Richard Remick Smothers (born November 20, 1938) is an American actor, comedian, composer, and musician. He was half of the musical comedy team the

Smothers Brothers The Smothers Brothers are Thomas ("Tom" – born February 2, 1937) and Richard ("Dick" – born November 20, 1938), American folk singers, musicians, and comedians. The brothers' trademark double act was performing folk songs (Tommy on acoustic gu ...

, with his older brother Tom.

Life and career

Smothers was born in New York City in 1938, the son of Ruth (''née'' Remick), a homemaker, and Thomas B. Smothers, an

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

officer who died as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

, of the Japanese, in April 1945. After moving to Southern California, Dick attended

Verdugo Hills High School Verdugo Hills High School (VHHS) is a public school located in the Tujunga community of Los Angeles, California, United States, within the Los Angeles Unified School District. The school serves students from several areas of Los Angeles, inclu ...

in Tujunga, California, and graduated from

Redondo Union High School Redondo Union High School (RUHS) is a public high school in Redondo Beach, California. Redondo Union High School is a part of the Redondo Beach Unified School District. All residents of Redondo Beach are zoned to Redondo Union. In addition, resi ...

in Redondo Beach, California, and later attended

San José State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

, then called San José State College. At SJSC, Smothers participated as a distance runner for the track team (coached by

Lloyd (Bud) Winter Lloyd C. Winter, better known as Bud (June 8, 1909 – December 6, 1985) was an American track and field coach who is regarded as one of the greatest sprint coaches in the world. Over a 29-year coaching career (1941–1970) at the then San Jose S ...

). The Smothers Brothers appeared on numerous television shows, including two shows of their own: ''

The Smothers Brothers Show ''The Smothers Brothers Show'' is an American fantasy sitcom featuring the Smothers Brothers that aired on CBS on Friday nights at 9:30 p.m. ET from September 17, 1965, to April 22, 1966, co-sponsored by Alberto-Culver's VO5 hairdressing ...

'', a sitcom from 1965 to 1966; and ''

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour ''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' was an American comedy and variety show television series hosted by the Smothers Brothers and initially airing on CBS from 1967 to 1969. The series was a major success, especially considering it was sc ...

'', a variety show in 1967. In 1977, he appeared twice as a panelist on the daytime TV game show ''

Match Game ''Match Game'' is an American television panel game show that premiered on NBC in 1962 and has been revived several times over the course of the last six decades. The game features contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity panelis ...

''. In 1993, he played one of the characters on cartoon Christmas movie ''Precious Moments: Timmy's Special Delivery''. Without Tom, he also appeared in the 1995

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of many major accolades, inclu ...

-directed film ''

Casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...

'' in an uncharacteristically serious role as a dishonest Nevada State Senator. His character and the dialogue in one scene was partly based on the career of former

United States Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Harry Reid Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Sena ...

, who once chaired the

Nevada Gaming Commission The Nevada Gaming Commission is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of casinos throughout the state, along with the Nevada Gaming Control Board. In 1959, the Nevada Gaming Commission ("Commission") was created by the pas ...

. In December 2009, Dick and Tom both guest starred in a 21st-season episode of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...

'' that also featured Cooper, Peyton and Eli Manning. In February 2010, Smothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In May, he and his brother announced their retirement from touring. Smothers has been active in amateur

automobile racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...

, both road racing and drag racing. He is the father of six children: Dick Jr., Andrew, Steven, Sarah, Susan, and Remick. He currently resides in upstate New York. In September 2022, Smothers married Marie Navarroli Kropp. On the December 11, 2022, episode of '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', the brothers announced that they would be going on tour in 2023.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smothers, Dick 1938 births American sketch comedians American comedy musicians American male composers 21st-century American composers Television personalities from California Living people Actors from Redondo Beach, California Musicians from New York City San Jose State University alumni 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Racing drivers from New York (state) Racing drivers from New York City Musicians from Redondo Beach, California World Sportscar Championship drivers American male television actors American male film actors Comedians from California 20th-century American comedians 21st-century American male musicians