A stage actor from 1927, Albert Dekker was an established Broadway star when he made his film debut ten years later. Tall and with rugged good looks, Dekker often played aggressive character roles, and was memorable as the double-crossing gang leader in the classic Les tueurs (1946). From 1945 to 1946 he served a term in the California legislature representing the Hollywood district. As he got older, Dekker, unlike many actors, turned to the stage rather than television, and achieved great success there and on the college lecture circuit. Dekker's last role, in La horde sauvage (1969), was one of his most memorable: the tough railroad detective Harrigan, who hires a murderous group of bounty hunters to track down and kill a gang of outlaws who've been robbing his company's trains.
