Richard Hale

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Birth name James Richards Hale
Nationality USA
Birth 16 november 1892 at Rogersville (USA)
Death 18 may 1981 (at 88 years) at Northridge (USA)

Richard Hale (16 November 1892 – 18 May 1981) was an American opera and concert singer and later a character actor of film, stage and television. Hale's appearance usually landed him roles as either Middle Eastern or Native American characters.

Born James Richards Hale in Rogersville, Tennessee, he attended Columbia University on a singing scholarship. Upon graduation in 1914, he turned down an offer to join Columbia's English department, choosing instead to join Minnie Maddern Fiske's theater group. Hale's 1921 debut at Aeolian Hall began a successful career in opera as a baritone; he toured Europe and the United States. The 1927 New York Times film review of The Unknown credits "Richard Hale, baritone" as singing "The Pirate's Frolic". During the 1930s, Hale performed at the Berkshire Playhouse in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Hale also narrated Peter and the Wolf for Sergei Prokofiev, at Tanglewood, with Koussevitsky conducting. Hale was also the narrator for Arthur Fiedler's 1953 RCA recording of the same music with the Boston Pops.

In later life, he turned more and more to acting. His most notable role was in the 1956 film Friendly Persuasion, starring Gary Cooper. He was also notable as the Soothsayer who warns "Beware the Ides of March!" in the Shakespeare film Julius Caesar (1953. In All the King's Men his character's name was Richard Hale. He was also known for his portrayal of Father Manuel Ferreira in The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima. He made four guest appearances on Perry Mason, including murder victim George Lutts in 1957 in the show's third episode, "The Case of the Nervous Accomplice," and general store owner Robert Tepper in the 1960 episode, "The Case of the Violent Village." He also appeared in television programs such as Cheyenne ,Rawhide, Maverick, Daniel Boone, Green Acres, Petticoat Junction, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, and Adam-12.

His death at the age of 88 was due to problems relating to cardiovascular disease.

Biography

Richard Hale fait ses débuts d'acteur au théâtre et joue à Broadway (New York) dans onze pièces, de 1914 à 1933 (Les Bas-fonds de Maxime Gorki en 1930, avec Walter Abel). Toujours sur les planches new-yorkaises, il participe également à deux comédies musicales — dont Lady in the Dark en 1943, sur une musique de Kurt Weill, des lyrics d'Ira Gershwin et un livret de Moss Hart, avec Gertrude Lawrence —, ainsi qu'à un opéra en 1939, Le Diable et Daniel Webster, sur une musique de Douglas Moore , d'après l'histoire éponyme de Stephen Vincent Benét (qui sera adaptée à l'écran en 1941 ; titre français : Tous les biens de la terre).

Au cinéma, excepté un film muet sorti en 1916, Il apparaît dans une soixantaine de films américains (dont des westerns) de 1944 à 1976, souvent comme second rôle de caractère, parfois dans des petits rôles non-crédités. Parmi ses films notables, mentionnons None Shall Escape d'André De Toth (son premier film parlant en 1944, avec Alexander Knox), Scaramouche de George Sidney (version de 1952, avec Stewart Granger dans le rôle-titre) et Du silence et des ombres de Robert Mulligan (1962, avec Gregory Peck).

À la télévision, hormis un téléfilm en 1973 et un feuilleton en 1978, il collabore surtout à soixante-neuf séries (y compris dans le domaine du western), entre 1951 et 1978. Citons Perry Mason (première série, 1957-1964, quatre épisodes), Bonanza (1966-1967, quatre épisodes) et Star Trek (1968, un épisode).