Paul Richards (actor)
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Paul Richards (November 23, 1924 – December 10, 1974) was an American actor who appeared in films and on television in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.


Early years

A native of Hollywood, Richards earned a psychology degree at
University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
and a master's degree in drama, also from UCLA. He gained additional acting experience at the Theatre Wing in New York.


Career

He guest-starred in television western series such as ''
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'', '' Have Gun–Will Travel'', ''
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'', ''Johnny Ringo (TV series)">Johnny Ringo John Peters Ringo (May 3, 1850 – July 13, 1882), known as Johnny Ringo, was an American Old West outlaw loosely associated with the Cochise County Cowboys in frontier boomtown Tombstone, Arizona Territory. He took part in the Mason County ...
'', ''The Rebel (American TV series)">The Rebel'', ''Zane Grey Theatre'', ''Black Saddle'', ''Gunsmoke'', ''Bonanza'', ''The Untouchables (1959 TV series), The Untouchables'',''Trackdown (TV series), Trackdown'', '' Rawhide'', '' The Virginian'', '' The Loner'', and ''
The Guns of Will Sonnett ''The Guns of Will Sonnett'' is a Western television series set in the 1870s that was broadcast in color on the ABC television network from 1967 to 1969. The series, which began with the working title, "Two Rode West", was the first production co ...
.'' Richards performed four times on ''Gunsmoke''. In 1955, in the series' first episode, "Matt Gets It", he portrays a near-sighted gunfighter who outdraws and nearly kills
Matt Dillon Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination. Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...
. The next year, in "Mr. and Mrs. Amber", he portrayed a poor, desperate homesteader beleaguered by his rich, self-righteous brother-in-law. His other two appearances on ''Gunsmoke'' were in 1958 and 1968 episodes. Richards guest-starred three times in 1956 on ''
Frontier A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts o ...
'', as Louis Rose in "The Texicans", John Webb in "The Big Dry", and Will Shaw in "The Salt War". He guest-starred in ''Crusader'', a Cold War drama. Richards appeared twice on the Western series ''
Tombstone Territory ''Tombstone Territory'' is an American Western series starring Pat Conway and Richard Eastham. The series' first two seasons aired on ABC from 1957 to 1959. The first season was sponsored by Bristol-Myers (consumer products) and the second seaso ...
'' in the episodes "Thicker than Water" (1958) and "The Noose That Broke" (1959). Richards was cast as Bret Younger in the episode "The Desperado" (1957) on the Western series '' Broken Arrow''. He also appeared in the syndicated series ''
Sheriff of Cochise ''The Sheriff of Cochise'' is an American police crime drama television series of 79 black-and-white episodes broadcast from 1956 to 1958. The show has two seasons of 39 episodes, and there is an additional standalone episode. Each episode runs ...
'' and ''
The Silent Service is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kaiji Kawaguchi. It was published in Kodansha's '' Weekly Morning'' manga magazine from 1988 to 1996 and collected in 32 ''tankōbon'' volumes. The series was adapted into an anime tele ...
''. He was a guest star on
Kenneth Tobey Kenneth Jesse Tobey (March 23, 1917 – December 22, 2002) was an extremely prolific American actor who performed in hundreds of productions during a career that spanned more than half a century, including his role as the star of the 1957-1 ...
's ''
Whirlybirds ''Whirlybirds'' (sometimes called ''The Whirlybirds'' or ''Copter Patrol'') is a syndicated American drama/adventure television series, which aired for 111 episodes — broadcast from February 4, 1957, through January 18, 1960. It was pro ...
'', a syndicated aviation adventure series. He appeared on ''
The Brothers Brannagan ''The Brothers Brannagan'' is an American crime drama television series that aired in syndication from September 24, 1960, to July 15, 1961. Synopsis ''The Brothers Brannagan'' features fictitious detectives Mike and Bob Brannagan, portrayed, re ...
'', with Stephen Dunne and Mark Roberts. He made guest appearances on '' Straightaway'' and on '' Dragnet''. In the 1955 episode "The Big Bird," Richards played Phil Baurch, who stole from people's homes after being hired out to do yard work. In 1959, he appeared in a five-part episode "Louie K" in the role of Louis "Louie" Kassoff in ''
The Lawless Years ''The Lawless Years'' is an American crime drama series that aired on NBC from April 16, 1959, to September 22, 1961. The series is the first of its kind, set during the Roaring 20s, having antedated American Broadcasting Company, ABC's far more ...
'' with James Gregory. In the March 3, 1961 episode “An Absence of Tears” on the popular TV show “Route 66”, he did a turn as a mob connected bad boy and ex-love to a blind girl looking for revenge against mobsters who murdered her Honeymoon Husband. “He also appeared in ''
Dan Raven ''Dan Raven'' is an American police drama that aired on NBC during the 1960–1961 television season. It stars Skip Homeier and Dan Barton as Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department detectives whose beat is the Sunset Strip. Synopsis Lieutenan ...
'', a crime drama, and the anthology series ''
The Lloyd Bridges Show ''The Lloyd Bridges Show'' is an American Anthology series, anthology Dramatic programming, drama series produced by Aaron Spelling, which aired on CBS from September 11, 1962, to May 28, 1963, starring and hosted by Lloyd Bridges. Broadcast hist ...
'' in the 1962 episode "Testing Ground". On ''
Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a cli ...
,'' in 1959, he played murderer Earl Mauldin in "The Case of the Startled Stallion", then played defendant Ted Chase in the 1962 episode "The Case of the Melancholy Marksman" (in 1973 Richards played Jules Barron in ''
The New Perry Mason ''The New Perry Mason'' is a CBS TV series that ran from 1973 to 1974. It was a revival of the 1957 ''Perry Mason'' television series about Erle Stanley Gardner's brilliant defense attorney. Plot All of the major characters of the original serie ...
'' episode "The Case of the Cagey Cager"). In summer 1960, he appeared on ''
Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
''. In 1962, he portrayed Vance Caldwell in "The Boss's Daughters" on '' Rawhide''. Also in 1962, he played the part of Dr. Max Richter on the ''Death Valley Days'' episode "Bloodline". He starred as Dr. McKinley Thompson in the 1963-1964 medical drama '' Breaking Point''. He appeared in the 1964 episode "Murder by Scandal" of the drama '' The Reporter''. He appeared in a 1964 episode of '' The Fugitive'' titled "A.P.B.". He later appeared as a villainous lawyer in a 1968 episode of ''Hawaii Five-O'', titled "Twenty-four Karat Kill". Richards guest-starred in 1960s and 1970s television series, including '' Burke's Law,'' ''
I Spy I spy is a guessing game where one player (the ''spy'' or ''it'') chooses an object within sight and announces to the other players that "I spy with my little eye something beginning with...", naming the first letter of the object. Other players a ...
,'' ''
Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private inves ...
,'' ''
Banacek ''Banacek'' is an American detective TV series starring George Peppard that aired on the NBC network from 1972 to 1974. The series was part of the rotating '' NBC Wednesday Mystery Movie'' anthology. It alternated in its time slot with several o ...
,'' ''
McMillan and Wife ''McMillan & Wife'' (known simply as ''McMillan'' from 1976–77) is an American police procedural television series that aired on NBC from September 17, 1971, to April 24, 1977. Starring Rock Hudson and Susan Saint James in the title roles, the ...
,'' and three appearances on ''
The Mod Squad ''The Mod Squad'' is an American crime drama series, originally broadcast for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 1968, to March 1, 1973. It starred Michael Cole as Peter "Pete" Cochran, Peggy Lipton as Julie Barnes, Clarence Williams III as ...
'' between 1969 and 1972. Richards appeared primarily in dramas, but made turns into comedy, as well, appearing in "The Town Tamer" episode of Tim Conway's 1967 western sitcom '' Rango'', and in a 1969 episode of ''
Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s, with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, an ...
'' as a villain named Ironhands. He appeared as the mutant leader Mendez in the 1970 science-fiction film ''
Beneath the Planet of the Apes ''Beneath the Planet of the Apes'' is a 1970 American science fiction film directed by Ted Post and written by Paul Dehn. It is the second of five films in the original ''Planet of the Apes'' series produced by Arthur P. Jacobs. The film stars Jam ...
''. One of his minor film roles was a prisoner in ''
Demetrius and the Gladiators ''Demetrius and the Gladiators'' is a 1954 American biblical drama film and a sequel to '' The Robe''. The picture was made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Delmer Daves and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was written by Philip Dunne ...
'', a sequel to
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 Dis ...
's biblical epic ''
The Robe ''The Robe'' is a 1942 historical novel about the Crucifixion of Jesus, written by Lloyd C. Douglas. The book was one of the best-selling titles of the 1940s. It entered the ''New York Times'' Best Seller list in October 1942, four weeks later ...
''. For several years, Richards served as the commercial pitchman for General Motors'
Pontiac Pontiac may refer to: *Pontiac (automobile), a car brand *Pontiac (Ottawa leader) ( – 1769), a Native American war chief Places and jurisdictions Canada *Pontiac, Quebec, a municipality ** Apostolic Vicariate of Pontiac, now the Roman Catholic D ...
Division, doing commercials for several of its cars, including the GTO and
Firebird Firebird and fire bird may refer to: Mythical birds * Phoenix (mythology), sacred firebird found in the mythologies of many cultures * Bennu, Egyptian firebird * Huma bird, Persian firebird * Firebird (Slavic folklore) Bird species ''Various sp ...
. He was a commercial spokesman for
Braniff Airways Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until air operations ceased, was an airline in the United States that once flew air carrier operations from 1928 un ...
in 1965 and starred in the Airline's historic End of the Plain Plane television commercial. In the early 1970s, he was a commercial spokesman for American Express.


Personal life

In 1953, Richards married actress Monica Keating.


Death

Richards died from cancer at the age of 50, and was entombed in Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery.


Partial filmography

*''
Fixed Bayonets! ''Fixed Bayonets!'' is a 1951 American war film written and directed by Samuel Fuller and produced by Twentieth Century-Fox during the Korean War. It is Fuller's second film about the Korean War. In his motion-picture debut, James Dean appears br ...
'' (1951) - Ramirez (uncredited) *'' War Paint'' (1953) - Trooper Perkins *'' Hell and High Water'' (1954) - Prisoner (uncredited) *''
Phantom of the Rue Morgue ''Phantom of the Rue Morgue'' is a 1954 American mystery horror film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Karl Malden, Claude Dauphin and Patricia Medina. The film is an adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's 1841 short story ''The Murders in the Ru ...
'' (1954) - Rene the Knife-thrower *''
Playgirl ''Playgirl'' was an American magazine that featured general interest articles, lifestyle and celebrity news, in addition to nude or semi-nude men. In the 1970s and 1980s, the magazine printed monthly and was marketed mainly to women, although i ...
'' (1954) - Wilbur *''
Demetrius and the Gladiators ''Demetrius and the Gladiators'' is a 1954 American biblical drama film and a sequel to '' The Robe''. The picture was made by 20th Century Fox, directed by Delmer Daves and produced by Frank Ross. The screenplay was written by Philip Dunne ...
'' (1954) - Prisoner (uncredited) *'' Pushover'' (1954) - Harry Wheeler (uncredited) *''
The Silver Chalice ''The Silver Chalice'' is a 1952 English language historical novel by Thomas B. Costain. It is the fictional story of the making of a silver chalice to hold the Holy Grail (itself here conflated with the Holy Chalice) and includes 1st century b ...
'' (1954) - Tigellinus (uncredited) *''
Kiss Me Deadly ''Kiss Me Deadly'' is a 1955 American film noir produced and directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Ralph Meeker, Albert Dekker, Paul Stewart, Juano Hernandez, and Wesley Addy. It also features Maxine Cooper and Cloris Leachman appearing in the ...
'' (1955) - Attacker *''
Tall Man Riding ''Tall Man Riding'' is a 1955 American Western (genre), Western Warnercolor film directed by Lesley Selander and starring Randolph Scott, Dorothy Malone, and Peggie Castle. Based on the novel ''Tall Man Riding'', by Norman A. Fox, the film is ab ...
'' (1955) - The Peso Kid *''
The Houston Story ''The Houston Story'' is a 1956 American crime film noir directed by William Castle and starring Gene Barry, Barbara Hale and Edward Arnold. Plot Frank Duncan (Barry), a shrewd oil driller from Galveston, Texas, conceives a plan to sneakily sip ...
'' (1956) - Gordon Shay *''
Tension at Table Rock ''Tension at Table Rock'' is a 1956 American Western (genre), Western Drama (genre), drama film directed by Charles Marquis Warren and starring Richard Egan (actor), Richard Egan and Dorothy Malone. Wes Tancred (Richard Egan (actor), Richard Eg ...
'' (1956) - Sam Murdock *''
Scandal Incorporated ''Scandal Incorporated'' is a 1956 American crime film directed by Edward Mann and written by Milton Mann. The film stars Robert Hutton, Patricia Wright, Paul Richards, Robert Knapp, Havis Davenport and Reid Hammond. It was released on Octob ...
'' (1956) - Martin Ellis *''
The Black Whip ''The Black Whip'' is a 1957 American Civil War Western film directed by Charles Marquis Warren and starring Hugh Marlowe and Coleen Gray. The film brief describes the film as "two brothers rescue four dance-hall girls, and encounter trouble f ...
'' (1956) - John Murdock *'' Hot Summer Night'' (1957) - Elly Horn *'' Monkey on My Back'' (1957) - Rico *''
The Unknown Terror ''The Unknown Terror'' is a 1957 widescreen American horror film, horror science fiction film directed by Charles Marquis Warren and starring John Howard (American actor), John Howard, Mala Powers, Paul Richards (actor), Paul Richards and May Wyn ...
'' (1957) - Peter Morgan *''
Blood Arrow ''Blood Arrow'' is a 1958 American Western film directed by Charles Marquis Warren and written by Fred Freiberger. The film stars Scott Brady, Paul Richards, Phyllis Coates, Don Haggerty, Diana Darrin and Jeanne Bates. The film was released on ...
'' (1958) - Brill *''
Four Fast Guns ''Four Fast Guns'' is a 1960 American Western film directed by William J. Hole Jr. and written by James Edmiston and Dallas Gaultois. The film stars James Craig, Martha Vickers, Edgar Buchanan, Brett Halsey, Paul Richards and Richard Martin. ...
'' (1960) - Hoag *'' All the Young Men'' (1960) - Pvt. Bracken *''Savage Justice'' (1967) - Rob MacRoy *'' The St. Valentine's Day Massacre'' (1967) - Charles Fischetti *''
Beneath the Planet of the Apes ''Beneath the Planet of the Apes'' is a 1970 American science fiction film directed by Ted Post and written by Paul Dehn. It is the second of five films in the original ''Planet of the Apes'' series produced by Arthur P. Jacobs. The film stars Jam ...
'' (1970) - Mendez *''Triangle'' (1970) - Dr. Victor Enfield *''
I Escaped from Devil's Island ''I Escaped from Devil's Island'' is a 1973 exploitation film about an escape attempt from Devil's Island. Roger Corman and Gene Corman produced this grim adventure saga which was made to cash in on the release of '' Papillon''. Plot summary Pr ...
'' (1973) - Maj. Marteau


References


Further reading

* Les Wedman
"The Glass Eye,"
''The Vancouver Sun'' (Monday, May 28, 1962), p. 24
"ABC's 'Breaking Point': Paul Richards - 'Actor's Actor' Discusses His Profession,"
''The Meriden Journal'' (Saturday, March 21, 1964), p. 1-A
"TV Psychiatrist Taking a Break,"
''The Milwaukee Journal'' (Tuesday, April 21, 1964), Part 2, p. 8 * Hal Humphrey
"Acting in the Ads: Richards Makes His way Commercially,"
''The Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star'' (Friday, March 1, 1968), p. 14-A


External links

*
Paul Richards - Special Guest Star
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Paul 1924 births 1974 deaths Male actors from California American male film actors American male radio actors American male television actors Jewish American male actors People from Greater Los Angeles Deaths from cancer in California Burials at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American male actors Western (genre) television actors Male Western (genre) film actors 20th-century American Jews