John Ridgely (born John Huntington Rea,[2] September 6, 1909 – January 18, 1968[citation needed] ) was an American film character actor with over 175 film credits.[3]
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] |
Early years edit
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]
Film edit
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.
Later life and death edit
He worked in summer-theater productions and television until his death from a heart attack at the age of 58 in 1968.[8]
Selected filmography edit
- Streamline Express (1935) as 2nd Steward (uncredited)
- They Won't Forget (1937) as Boy in Pool Room (uncredited)
- Submarine D-1 (1937) as Lieutenant Junior Grade (uncredited)
- Missing Witnesses (1937) as Train Ticket Clerk (uncredited)
- Hollywood Hotel (1937) as Tall Hotel Desk Clerk (uncredited)
- The Spy Ring (1938) as Spy Ring Member (uncredited)
- The Patient in Room 18 (1938) as Jim Warren
- The Invisible Menace (1938) as Pvt. Innes (scenes deleted)
- White Banners (1938) as Charles Ellis
- Blondes at Work (1938) as Regan
- Forbidden Valley (1938) as Duke Lafferty
- He Couldn't Say No (1938) as Ed the reporter
- Torchy Blane in Panama (1938) as Reynolds
- Crime School (1938) as Reporter Covering 'Escape' (uncredited)
- Western Trails (1938) as Ben McClure
- Little Miss Thoroughbred (1938) as Jim aka Slug, Becker's Henchman
- Men Are Such Fools (1938) as Jerry (uncredited)
- When Were You Born (1938) as Crenshaw, Policeman (uncredited)
- My Bill (1938) as Mr. Martin, Florist
- Cowboy from Brooklyn (1938) as Beacon Reporter
- Racket Busters (1938) as Yellow Stripe Truck Driver (uncredited)
- Boy Meets Girl (1938) as Simmons – Friday's Film Cutter (uncredited)
- Garden of the Moon (1938) as Sound Control Engineer (uncredited)
- Broadway Musketeers (1938) as Master of Ceremonies (scenes deleted)
- Hard to Get (1938) as Burke
- Torchy Gets Her Man (1938) as Bugs
- Nancy Drew... Detective (1938) as Radio Station Technician (uncredited)
- Going Places (1938) as Desk Clerk
- King of the Underworld (1939) as Jerry
- They Made Me a Criminal (1939) as Magee
- Torchy Blane in Chinatown (1939) as Submarine Officer (uncredited)
- Wings of the Navy (1939) as Dan Morrison
- Nancy Drew... Reporter (1939) as Hotel Clerk (uncredited)
- Secret Service of the Air (1939) as Joe LeRoy
- The Adventures of Jane Arden (1939) as Reporter
- You Can't Get Away with Murder (1939) as Gas Station Attendant
- On Trial (1939) as Radio Announcer (uncredited)
- Women in the Wind (1939) as Salesman (uncredited)
- Dark Victory (1939) as man Making Crack About Judith (uncredited)
- Confessions of a Nazi Spy (1939) as Army Hospital Clerk (uncredited)
- Torchy Runs for Mayor (1939) as Photographer in Mayor's Office (uncredited)
- The Kid from Kokomo (1939) as Sam, a 50% Owner
- Naughty but Nice (1939) as Harry, Hudson's Assistant (uncredited)
- Indianapolis Speedway (1939) as Ted Horn
- Waterfront (1939) as Orchestra Leader (uncredited)
- Each Dawn I Die (1939) as Reporter (uncredited)
- The Cowboy Quarterback (1939) as Mr. Walters
- Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite (1939) as Reporter at the Wrestling Match
- Everybody's Hobby (1939) as Ranger Mike Morgan
- The Angels Wash Their Faces (1939) as Reporter at Pillory (uncredited)
- Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (1939) as Reporter
- Smashing the Money Ring (1939) as Policeman (uncredited)
- On Dress Parade (1939) as Fort Lewis Firing Range Sergeant (uncredited)
- The Roaring Twenties (1939) as Cab Driver (uncredited)
- Kid Nightingale (1939) as Whitey
- The Return of Doctor X (1939) as Rodgers
- A Child Is Born (1939) as Intern Going to See Operation (uncredited)
- Private Detective (1939) as Donald Norton
- Invisible Stripes (1939) as Employment Clerk (uncredited)
- The Fighting 69th (1940) as Moran (uncredited)
- Castle on the Hudson (1940) as Intake Guard (uncredited)
- Three Cheers for the Irish (1940) as Photographer (uncredited)
- 'Til We Meet Again (1940) as Junior Officer (uncredited)
- Saturday's Children (1940) as Mr. MacReady (voice, uncredited)
- Torrid Zone (1940) as Gardner
- Flight Angels (1940) as Lt. Parsons
- Brother Orchid (1940) as Texas Pearson
- Gambling on the High Seas (1940) as Police Radio Operator (uncredited)
- The Man Who Talked Too Much (1940) as Brooks
- They Drive By Night (1940) as Hank Dawson (uncredited)
- River's End (1940) as Constable Jeffers
- Money and the Woman (1940) as Doctor (uncredited)
- No Time for Comedy (1940) as Cashier (uncredited)
- Knute Rockne All American (1940) as Reporter (scenes deleted)
- The Letter (1940) as Driver (uncredited)
- Father Is a Prince (1940) as Salesman
- Lady with Red Hair (1940) as Actor Playing Paul (uncredited)
- Honeymoon for Three (1941) as Tomahawk Inn Desk Clerk (uncredited)
- The Great Mr. Nobody (1941) as Eddie Williams
- Here Comes Happiness (1941) as Jim
- Knockout (1941) as Pat Martin
- Strange Alibi (1941) as Tex
- The Wagons Roll at Night (1941) as Arch
- Million Dollar Baby (1941) as Ollie Ward
- Highway West (1941) as Alex – Armored Car Guard
- International Squadron (1941) as Bill Torrence
- Navy Blues (1941) as Jersey
- Nine Lives Are Not Enough (1941) as Mechanic (uncredited)
- They Died with Their Boots On (1941) as 2nd Lt. Davis (uncredited)
- Steel Against the Sky (1941) as Joe (uncredited)
- Dangerously They Live (1941) as John
- The Bride Came C.O.D. (1941) (uncredited)
- The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942) as Radio Man
- Bullet Scars (1942) as Hank O'Connor
- The Big Shot (1942) as Tim
- Wings for the Eagle (1942) as Johnson
- Secret Enemies (1942) as Agent John Trent
- Air Force (1943) as Capt. Quincannon, B-17 Pilot
- Northern Pursuit (1943) as Jim Austin
- Destination Tokyo (1943) as Reserve Officer Raymond
- The Doughgirls (1944) as Julian Cadman
- Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) as Officer Saunders
- Hollywood Canteen (1944) as himself
- God Is My Co-Pilot (1945) as David 'Tex' Hill
- Pride of the Marines (1945) as Jim Merchant
- Danger Signal (1945) as Thomas Turner
- My Reputation (1946) as Cary Abbott
- Two Guys from Milwaukee (1946) as Mike Collins
- The Big Sleep (1946) as Eddie Mars
- The Man I Love (1947) as Roy Otis
- Nora Prentiss (1947) as Walter Bailey, Heart Patient
- That Way with Women (1947) as Sam
- Possessed (1947) as Harker
- That's My Man (1947) as Ramsey
- Cheyenne (1947) as Chalkeye
- Cry Wolf (1947) as Jackson Laidell
- High Wall (1947) as David Wallace
- The Iron Curtain (1948) as RCMP Officer Murphy (uncredited)
- Night Wind (1948) as Walters
- Luxury Liner (1948) as Chief Officer Carver
- Sealed Verdict (1948) as Capt. Lance Nissen
- Trouble Makers (1948) as 'Silky' Thomas
- Command Decision (1948) as James Carwood
- Tucson (1949) as Ben
- Task Force (1949) as Dixie Rankin
- Once More, My Darling (1949) as Burke
- Border Incident (1949) as Mr. Neley
- Backfire (1950) as Plainclothesman (uncredited)
- Beauty on Parade (1950) as Jeffrey Woodstock
- The Lost Volcano (1950) as Fred Barton
- Edge of Doom (1950) as 1st Detective
- The Petty Girl (1950) as Patrolman
- South Sea Sinner (1950) as Don Williams
- Rookie Fireman (1950) as Harry Williams
- Saddle Tramp (1950) as Slim
- Al Jennings of Oklahoma (1951) as Railroad Detective Dan Hanes
- The Last Outpost (1951) as Sam McQuade
- A Place in the Sun (1951) as Coroner
- Thunder in God's Country (1951) as Bill Stafford
- Half Angel (1951) as Tim McCarey
- When the Redskins Rode (1951) as Christopher Gist
- When Worlds Collide (1951) as Chief Customs Inspector (uncredited)
- As You Were (1951) as Captain
- The Blue Veil (1951) as Doctor (uncredited)
- Room for One More (1952) as Harry Foreman
- The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) as Assistant Manager
- Fort Osage (1952) as Henry Travers
- The Outcasts of Poker Flat (1952) as Bill Akeley (uncredited)
- Off Limits (1952) as Lt. Cmdr. Parnell
- The Congregation (1952)
Radio appearances edit
| Year | Program | Episode/source |
|---|---|---|
| 1938 | Warner Brothers Academy Theater | Special Agent[9] |
References edit
- ^ "Hollywood Movie Actor John Ridgely Biography, News, Photos, Videos".
- ^ Room, Adrian (2010). Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins, 5th ed. McFarland. p. 406. ISBN 9780786457632. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
- ^ John Ridgely Roles Now Number 175, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2, 1951, p. 6
- ^ Katz, Ephraim (1979). The Film Encyclopedia: The Most Comprehensive Encyclopedia of World Cinema in a Single Volume. Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-50601-2. P. 973.
- ^ Dudley, Fredda (August 1943). "Man with a Future". Screenland. XLVII (4): 25–29, 62. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
- ^ John Ridgely Roles Now Number 175, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2, 1951, p. 6
- ^ John Ridgely Roles Now Number 175, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2, 1951, p. 6
- ^ Willis, John, Screen World, 1969, Vol. 20, London: Frederick Muller Ltd, p. 239
- ^ "Those Were the Days". Nostalgia Digest. 39 (1): 32–41. Winter 2013.
External links edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to John Ridgely.