John Ridgely

John Ridgely
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

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]

Early years

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

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]

Selected filmography

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 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

Year	Program	Episode/source
1938	Warner Brothers Academy Theater	Special Agent^[9]

References

^ "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

[1] "Hollywood Movie Actor John Ridgely Biography, News, Photos, Videos".

[2] Room, Adrian (2010). Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins, 5th ed. McFarland. p. 406. ISBN 9780786457632. Retrieved January 20, 2017.

[3] John Ridgely Roles Now Number 175, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2, 1951, p. 6

[fe-4] 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.

[s-5] Dudley, Fredda (August 1943). "Man with a Future". Screenland. XLVII (4): 25–29, 62. Retrieved March 31, 2017.

[6] John Ridgely Roles Now Number 175, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2, 1951, p. 6

[7] John Ridgely Roles Now Number 175, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2, 1951, p. 6

[8] Willis, John, Screen World, 1969, Vol. 20, London: Frederick Muller Ltd, p. 239

[ndw13-9] "Those Were the Days". Nostalgia Digest. 39 (1): 32–41. Winter 2013.

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