Charles Russell (March 31, 1918 – January 18, 1985) was a movie and radio actor who appeared in 17 movies between 1943 and 1950. He was also a television producer who worked in Hollywood and Australia.

Acting Career

Born in New York City, Russell made his debut in an uncredited part as a ball player in ''Ladies' Day'' (1943). His last film was ''Chinatown at Midnight'' (1949). He originated the role of insurance investigator Johnny Dollar in the

CBS Radio CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...

series ''

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar ''Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar'' is a radio drama that aired on CBS Radio from February 18, 1949 to September 30, 1962. The first several seasons imagined protagonist Johnny Dollar as a private investigator drama, with Charles Russell, Edmond O'Br ...

'' in 1949, playing the role until being replaced by

Edmond O'Brien Eamon Joseph O'Brien (September 10, 1915 – May 9, 1985) was an American actor and film director. His career spanned almost 40 years, and he won one Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. O'Brien w ...

in 1950. Russell married fellow

20th Century-Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

contract player

Nancy Guild Nancy Joan Guild (October 11, 1925 – August 16, 1999) was an American film actress of the 1940s and 1950s. She appeared in '' Somewhere in the Night'' (1946), ''The Brasher Doubloon'' (1947), and the comedy '' Abbott and Costello Meet the ...

in 1947, and they had one child, a daughter, Elizabeth, in 1949. They divorced in 1950.

Producer

Russell moved into television producing working on shows such as ''The Untouchables'' and ''Naked City''. He worked for a number of years in Australia at the ABC. John Cameron, head of drama at the ABC in the 1970s, said Ryssell "was a man of great talents, who had developed a drinking problem to help him cope with the pressures of Network American television. He was winning his battle, but still had bad spells. He gave the ABC a great shot in the arm, and built a degree of professionalism in its drama filming that continued to pay dividends long after he returned to America." Russell died in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...

Filmography as Actor

Select Producing Credits

*''The Untouchables'' (1959-60) - producer *''

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was re ...

'' (1962) - producer *''Arrest and Trial'' (1962) *'' Naked City'' (1962-63) - producer *''

Judd for the Defense ''Judd, for the Defense'' is an American legal drama originally broadcast on the ABC network on Friday nights from September 8, 1967, to March 21, 1969. Synopsis The show stars Carl Betz, who had previously spent eight years in the role of Dr. Al ...

'' (1967-68) - producer *''

Devlin Devlin may refer to: * Devlin (surname) * Devlin (given name) * Devlin (rapper), a British rapper * ''Devlin'' (TV series), a 1974 animated TV series by Hanna-Barbera * ''Devlin'', a 1988 novel by Roderick Thorp * ''The Devil and Max Devlin '' ...

'' (1971) - executive producer *'' The Survivor'' (1972) - script editor *''

Seven Little Australians ''Seven Little Australians'' is a classic Australian children's literature novel by Ethel Turner, published in 1894. Set mainly in Sydney in the 1880s, it relates the adventures of the seven mischievous Woolcot children, their stern army father ...

'' (1973) - executive producer *''Ben Hall'' (1974) - producer *''

Games for Parents and Other Children ''Games for Parents and Other Children'' is a 1975 Australian TV movie.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p66 Cast * John Clayton * Colleen Fitzpatrick * Vincent Ball * Garry McDonald * Meliss ...

'' (1975) - producer

References

External links

* * 1918 births 1985 deaths American male radio actors American male film actors Male actors from New York City 20th-century American male actors {{US-actor-stub