John Ridgely | |
|---|---|
 Ridgely in the trailer for Destination Tokyo (1943) | |
| Born | John Huntington Rea September 6, 1909 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | January 18, 1968 (aged 58) New York City, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Stanford University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1935–1954 |
| Spouse | Virginia Robinson [1] |
John Ridgely (born John Huntington Rea, [2] September 6, 1909 – January 18, 1968) was an American film character actor with over 175 film credits. [3]
Ridgely was born in Chicago, Illinois, [4] the son of John Ridgely Rea. Ridgely's elementary schooling was in Hinsdale, Illinois, and he attended Kemper Military School in Boonville, Missouri. [5] He also attended Stanford University before his debut in movies. [6]
He appeared in the 1946 Humphrey Bogart film The Big Sleep as blackmailing gangster Eddie Mars and had a pivotal role as a suffering heart patient in the film noir Nora Prentiss (1947). His most prominent other roles were his top-billed part as the bomber captain in Howard Hawks's Air Force and as real-life fighter pilot Tex Hill in 1945's God is My Co-Pilot .
The Chicago-born actor appeared in a large number of other films, particularly for Warner Bros., in the 1930s and 1940s. [7]
Freelancing after 1948, Ridgely continued to essay general-purpose parts until he left films in 1953; thereafter, he worked in summer-theater productions and television until his death from a heart attack at the age of 58 in 1968. [8]
| Year | Program | Episode/source |
|---|---|---|
| 1938 | Warner Brothers Academy Theater | Special Agent [9] |
Barton MacLane was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He appeared in many classic films from the 1930s through the 1960s, including his role as General Martin Peterson on the 1960s NBC television comedy series I Dream of Jeannie, with Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman.
Jimmy Conlin was an American character actor who appeared in almost 150 films in his 32-year career.
Harold Goodwin was an American actor who performed in over 225 films.
Thomas Aloyisus Kennedy was an American actor known for his roles in Hollywood comedies from the silent days, with such producers as Mack Sennett and Hal Roach, mainly supporting lead comedians such as the Marx Brothers, W. C. Fields, Mabel Normand, Shemp Howard, Laurel and Hardy, and the Three Stooges. Kennedy also played dramatic roles as a supporting actor.
Creighton Hale was an Irish-American theatre, film, and television actor whose career extended more than a half-century, from the early 1900s to the end of the 1950s.
Ralph Byrd was an American actor. He was most famous for playing the comic strip character Dick Tracy on screen, in serials, movies and television.
William Stanley Blystone was an American film actor who made more than 500 films appearances between 1924 and 1956. He was sometimes billed as William Blystone or William Stanley.
Colin Kenny was an Irish film actor. He appeared in 260 films between 1918 and 1965. He was born in Dublin, Ireland and died in Los Angeles, California. Kenny was educated in England and left London to come to the United States in 1917.
Frank Orth was an American actor born in Philadelphia. He is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Inspector Faraday in the 1951-1953 television series Boston Blackie.
Jack Rice was an American actor best known for appearing as the scrounging, freeloading brother-in-law in Edgar Kennedy's series of short domestic comedy films at the RKO studio, and also as "Ollie" in around a dozen of Columbia Pictures's series of the Blondie comic strip.
Ralph Dunn was an American film, television, and stage actor.
Richard Michael Wessel was an American film actor who appeared in more than 270 films between 1935 and 1966. He is best remembered for his only leading role, a chilling portrayal of strangler Harry "Cueball" Lake in Dick Tracy vs. Cueball (1946), and for his appearances as comic villains opposite The Three Stooges.
James Millican was an American actor with over 200 film appearances mostly in western movies.
Walter Sande was an American character actor, known for numerous supporting film and television roles.
William M. Newell was an American film actor.
William Tannen was an American actor originally from New York City, who was best known for his role of Deputy Hal Norton in fifty-six episodes from 1956 to 1958 of the ABC/Desilu western television series, The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp. During the 1930s and 1940s, he was a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player.
Bert Moorhouse was an American character actor whose career began at the very tail end of the silent era, and lasted through the mid-1950s.
Warren Reynolds "Ray" Walker was an American actor, born in Newark, New Jersey, who starred in Baby Take a Bow (1934), Hideaway Girl (1936), The Dark Hour (1936), The Unknown Guest (1943) and It's A Wonderful Life (1946).
Charles Williams was an American actor and writer. He appeared in over 260 film and television productions between 1922 and 1956. He also worked as a writer on 30 films between 1932 and 1954.
Cliff Clark was an American actor. He entered the film business in 1937 after a substantial stage career and appeared in over 200 Hollywood films. In the last years of his life, he also played in a number of television productions.
| General | |
|---|---|
| National libraries | |
| Other | |
