Blondell | 2.80 | 88.1 | 88.10 | 101 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 72.2 | |
35 | Submarine Command (1951) | William Holden | 3.10 | 66.5 | 66.50 | 118 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 68.7 | |
36 | For Love or Money (1963) | Kirk Douglas & Mitzi Gaynor |
4.40 | 54.6 | 54.60 | 60 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 65.1 | |
37 | Race Street (1948) | George Raft & Harry Morgan |
2.10 | 55.7 | 55.70 | 138 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 65.0 | |
39 | Blackbeard, the Pirate (1952) | Linda Darnell & Directed by Raoul Walsh |
3.50 | 68.1 | 68.10 | 105 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 62.8 | |
38 | White Tie and Tails (1946) | Dan Duryea | 1.30 | 39.1 | 39.10 | 135 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 61.7 | |
42 | I'll Be Yours (1947) | Deanna Durbin | 2.80 | 82.8 | 82.80 | 117 | 50 | 00 / 00 | 61.3 | |
41 | Abroad with Two Yanks (1944) | Dennis O'Keefe | 1.70 | 56.0 | 56.00 | 124 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 60.6 | |
42 | Crashout (1955) | Arthur Kennedy | 1.30 | 27.0 | 27.00 | 156 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 60.2 | |
44 | Macao (1952) | Robert Mitchum & Jane Russell |
3.10 | 59.9 | 59.90 | 118 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 58.6 | |
45 | Dangerous Mission (1954) | Victor Mature & Vincent Price |
3.40 | 80.3 | 80.30 | 99 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 58.5 | |
43 | Gambling House (1950) | Victor Mature | 1.70 | 38.5 | 54.50 | 158 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 58.2 | |
47 | Cover Up (1949) | Dennis O'Keefe | 1.60 | 39.2 | 39.20 | 157 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 55.8 | |
48 | Brooklyn Orchid (1942) | Grace Bradley | 1.00 | 38.5 | 38.50 | 176 | 60 | 00 / 00 | 55.4 | |
46 | Law of the Lawless (1964) | Yvonne De Carlo | 2.30 | 26.0 | 26.00 | 105 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 54.9 | |
49 | A Girl in Every Port (1952) | Groucho Marx & Marie Wilson |
1.80 | 35.4 | 35.40 | 165 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 44.6 | |
50 | The Crystal Ball (1943) | Paulette Goddard & Ray Milland |
1.30 | 45.5 | 45.50 | 136 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 41.1 | |
51 | Taxi, Mister (1943) | Sheldon Leonard | 0.80 | 29.0 | 29.00 | 150 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 38.3 | |
52 | The Young And The Brave (1963) | Rory Calhoun | 1.80 | 22.0 | 22.00 | 98 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 34.7 | |
55 | The McGuerins from Brooklyn (1942) | Grace Bradley | 0.50 | 19.6 | 19.60 | 210 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 34.5 | |
55 | Young Fury (1964) | Rory Calhoun & Virginia Mayo |
0.90 | 10.7 | 10.70 | 134 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 32.6 | |
53 | Johnny Nobody (1961) | Nigel Patrick | 0.10 | 2.2 | 2.20 | 142 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 32.3 | |
56 | Battle Stations (1956) | John Lund | 0.90 | 18.2 | 18.20 | 186 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 30.4 | |
57 | Portrait of a Sinner (1959) | Tony Britton | 0.10 | 2.6 | 2.60 | 172 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 28.6 | |
58 | The Deep Six (1958) | Alan Ladd | 2.20 | 39.3 | 39.30 | 101 | 47 | 00 / 00 | 27.9 |
Possibly Interesting Fact About William Bendix
1. William Bendix was born in Manhattan, Massachusetts, in 1906.
2. William Bendix’s father was a veteran of the Spanish-American War and a musician who performed in local New York bands. Another relative, Max Bendix, was a violinist who once conducted the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.
3. In the early 1920s, William Bendix was a batboy for the New York Yankees and said he saw Babe Ruth hit more than 100 home runs at Yankee Stadium. However, he was fired after fulfilling Ruth’s request for a large order of hot dogs and soda before a game, which resulted in Ruth being unable to play that day. He would play Babe Ruth in 1948’s The Babe Ruth Story.
4. William Bendix first gained notice with his Oscar®-nominated performance in 1942’s Wake Island and in Alfred Hitchcock’s Lifeboat (1944).
5. William Bendix played Chester A. Riley of The Life Of Riley on television, the big screen, and the radio.
Check out William Bendix’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
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William Bendix, is the # 33 most connected actor of the 1940’s.
William Bendix eh… which film do I remember him most from? Probably Lifeboat, since it’s Hitchcock, but I’ve also seen Connecticut Yankee a number of times.
Okay I’ve seen… 9 films out of 58, probably more back in my youth, favorites are – Lifeboat, A Connecticut Yankee, The Big Steal, The Glass Key and The Blue Dahlia.
Looking at the box office chart there are some sizeable hits at the top. I don’t think I’ve seen Wake Island, Guadalcanal Diary or Two Years Before the Mast, will keep an eye out for them when they pop up again on TV.
Good work Bruce. Vote Up!
Hey Steve….thanks for the feedback on our William Bendix page and his movie career. Your 9 has my total of 3 tripled. I have seen Lifeboat but none of the other ones. I have not seen any of those box office hits either. Apparently I missed the Bendix boat….but I now realize he had an awesome 1940s. Good stuff as always.
i saw 11 including 3 of top 4. 10 and hidden gem is Hitchcock’s lifeboat. 9 woman of the year. wake island a 7 portrayed an incredibly important battle to slow the Japanese after their surprise attack on the neutral U.S.A at pearl harbor. i recently watched the babe Ruth story and thought it was enjoyable, a 7. i recently watched the glass key, a 7. i recently watched who done it, a 7. i recently watched they drive by night , an 8 with ida lupino. i recently watched boys night out , an 8.
Yea turner classic movies. i feel certain i watched more but cannot remember them from 50 years ago. i watched a movie recently that i had completely forgotten watching just a few years ago, the judge with robert duvall and robert downey jr.
this might mean my memory is failing and i will now be able to re-watch movies without losing the surprise ending and suspense. what an unexpected gift from aging and memory lose. LOL.
Hey bob cox….Tally count…Flora 15, you 11 and me 3. Thanks for all the mini-reviews. It looks like you have been watching lots of William Bendix movies lately. I did not include They Drive By Night because IMDb listed it as an uncredited role. I agree with you on Lifeboat. Yeah for old age….lol. I wonder if I will ever forget that Bruce is dead the whole time in The Sixth Sense, or that Kevin Spacey is really the bad guy in The Usual Suspects or Anthony Perkins has some issues in Psycho? Good feedback as always.