Robert Ridgely

Robert Ridgely
Robert Ridgely
Born	December 24, 1931; Teaneck, New Jersey, U.S.
Died	February 8, 1997 (aged 65); Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1960–1997

Robert Ridgely (December 24, 1931 – February 8, 1997)^[1] was an American actor, known for both on-camera roles and extensive voice-over work.

Biography

Ridgely was born in Teaneck, New Jersey.^[2] Before becoming an actor, he worked as a cabaret entertainer.^[3]

He served as a talk show host with Woody Woodbury. Ridgely appeared in commercials, including a classic McDonald's commercial, staged as a Broadway production number, where he sings "there is nothin' so clean – as my burger machine". He guest starred on TV series such as Sea Hunt and the Warner Bros. Television series Maverick, Lawman, and Surfside 6. He landed a regular role as Lieutenant Kimbro in the short-lived World War II Warner Bros./ABC series The Gallant Men. After the series was cancelled, he made guest appearances on shows, including Bonanza, WKRP in Cincinnati, Coach, Night Court, Wings, and Designing Women.

He appeared in various films, including two productions directed by Robert Altman early in his career, Nightmare in Chicago and Countdown. He also appeared in several Mel Brooks productions, including Blazing Saddles (1974), High Anxiety (1977), Life Stinks (1991) and Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993). Ridgley starred in other films, including Something Wild (1986), Beverly Hills Cop II (1987), Philadelphia (1993), and Boogie Nights (1997). He put his strong voice to use in voice-over roles in movies like Down and Dirty Duck (1974) and television specials such as Thanksgiving in the Land of Oz (aka Dorothy in the Land of Oz) (1980). He did a great deal of voice work on animated series as well, including the titular heroes in Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle, The New Adventures of Flash Gordon, and Thundarr the Barbarian. From 1985 to 1996, Ridgely was one of ABC's main primetime promo announcers. He also voiced the Peculiar Purple Pieman in the 1980s Strawberry Shortcake specials, Rex Charger in The Centurions, General "Thunderbolt" Ross on the The Incredible Hulk 1982 TV series, Finch on Daisy-Head Mayzie, and Commander Chief in Dexter's Laboratory.^[4]

Ridgely died of cancer on February 8, 1997,^[3] at his home in the Toluca Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles.^[5]

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1964	Nightmare in Chicago	Dan McVeay
1971	Chrome and Hot Leather	Sergeant Mack
1974	Blazing Saddles	Boris, the hangman
1974	The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat	The Devil, Additional Voices	Voice
1977	High Anxiety	Flasher
1977	American Raspberry	Celebrity Sportsman Host
1980	Melvin and Howard	Wally 'Mr. Love' Williams
1983	Heart Like a Wheel	Bob Morton, 'Sportsline'
1984	The Wild Life	Craig Davis
1986	Something Wild	Richard Graves
1987	Beverly Hills Cop II	Mayor Ted Egan
1988	The Dirk Diggler Story	Jack Horner	Short Film
1993	Philadelphia	Walter Kenton
1993	Robin Hood: Men in Tights	Hangman
1994	The Ref	Bob Burley
1996	Hard Eight	Keno Bar Manager
1996	Multiplicity	Laura's Father
1996	That Thing You Do!	Hollywood Showcase Announcer
1997	Fire Down Below	Simon	Posthumous release
1997	Boogie Nights	Colonel James	Posthumous release; final film role

^ "Robert Ridgely". Allmovie. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
^ "Robert Ridgely; Versatile Actor Appeared in Films, Television". The Los Angeles Times. February 13, 1997. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "Robert Ridgely, 65, Film and TV Actor". The New York Times. February 16, 1997. Retrieved December 4, 2013. Mr. Ridgely, a native of Teaneck, N.J., began as a cabaret artist.
^ Robert Ridgely - Behind the Voice Actors.com
^ "Robert Ridgely, film, TV actor". Democrat and Chronicle. New York, Rochester. February 16, 1997. p. 30. Retrieved November 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

Preceded by Ron Ely	Actors to portray Tarzan 1976-1981	Succeeded by Miles O'Keeffe

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