John Ridgely | |
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Born | John Huntington Rea September 6, 1909
Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Died | January 18, 1968 New York City, U.S. | (aged 58)
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[ citation needed] ) 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.
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 |
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1938 | Warner Brothers Academy Theater | Special Agent [9] |