Richard Cromwell (born LeRoy Melvin Radabaugh; January 8, 1910 – October 11, 1960) also known as Roy Radabaugh, was an American actor. His career was at its pinnacle with his work in ''
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympatheti ...
and
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor whose career spanned five decades on Broadway theatre, Broadway and in Hollywood. On screen and stage, he often portrayed characters who embodied an everyman image.
Bo ...
and again with Fonda in
John Ford
John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), better known as John Ford, was an American film director and producer. He is regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers during the Golden Age of Hollywood, and w ...
Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, silent screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, ...
and
Franchot Tone
Stanislaus Pascal Franchot Tone (February 27, 1905 – September 18, 1968) was an American actor, producer, and director of stage, film and television. He was a leading man in the 1930s and early 1940s, and at the height of his career was known ...
.
That film was the first major effort directed by
Henry Hathaway
Henry Hathaway (March 13, 1898 – February 11, 1985) was an American film director and producer. He is best known as a director of Western (genre), Westerns, especially starring Randolph Scott and John Wayne. He directed Gary Cooper in seven f ...
Paramount Studios
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production and distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount Global. It is the sixth-oldest film studio i ...
a nomination for
Best Picture
The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...
in 1935, though ''
Mutiny on the Bounty
The mutiny on the ''Bounty'' occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of the ship, , from their captain, Lieutenant (navy), Lieutenant William Bli ...
'' instead took the top award at the
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...
that year.
Leslie Halliwell
Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fi ...
in ''The Filmgoer's Companion'', summed up Cromwell's enduring appeal when he described him as "a leading man, hegentle hero of early sound films."
Early life
Radabaugh enrolled as a teenager in the
Chouinard Art Institute
The Chouinard Art Institute was a professional art school founded in 1921 by Nelbert Chouinard, Nelbert Murphy Chouinard (1879–1969) in the Westlake, Los Angeles, Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. In 1961, Walt Disney, Walt and ...
in Los Angeles on a scholarship. He ran a shop in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
where he sold pictures, made lampshades, and designed colour schemes for houses, including "decorating a bathroom for
Colleen Moore
Colleen Moore (born Kathleen Morrison; August 19, 1899 – January 25, 1988) was an American film actress who began her career during the silent film era. Moore became one of the most fashionable (and highly-paid) stars of the era and helped po ...
and designing a house that he rented to
Cole Porter
Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...
."
Career
Radabaugh can be seen in ''
King of Jazz
King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by ...
'' (1930), along with the film's star,
Paul Whiteman
Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American Jazz bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist.
As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 193 ...
and his orchestra. On a whim, friends encouraged him to audition in 1930 for the remake of the
Richard Barthelmess
Richard Semler Barthelmess (May 9, 1895 – August 17, 1963) was an American film actor, principally of the Hollywood silent era. He starred opposite Lillian Gish in D. W. Griffith's '' Broken Blossoms'' (1919) and ''Way Down East'' (1920) and ...
silent: ''
Tol'able David
''Tol'able David'' is a 1921 American silent film based on the 1917 Joseph Hergesheimer short story of the same name. It was adapted to the screen by Edmund Goulding and directed by Henry King for Inspiration Pictures. A rustic tale of vio ...
'' (1930). Radabaugh won the role over thousands of hopefuls. In storybook fashion,
Harry Cohn
Harry Cohn (July 23, 1891 – February 27, 1958) was a co-founder, president, and production director of Columbia Pictures, Columbia Pictures Corporation.
Life and career
Cohn was born to a working-class Jewish family in New York City. His fath ...
gave him his screen name and launched his career. Cromwell earned $75 per week for his work on ''Tol'able David''.
Noah Beery Sr.
Noah Nicholas Beery (January 17, 1882 – April 1, 1946) was an American actor who appeared in films from 1913 until his death in 1946. He was the older brother of Academy Award-winning actor Wallace Beery as well as the father of characte ...
and
John Carradine
John Carradine ( ; born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, considered one of the greatest character actors in American cinema. He was a member of Cecil B. DeMille's stock company and later J ...
co-starred in the film. Later, Cohn signed Cromwell to a multi-year contract based on the strength of his performance and success in his first venture at the box-office. Amidst the flurry of publicity during this period, Cromwell toured the country, even meeting President
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...
in Washington, D.C.
Cromwell by then had maintained a deep friendship with
Marie Dressler
Leila Marie Koerber (November 9, 1868 – July 28, 1934), known professionally as Marie Dressler, was a Canadian-born stage- and screen-actress and comedian, popular in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood in early silent film, silent an ...
, which continued until her death from cancer in 1934. Dressler was nominated for a second Best Actress award for her 1932 portrayal of the title role in '' Emma''. With that film, Dressler personally insisted that her studio bosses cast Cromwell on a loan-out in the lead opposite her. This was another break that helped sustain his rising status in
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
. ''Emma'' also starred
Myrna Loy
Myrna Loy (born Myrna Adele Williams; August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993) was an American film, television and stage actress. As a performer, she was known for her ability to adapt to her screen partner's acting style.
Born in Helena, Monta ...
in one of her earlier screen performances.
Cromwell's next role in 1932 was as Mike in
Gregory La Cava
Gregory La Cava (March 10, 1892 – March 1, 1952) was an American film director of Italian descent best known for his films of the 1930s, including ''My Man Godfrey'' and ''Stage Door'', which earned him nominations for Academy Award for Best ...
's, '' The Age of Consent'', co-starring Eric Linden and Dorothy Wilson. Cromwell is also remembered during this period in '' Hoop-La'' (1933), where he is seduced by
Clara Bow
Clara Gordon Bow (; July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era of the 1920s and successfully made the transition to "talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the ...
. Next, the much in demand Cromwell starred in ''Tom Brown of Culver''.
Next up was an early standout performance by Cromwell as the leader of the youth gang in
Cecil B. DeMille
Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of American cinema and the most co ...
's now cult-favorite, '' This Day and Age'' (1933). To ensure that Cromwell's character used current slang, DeMille asked high school student Horace Hahn to read the script and comment. He starred with Jean Arthur in 1934, in "
The Most Precious Thing in Life
''The Most Precious Thing in Life'' is a 1934 American pre-Code film directed by Lambert Hillyer and starring Richard Cromwell, Jean Arthur, Donald Cook, Anita Louise, and Mary Forbes.
The film tells a story about secret and selfless maternal ...
."
Cromwell's many early pictures were made at
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
and elsewhere. Cromwell starred with
Will Rogers
William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...
in ''Life Begins at 40'' for
Fox Film Corporation
The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American independent company that produced motion pictures and was formed in 1914 by the theater "chain" pioneer William Fox (producer), William Fox. It was the corporate successor to ...
in 1935 and appeared in ''Poppy'' in 1936 as the suitor of W.C. Fields' daughter,
Rochelle Hudson
Rochelle Hudson (born Rachael Elizabeth Hudson; March 6, 1916 – January 17, 1972) was an American film actress from the 1930s through the 1960s.Helen Mack and on the lam from Lionel Atwill in ''The Wrong Road''.
1940s and military service
In the early 1940s,
Universal Pictures
Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
released '' Enemy Agent'' starring Cromwell as a draftsman who thwarts the
Nazis
Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
. In 1942, he went on to appear in marginal but still watchable fare such as '' Baby Face Morgan'', which co-starred Mary Carlisle.
Cromwell enjoyed a career boost, if not a critically acclaimed performance, in the film adaptation of the hit radio serial: ''Cosmo Jones, Crime Smasher'' (1943), opposite
Gale Storm
Josephine Owaissa Cottle (April 5, 1922 – June 27, 2009), known professionally as Gale Storm, was an American actress and singer. After a film career from 1940 to 1952, she starred in two popular television programs of the 1950s, '' My Litt ...
. Next up at
Monogram Pictures
Monogram Pictures Corporation was an American film studio that produced mostly low-budget films between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram was among the smaller studios i ...
, he was cast as a doctor working covertly for a police department to catch mobsters in the forgettable though endearing '' Riot Squad'', wherein his "fiancée", Rita Quigley, breaks their engagement.
Personal life
Back in
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
for good, Cromwell was married once, briefly (1945–1946), to actress
Angela Lansbury
Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American actress, producer, and singer. In a career spanning 80 years, she played various roles on stage and screen. Among her numerous accolades wer ...
, when she was 19 and Cromwell was 35.
Cromwell made just one statement to the press regarding his wife of nine months and one of her habits: "All over the house, tea bags. In the middle of the night she'd get up and start drinking tea. It nearly drove me crazy."
According to the biography: ''Angela Lansbury, A Life on Stage and Screen'', Lansbury stated in a 1966 interview that her first marriage, "was a mistake" and that she learned from it. She stated, "I wouldn't have ''not'' done it", and, "I was too young at 19. he marriageshouldn't have happened." Articles based on interviews with Lansbury have stated that Cromwell was
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
. Cromwell and Lansbury remained friends until his death in 1960.
Death and legacy
In July 1960, Cromwell signed with producer Maury Dexter for
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
's planned production of ''The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come'', co-starring
Jimmie Rodgers
James Charles Rodgers ( – ) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who rose to popularity in the late 1920s. Widely regarded as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Country Music", he is best known for his di ...
, Bob Dix (son of
Richard Dix
Richard Dix (born Ernst Carlton Brimmer; July 18, 1893 – September 20, 1949) was an American motion picture actor who achieved popularity in both silent film, silent and sound film. His standard on-screen image was that of the rugged and sta ...
), and Neil Hamilton who replaced Cromwell in the film. Cromwell became ill and died on October 11, 1960, in Hollywood of
liver cancer
Liver cancer, also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy, is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary in which the cancer starts in the liver, or it can be liver metastasis, or secondar ...
, at the age of 50. He is interred at Fairhaven Memorial Park in Santa Ana, California.
Cromwell's legacy is preserved today by his nephew Dan Putnam, and his cousin Bill Keane IV, both of the
Conejo Valley
The Conejo Valley (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Valle del Conejo'', meaning "Valley of the Rabbit") is a region spanning both southeastern Ventura County, California, Ventura County and northwestern Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles C ...
in
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
, as well as the family of his late niece, Joan Radabaugh, of the Central Coast. In 2005, Keane donated materials relating to Cromwell's radio performances to the
Thousand Oaks
Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, located in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles. Approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, it is named after the many oak trees pr ...
Library's Special Collection, "The American Radio Archive". In 2007, Keane donated memorabilia relating to Cromwell's film career and ceramics work to the
AMPAS
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...
Margaret Herrick Library in
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...
.
Cromwell was mentioned in
Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal ( ; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his acerbic epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays interrogated the Social norm, social and sexual ...
's satirical novel ''
Myra Breckinridge
''Myra Breckinridge'' is a 1968 satirical novel by Gore Vidal written in the form of a diary. Described by the critic Dennis Altman as "part of a major cultural assault on the assumed norms of gender and sexuality which swept the western world ...
'' (1968) as "the late Richard Cromwell, so satisfyingly tortured in '' Lives of a Bengal Lancer''".
Filmography
Bibliography
* Blum, Daniel. ''Screen World, 1961'', Chilton Company, Philadelphia, New York, 1961.
* Cary, Diana Serra. ''Jackie Coogan—The World's Boy King'', Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Maryland, 2003.
* Crivello, Kirk. "Richard Cromwell--A Memoir and A Filmography", article in ''Filmograph'', Vol. IV, No. 4, Orlean, Virginia, (likely mid-1970s).
* Edelman, Rob and Audrey Kupferberg. ''Angela Lansbury, A Life on Stage and Screen'', Birch Lane Press, New York, 1996.
* ditors, various ''Cut! Hollywood Murders, Accidents and Other Tragedies'', Barron's Press, Hauppauge, N.Y., 2006.
* ditors, various ''Picture Show Annual for 1932'', Amalgamated Press LTD., The Fleetway House, London, 1932.
* Higham, Charles. ''Cecil B. DeMille: A Biography . . .'', Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1973.
* Isherwood, Christopher. ''Lost Years, A Memoir 1945–1951'', Vintage Books, Division of Random House, London (Copyright Don Bachardy), 2000.
* Lamparski, Richard. ''Hollywood Diary—Twelve Untold Tales . . .'', BearManor Media, Albany, Georgia, 2006.
* Lee, Betty. ''Marie Dressler: The Unlikeliest Star'', The University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, 1997.
* Morino, Marianne. ''The Hollywood Walk of Fame'', Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, 1987.
* Palmer, Paul R. "Richard Cromwell", article in ''Film Fan Monthly'', No. 167 (Leonard Maltin, Editor), Teaneck, New Jersey, May 1975.
* Vermilye, Jerry. ''The Films of the Thirties'', Citadel Press, Secaucus, New Jersey, 1982.
* Vidal, Gore. ''Myra Breckinridge'', Little, Brown, & Co., Boston, Toronto, 1968.