Ken Lynch Richard Gordon Bishop and the Gargoyle 1941

Richard Gordon was an American actor in vaudeville and films and on stage and radio. He was perhaps best known for portraying the title role in the radio version of ''

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' is a collection of twelve short stories by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle, first published on 14 October 1892. It contains the earliest short stories featuring the consulting detective Sherlock Holmes, w ...

''.

Early years

A native of

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the List of cities by population in New England, fifth-most populous ...

, Gordon worked as a reporter on a newspaper there before he moved to New York City and became a reporter for the ''

New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publi ...

''. His earnings paid for his studies at Yale and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

Radio

In addition to his work in ''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' from 1931 to 1933, Gordon's roles on

old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early ...

included those shown in the table below: Gordon also was heard on ''The Biblical Hour'' and in Shakespearean productions.

Stage and film

After he turned down a producer's offer of $35 per week for a minor part in a play, Gordon spent 10 years with a theatrical touring company. Films in which Gordon appeared included ''Birth of a Baby'', ''

13 Rue Madeleine ''13 Rue Madeleine'' is a 1947 American World War II spy film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring James Cagney, Annabella, Richard Conte and Frank Latimore. Allied volunteers are trained as spies in the leadup to the invasion of Europe, but ...

'', ''Saint Benny the Dip'', and ''Things to Come''.

Professional organizations

Gordon was involved in founding the Actors' Equity Association. Not long after it was formed, however, he encountered conflicts with officers of the organization as he advocated for inclusion of actors from film and radio. Those efforts apparently led to his leaving the group's council after five years. As continued growth of radio led to the formation of another group to represent that medium's actors, Gordon served as an advisor to the new American Federation of Radio Artists.

Personal life

Gordon was married to Emily Ann Wellman, an actress and playwright with whom he performed in vaudeville. To help her promote her works to producers, Gordon built a miniature theater using a scale of one-half inch to one foot. The couple prepared miniature props to enable creation of sets to help producers visualize the production of a play. Gordon, whom one newspaper reporter described as an "actor-carpenter", used his workshop, which was equipped with saws, drill press, planer, and lathe. He later married actress Rachel Crown. They had two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Richard 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male radio actors American male stage actors Male actors from Bridgeport, Connecticut