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Richard P. Coogan (April 4. 1914 - March 12. 2014)
Length: 6' 2" (1,88 m)
Weight: 190 lbs. (86 kg)
Hair: Reddish blond

Partners
:
(1) Gay Adams, singer, actress
      (married: Jun 15. 1940 -  Sep 19. 1975, her death)
 
      Son: Richard Coogan Jr. "Ricky" (b. June 10. 1949 -)
(2) "Soul-mate":  Leona
 
 

Born on April 4. 1914 as Richard Charles Potter Coogan in Short Hills, New Jersey, to William Gordon Coogan and Dorothea Havemeyer Potter. His father William was a former vice chairman of the National Democratic Finance Committee and was a close friend of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, whom he urged to run for Governor of New York in 1928.

Richard's grandfather James J. Coogan ran for Mayor, and was the first Borough President of Manhattan after the consolidation of the five boroughs into the City of New York in 1898. He was married to Harriet Gardiner Coogan, a descendant of the Gardiners of Gardiner's Island. The Coogan family bought much real estate in the city before 1900, including the Polo Grounds, long the home of the New York Giants baseball team.  Much of the land in the vicinity of the Polo Grounds, from Coogan's Bluff to the Harlem River, was owned by the Coogans, who gave portions to the city, including the Speedway, a favorite place for trotting races at the turn of the century, which is now part of the Harlem River Drive.

 

Richard was one of ten children, six boys and four girls. "You have to do something to get attention." In this category he excelled. His pranks at home and at school became legendary - at least to the local townsfolk, after he completely drained a wealthy neighbor's fishpond, and gave the fish to his mother in a burst of filial generosity. At the age of eight an nine-month attack of rheumatic fever kept him an invalid for the next four years. He recalled that a visit from his high school football coach, proved the turning point in his illness and sped his recovery. He fully recovered and was a top athlete at Madison High School at Short Hills, N.J. and Morristown, N.J. Preparatory School when he was overcome by rheumatic fever again at the age of 17. That ended his athletic ambitions.

 

His parents and his teachers knew the only remedy was to give him another interest. Miss Hutchins, the school's drama coach, had a hunch that dramatics might be the answer. Given the lead in a one-act play, Dick caught fire. Following that, he worked out a kind of Martin-and-Lewis routine with his chum Bud Turner. The act went over big with their own high school crowd, and when they were invited to repeat it for the local Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions, and Elks—and were paid to do it, too—Dick definitely caught the bug. 

 

His illness also prevented him from accepting an athletic scholarship to Brown University and an appointment to West Point. With two careers closed to him, Coogan turned to a third - dramatics. On the advice of his teacher, he enrolled at Emerson College, near Boston, to study dramatics. He stayed only a year. "I noticed most of the graduates seemed to wind up teaching elocution at some college or another. That wasn't what I wanted to do. I wanted action."

 

Action - in New York - was slow in coming, however. In 1936 he was a spear carrier (and the understudy for the role of Fortinbras) in Leslie Howard's production of Hamlet. During that same production, Richard met the girl he was to marry, former actress and singer Gay Adams, who played the "lady-in-waiting". Gay first thought Dick was too good-looking for comfort. While she had already made a reputation for herself as one of a crop of talented society singers, she was still quite young and not entirely sure of herself. The deadlock was broken one evening when Leslie Howard, who was notoriously nearsighted, was almost struck by a cab in front of the theater. Dick pushed him out of the way but was knocked down himself. As a result, Gay started coming around to inquire how Dick was doing.

 

Dick wangled a few more bit parts, occasionally had a chance to speak a few lines, as was the case in Moon of the Caribbees (Lafayette Theatre, Oct 29. 1937 - Jan 15. 1938) replacing Canada Lee as Yank.

Once in a while, found work in radio and landed several roles eventually leading to the lead in Young Dr. Malone. Like most young actors, he had to depend on odd jobs in order to keep body and soul together. He packed glass crates in the basement of the Steuben Glass Company, sold men's furnishings at Saks, ran a freight elevator in an office building, did carpentry work, and worked in a light manufacturing plant.

"Richard Coogan, who plays the role of Robbie in 'Young Doctor Malone' (NBC-CBS), leaves the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in New York City with his bride, the former Gay Adams. Mrs. Coogan has sung at the Stork Club, the Pierre, and other fashionable New York nightclubs."Dick and Gay tied the knot on June 15. 1940.

 

Right: "Richard Coogan, who plays the role of Robbie in Young Doctor Malone (NBC-CBS), leaves the Church of St. Vincent Ferrer in New York City with his bride, the former Gay Adams. Mrs. Coogan has sung at the Stork Club, the Pierre, and other fashionable New York nightclubs."

He had a replacement role in Spring Again (Henry Miller's Theatre, Nov 10. 1941 - Jan 10. 1942 & Playhouse Theatre, Jan 10. 1942 - Jun 06. 1942).

 

Then came the war and, like his brothers who all went on to distinguish themselves in the Army, Navy, and Air Force, Dick tried to enlist too, but was turned down because of his heart condition. He then took a defense job in a Long Island plant manufacturing ordnance supplies and, kept at it even after he got steady radio work. 

 

Richard has been acting professionally since 1942. At that time he was waiting for his Broadway "break," when he decided to try radio were he worked as an announcer and news anchor. He auditioned for -and won -the role of Abie Levy in NBC Radio's Abie's Irish Rose. As of September 1942 he took over from Sydney Smith. And, incidentally, while performing that role at night, he was working in a defense plant by day. Making arrangements with his foreman to have Wednesday afternoons off for rehearsals. Richard Coogan and Mercedes McCambridge played Abie and Rosemary at one time during the three-year run from 1942-1944. In April 1944 the role of Rosemary was played by Julie Stevens.

Richard Coogan in character as "Abie Levy" (1943)Richard Coogan and Mercedes McCambridge played Abie and Rosemary at one time during the three-year run from 1942-1944.
Above left: Richard Coogan in character as "Abie Levy" (1943)
Above right: Richard Coogan and Mercedes McCambridge played Abie and Rosemary at one time during the three-year run from 1942-1944.

He had his most exciting moment before the microphones playing with Helen Hayes in the "Miracle in the Rain" episode of Front Line Theater (AFRS, May.15 1944), but also in New World A'Coming (WMCA, Oct 22. 1944 - Nov. 18. 1947, min. 10 x), Joe and Mabel, Against the Storm, and Lorenzo Jones.

 

Most of the Broadway different productions he appeared in were short-lived: Alice in Arms (National Theatre, Jan 31. - Feb 3. 1945), and The Hasty Heart (Hudson Theatre, Jan 3. - Jun 30. 1945) where towards the end he replaced John Lund as Yank.

 

In television, he made his debut on November 11. 1945 with an appearance in The Front Page (WNBT), continuing to work in the medium semi-permanently.

 

He also was heard in The Fighting Senator (CBS, 1946),  The Light of the World (CBS, 1946), The Hour of Mystery (ABC, June 9. 1946) the first episode "Journey into Fear" with Laurence Olivier, and Molle Mystery Theatre (NBC, Nov 29. 1946)

 

Then on radio, Richard portrayed Ellery Queen during late 1946 and early ‘47. Richard replaced Sydney Smith in the radio series but lasted only a few months. Anthony Boucher, who then collaborated on the weekly scripts with Ellery Queen co-creator Manfred B. Lee, described Coogan’s performance in a letter to Lee (25 October 1946) as “not quite so smug” as his predecessor’s. (Nevins)

 

The Mysterious Traveler (Mutual, Jan 12. 1947 - July 6. 1948, min 3 x).

In "The Light of the World", a serial drama based on the Bible, Coogan appeared as Jonathan (middle). Rescued from slavery by the beggar Hassan, he searched desperately for Elona, the girl he loves. He learns that she has become a slave at the court of the King of Babylon. Shocked to find her dancing before the King, Jonathan determines a way to help her escape. Elona is played by Inge Adams, and the King is played by Bernard Lenrow (CBS, 1946).Charlotte Keane as Nikki Porter  shown with the master sleuth as they put in a long-distance call to the night's guest armchair detective. Beginning Nov. 20. 1946, they will reach out all over the United States, by long distance phone, to call on listeners for their solutions.
Above left: In The Light of the World, a serial drama based on the Bible, Coogan appeared as Jonathan (middle). Rescued from slavery by the beggar Hassan, he searched desperately for Elona, the girl he loves. He learns that she has become a slave at the court of the King of Babylon. Shocked to find her dancing before the King, Jonathan determines a way to help her escape. Elona is played by Inge Adams, and the King is played by Bernard Lenrow (CBS, 1946).
Above right: Charlotte Keane as Nikki Porter  shown with the master sleuth as they put in a long-distance call to the night's guest armchair detective. Beginning Nov. 20. 1946, they will reach out all over the United States, by long distance phone, to call on listeners for their solutions.

After appearances in: Skipper Next to God (Maxine Elliott Theatre, Jan 4. - Mar 27. 1948); S.S. Glencairn (City Center, May 20. - 30. 1948); and  Strange Bedfellows (Morosco Theatre, Jan. 14. - Jul 31. 1948) replacing John Archer as of June 1948. Finally a long running Broadway production came along: Diamond Lil (Coronet Theatre, Feb 5. - 26. 1949 & May 21.- ? 1949*; Plymouth Theatre, Sep 7. 1949 - Jan 21. 1950) with the incomparable Mae West.

My wife once brought my six-month old son  down to the theater, and I said, "Mae, could we have your picture with my son?" She said, "Darling, that’s all I need is to have my picture with a baby." I said, "well, it will never be shown, it’s just for him." So she relented and said, "okay, alright then. I’ll let you do it." So she’s in her full regalia with her big picture hat, and all her jewels sparkling, and my wife is holding my son, and he’s just dazzled by the diamonds, you know. And they were this far apart, and he just reached out like that, and it looked as though he was going for, you know, here -- and she said, "this young man doesn’t need any help at all, does he?" 
Richard Coogan as Captain Cummings and Mae West as the title role in "Diamond Lil".Richard Coogan as Captain Cummings and Mae West as the title role in "Diamond Lil".
Above left and right: Richard Coogan as Captain Cummings and Mae West as the title role in the play Diamond Lil.

Still appearing on Broadway with West he took the role of Captain Video and His Video Rangers on the DuMont Television Network on June 27. 1949. After the live telecast each day, ending at about 7:30 pm EST, he took a cab to the theatre where Diamond Lil was playing.

The fathers in the neighborhood used to take their kids to a nearby bar and grill to watch Captain Video. The owner would halt serving drinks during that half hour. And what happened as a result? Many families ended up getting television sets, so Dad wouldn't miss the Captain's newest adventure in Electronicland.

As "Captain Video", he once visited a youngster who had been severely burned in a fire. The boy refused to eat and didn't respond to treatment. That is, until Coogan suggested that the boy might become one of Captain Video's space rangers. That was the start of his recovery.

But as the popularity of Captain Video increased, Coogan grew less and less comfortable with both the role and the show’s shoestring budget. He left Captain Video in December 1950, replaced by Al Hodge. "For a year I couldn't get any work on television. Nobody would hire me because I was Captain Video in the public mind."

"Here he is, the Electronic Wizard, Master of Time and Space and Guardian of the Safety of the World - Captain Video! Familyman Richard Coogan plays the fearless Captain." (1950)Bonnie Barlett's TV "prince" is Richard Coogan to her Vanessa Raven, in "Love Of Life" (1956).
Above left: "Here he is, the Electronic Wizard, Master of Time and Space and Guardian of the Safety of the World - Captain Video! Family man Richard Coogan plays the fearless Captain." (1950)
Above right: Bonnie Barlett's TV "prince" is Richard Coogan to her Vanessa Raven, in Love Of Life (1956).

Richard Coogan was often seen on NBC-TV's Kraft Television Theatre (NBC, 1947), The Philco-Goodyear  Television Playhouse (NBC, Mar 20. 1949 - Aug 19. 1951, min. 2 x), and Robert Montgomery Presents (NBC, Mar 26. 1951, min. 1 x) shows, as well as on a number of daytime opuses. One being the soap opera Love of Life, where he played the heroic Paul Raven (CBS, Sep 24. 1951 - 1957). He indulges his knack for impersonations by recording every character in Love Of Life on his tape recorder, then playing the tape back as he rehearses his own role. Coogan, who had been with Love of Life since the beginning was fired over his contract demand for a laundry budget. After producer Roy Winsor denied his request, Coogan began shooting his scenes with a frayed collar in protest. "Roy Winsor and I hit it off great," Coogan stated about Winsor. "He was a golfer and so was I. We played two or three times a week. It was a sorry state when I tested him with that collar. That was the end of our friendship." Around 1957 he was replaced by actor Martin Brooks.

Since the end of the war, radio had provided him with fairly steady work in shows such as Gangbusters, The Shadow, Mr. District Attorney, Famous Jury Trials, Radio Reader's Digest, and Silver Theatre (CBS, April 9. 1944). He appeared in many dramatic programs alongside stars like Helen Hayes, Laurence Olivier, Nazimova, Jane Cowl, and Raymond Massey.

He got starring roles in Broadway plays, among them The Rainmaker (Cort Theatre, Oct 28. 1954 - Feb 12. 1955). After that it was easier. "Television producers," he says "tend to have great respect for anyone who can play on Broadway".

During the summer, Dick did a lot of swimming, fishing, water skiing on Long Island Sound, overlooking Great South Bay, where the Coogans had a summer cottage (1954-55). In New York, the Coogans live on the East Side of Manhattan, in a neighborhood (175 East 91st) that's just on the outer fringe of being ritzy. They have a very pleasant apartment consisting of a large living room, a hall, two bedrooms, a small television den whose walls are covered with souvenirs and photographs, a large kitchen, and — since they're located on the ground floor — a combination back porch and hobby room, as well as a garden. They shared the space with Shadow, their old black cocker spaniel (in 1957 came a poodle Misty), a couple of parakeets and a canary.

Richard Coogan, left, who stars as Matt Wayne in "The Californians" on NBC-TV, demonstrates authority he will use to rule over annual Yom Kippur dance (Sep 23, 1958)
Above left: Add for The Californians (NBC, 1958).
Above right: Richard Coogan (L) who stars as Matt Wayne in The Californians on NBC-TV, demonstrates authority he will use to rule over annual Yom Kippur dance (Sep 23, 1958).
Between 1954 and 1961, Coogan appeared in such films as Girl on the Run (Astor Pictures,  Dec 15. 1953), Three Hours to Kill (Columbia, Sep 3. 1954), The Revolt of Mamie Stover (20th Century-Fox, May 4. 1956), and Vice Raid (United Artists, Dec 1959)**.

On the NBC Western television series, The Californians
(1957–1959) set in the California Gold Rush in San Francisco during the 1850s, Coogan appeared in March 1958 as Marshal Matthew Wayne, a character who struck most viewers and critics as a deliberate clone of Gunsmoke's Marshal Matt Dillon. The starring role had to shift when Adam Kennedy asked to be replaced so he could accept movie roles. So "Matthew Wayne" came to San Francisco, bought a saloon, and soon was elected as the city's sheriff. Matthew Wayne became the main character while "Dion Patrick," Adam Kennedy's role, was being phased out. Dick's co-stars included Carole Mathews in a romantic role as the young widow Wilma Fansler and later Jeopardy! host, Art Fleming. 
Familieportret van Richard Coogan Jr., Gay Adams en Richard Coogan (1955)Family portrait of Richard Coogan Jr., Gay Adams and Richard Coogan (1959)
Above: Family portraits of Richard Coogan Jr., Gay Adams and Richard Coogan (left 1955, right 1959).
Richard Coogan with Mamie Van Doren in "Vice Raid" (United Artists, Dec 1959). Richard Coogan and Roger Moore in "Maverick" "Thunder from the North", November 13, 1960
Above left: Richard Coogan with Mamie Van Doren in Vice Raid (United Artists, Dec 1959). Above right: Richard Coogan and Roger Moore in Maverick "Thunder from the North", November 13, 1960.

The Clear Horizon was a daytime TV soap opera about the private lives of astronauts, Richard played Mitchell Corbin (CBS, Jul 11. 1960 - Jun 11. 1962) in reportedly 256 episodes! "It was a great show but the budget was too heavy," Coogan explained. "They were showing scenes of a space capsule landing in water and the rescue and all that had to be shot and this was a daily show. It didn't grab that big of an audience. My character was a newspaper guy who was always getting in everybody's hair. I was always in trouble and explaining my way out. It was trying to show the private life of astronauts and engineers."

During 1959–1963 he guest-starred on a number of other television series, mainly Westerns such as:
 Wichita Town (NBC, Dec 23. 1959, min. 1 x),
 Bronco (ABC, Jan 12. 1960, min. 1 x),
 Sugarfoot
(ABC, Feb 2. 1960, min. 1 x),
 Cheyenne
(ABC, Mar 7. 1960, min. 1 x),
 Maverick
(ABC, Nov 13. 1960, min. 1 x),
 Stagecoach West
(ABC, Nov 15. 1960, min. 1 x),
 Laramie
(NBC, Dec 6. 1960 - Feb 5. 1963, min. 6 x),
 Bonanza
(NBC, Feb 25 1961, min. 1 x), and
 Gunsmoke (CBS, Oct 5. 1963, min. 1 x)
.

And was also seen in other crime dramas:
 77 Sunset Strip (ABC, March 4. 1960, min. 1 x),
 Surfside 6
(ABC, May 23. 1961, min. 1 x), and
 Perry Mason (CBS, Jan 3. 1963, min. 1 x).

Coogan retired from film and television in 1963 following his final appearance as Luke Ryan in an episode of Gunsmoke (CBS, Oct 5. 1963)
named "Lover Boy."

Richard Coogan had a never-ending devotion to golf so in later life, he was best known as a professional golfer and golf instructor
He had a never-ending devotion to golf so in later life, he was best known as a professional golfer and golf instructor (Right).

On September 19, 1975 his wife Gay Adams died after a long illness at Riverside Hospital in North Hollywood.

In 2010 at age 96, Coogan was teaching kids golf and running a monthly tournament that raised funds for a children’s center.

Coogan died on March 12, 2014 in Los Angeles from natural causes a few weeks before his 100th birthday  

Richard Coogan has been an actor all his life. "When I wasn't acting, I was acting up. After all when you're one of 10 children you have to do something to get attention." His sense of humor was legendary and he was determined to live life on his own terms.

 
Notes:

* Mae West broke her foot in February '49, causing the play to go on a 10-week hiatus.

** Vice Raid: Some sources seem to indicate that there was also a series with that name. However, this could not be confirmed.


All dates for movies are for the first US release.
All dates for TV programs are original first airdates.
All dates for (radio) plays are for the time span the actor was involved.

Facts in red still need confirmation.

 
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Other references
(1) Wikipedia

(2) IMDb
(3) IBDB
(4) OTRRpedia
(5) Radiogoldindex
(6) Playbill
(7) "Born to be a husband" by Ernst Jacobi (June 1956)
(8) "Hero at Home" by Mary Temple (1957)

Additional video & audio sources
(1) Archive of American Television Richard Coogan interview
(2) Captain Video (1949 episode)
(3) Love of Life, (episode 1955)
(4) Old Time Radio Downloads


This actor profile is a part of Ellery Queen a website on deduction. The actor above played Ellery Queen in an Ellery Queen radio series. Click Uncle Sam if you think you can help out...!
Many of the profiles on this site have been compiled after very careful research of various sources. Please quote and cite ethically!


Page first published on June 26. 2016
Last updated June 25. 2024

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