Richard Theodore Adams (March 17, 1890 – September 24, 1973) was an American film actor who appeared in nearly 200 films between 1926 and 1952.

Early life

Adams was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

. He appeared with his parents in their

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...

act and later attended

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to ...

. He served in World War I and World War II in the US Navy.

Career

Adams' film career spanned more than three decades and included roles "on both sides of the law". He worked primarily in B-Westerns, often as a villain. Studios for which he worked included Monogram and PRC, and he was often seen in films that starred Johnny Mack Brown or Bob Steele. He also appeared in serials, including '' The Mysterious Pilot'' (1937), ''

Holt of the Secret Service ''Holt of the Secret Service'' (1941) was the 16th serial released by Columbia Pictures. Plot A murderous gang of counterfeiters has kidnapped John Severn (played by Ray Parsons), the U.S. government's best engraver. He is forced to engrave a s ...

'' (1941), '' Daredevils of the West'' (1943), and '' King of the Rocket Men'' (1949).

Later life and death

Late in his career, Adams acted on television Westerns, including '' The Cisco Kid'', '' Cowboy G-Men'', and '' The Lone Ranger''. On September 24, 1973, Adams died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, at age 83. His remains were

cremated Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

and are interred at Chapel of the Pines Crematory in Los Angeles.

Selected filmography

* ''

The Road Agent ''The Road Agent'' is a 1926 American silent film, silent Western (genre), Western film directed by J.P. McGowan and starring Al Hoxie, Ione Reed and Lew Meehan.Pitts p.286 Cast * Al Hoxie as Roger Worth / The Kansas Kid * Ione Reed as Mary Rya ...

'' (1926) * '' Rider of the Plains'' (1931) * '' Ships of Hate'' (1931) * '' God's Country and the Man'' (1931) * ''

The Cyclone Kid The Cyclone Kid may refer to: *The Cyclone Kid (1931 film) ''The Cyclone Kid'' is a 1931 American Western film directed by J.P. McGowan and starring Buzz Barton, Francis X. Bushman Jr. and Caryl Lincoln.Pitts, p. 62. Cast * Buzz Barton as Budd ...

'' (1931) *''

The Savage Girl ''The Savage Girl'' is a 1932 American pre-Code film directed by Harry L. Fraser. Plot A white jungle goddess is protected by a fierce killer gorilla. Cast *Rochelle Hudson Rochelle Hudson (born Rachael Elizabeth Hudson; March 6, 1916 ...

'' (1932) * '' Malay Nights'' (1932) * '' Human Targets'' (1932) * '' The Gambling Sex'' (1932) * '' Battling Buckaroo'' (1932) *'' Sagebrush Trail'' (1933) * '' Easy Millions'' (1933) * '' Her Forgotten Past'' (1933) *'' The Law of 45's'' (1935) * '' His Fighting Blood'' (1935) *'' The Gambling Terror'' (1937) *'' It Happened Out West'' (1937) *'' Smoke Tree Range'' (1937) *'' The Mysterious Pilot'' (1937) *'' Pals of the Saddle'' (1938) * '' Paroled from the Big House'' (1938) * '' El Diablo Rides'' (1939) * '' Fighting Mad'' (1939) *'' The Pal from Texas'' (1939) *'' Three Texas Steers'' (1939) *'' Smoky Trails'' (1939) * '' Crashing Thru'' (1939) *''

Billy the Kid Outlawed ''Billy the Kid Outlawed'' is a 1940 American Western film directed by Sam Newfield and written by Oliver Drake. It stars Bob Steele as gunfighter " Billy the Kid", Al St. John as his sidekick "Fuzzy" Jones and Carleton Young as Jeff Travis ...

'' (1940) * '' Wild Horse Valley'' (1940) * '' Frontier Crusader'' (1940) * '' Gun Code'' (1940) * '' Pioneer Days'' (1940) *'' East Side Kids'' (1940) *'' Law and Order'' (1940) * ''

Billy the Kid's Gun Justice ''Billy the Kid's Gun Justice'' is a 1940 American Western film directed by Sam Newfield for Producers Releasing Corporation, and 3rd in PRC's Billy the Kid series. Hal Erickson, Rovi.Billy the Kid's Gun Justice (1940), '' The New York Times ...

'' (1940) *'' The Lone Rider in Frontier Fury'' (1941) * '' The Lone Rider Ambushed'' (1941) * ''

Billy the Kid's Range War ''Billy the Kid's Range War'' is a 1941 American Western film directed by Sam Newfield that was the fourth of Producers Releasing Corporation's Billy the Kid film series. Despite the film's title and mention of Lincoln County, there is nei ...

'' (1941) * '' Outlaws of Boulder Pass'' (1942) * '' Overland Stagecoach'' (1942) * '' Billy the Kid Trapped'' (1942) * '' Billy the Kid's Smoking Guns'' (1942) * '' The Mysterious Rider'' (1942) *'' Daredevils of the West'' (1943) * '' The Kid Rides Again'' (1943) *'' Trigger Fingers'' (1946) * '' Swing, Cowboy, Swing'' (1946) *''

The Law Comes to Gunsight ''The Law Comes to Gunsight'' is a 1947 American Western film directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Johnny Mack Brown, Raymond Hatton and Reno Browne.Martin p.168 Cast * Johnny Mack Brown as Johnny Macklin * Raymond Hatton as Reno * Reno B ...

'' (1947) *'' Prairie Express'' (1947) *'' Raiders of the South'' (1947) *'' Range Beyond the Blue'' (1947) *'' Song of the Wasteland'' (1947) *''

Valley of Fear ''The Valley of Fear'' is the fourth and final Sherlock Holmes novel by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle. It is loosely based on the Molly Maguires and Pinkerton agent James McParland. The story was first published in the ''Strand Magazine'' ...

'' (1947) *'' Back Trail'' (1948) *'' Frontier Agent'' (1948) *'' Gun Runner'' (1949) *'' Haunted Trails'' (1949) *'' Across the Rio Grande'' (1949) *'' King of the Rocket Men'' (1949) * '' Kansas Territory'' (1952)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Ted 1890 births 1973 deaths American male film actors 20th-century American male actors Male Western (genre) film actors Vaudeville performers American military personnel of World War I American military personnel of World War II Film serial actors American male television actors Western (genre) television actors