Truman Bradley (actor)

Truman Bradley (February 8, 1905 – July 28, 1974) was an actor and narrator in radio, television and film.

Early years

Bradley was born February 8, 1905, in Sheldon, Missouri. Although he wanted to be an actor, he followed his parents' desires and studied law.[1]

Career

Radio

Bradley began his career in the 1930s as a radio broadcaster. Working at WBBM[2] in Chicago, Illinois, some considered him "the Mid-West's leading news commentator."[3] He was selected by Henry Ford to be the announcer for the Ford Sunday Evening Hour, for which he flew to Detroit, Michigan, each weekend.[3] With his distinctive, authoritative voice, he soon became a radio actor as well as a narrator in numerous movies. In the mid-1940s, Bradley was a newscaster with KERN in Bakersfield, California.[4]

Bradley was the announcer for Red Skelton's program,[5] Burns and Allen[6] Easy Aces,[1] the Frank Sinatra Show[7] and Screen Guild Players.[8]

Film

A newspaper columnist wrote in 1942 that representatives of the film industry "had stalked him [Bradley] in Chicago, pouncing on him with such enthusiasm and rich offers that he could not, in honesty to himself, refuse."[3] He received critical praise for his work in The Night Before the Divorce in 1942.[3] He was also in Millionaires in Prison (1940)[9] and Murder Among Friends (1941).[10]

Television

Bradley was the host of the 1950s TV series Science Fiction Theatre.[11] He occasionally worked as an actor in films (including two Charlie Chan mysteries in the 1930s) and live theater.

Other business activities

In 1937, Bradley and his sister bought the Chicago-based Mme. Huntingford Cosmetic Company. He was the company's president, and Elene Bradley was general manager, "active in the sales end of the business."[12]

Family

Bradley married Evelyn Jane Esenther of Oak Park, Illinois, September 8, 1937.[12] He married actress Myra Bratton January 12, 1940, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Bratton filed for divorce in Los Angeles, California, March 17, 1941.[13] The divorce was granted November 17, 1941.[14]

He later had a complex relationship with actress Phyllis Ruth, whom he married in 1942. Three years later, she announced plans to file for divorce.[15] Early in 1946, however, a newspaper columnist reported: "The judge who ruled that Starlet Phyllis Ruth and Radio Announcer Truman Bradley could live in the same house, though separated, did a smart thing. They are reconciled now and are going to have a baby in June."[16] A July 14, 1946, column by Jimmie Fidler reported, "The Truman Bradleys ... got a six-pound baby girl."[17]

Death

Bradley died July 28, 1974, in Hollywood, California, at the Motion Picture Home.[18]

References

  1. 1 2 "Your Announcers Are". Radio Mirror 6 (6): 63. October 1936.
  2. ↑ Wolters, Larry (June 30, 1936). "News of the Radio Stations". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 12. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Boesen, Vic (May 1, 1942). "Meet the Stars". Alton Evening Telegraph. p. 27. Retrieved April 25, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Dial Dates (ad)". The Bakersfield Californian. May 25, 1945. p. 12. Retrieved April 26, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Behind the Mike". Broadcasting. February 9, 1942. p. 32. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  6. ↑ Fisher, George (April 1940). "Hollywood Radio Whispers". Radio and Television Mirror 13 (6): 40, 74.
  7. ↑ "Frank Sinatra Show". Billboard. January 15, 1944. p. 26. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  8. ↑ Abbott, Sam (October 31, 1942). "Hollywood". Billboard. p. 8. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  9. ↑ "(movie ad)". The Daily Mail. November 11, 1940. p. 2. Retrieved April 26, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Exciting and Funny Murder Mystery at Henry's Theatre". The Daily Mail. May 15, 1941. p. 3. Retrieved April 25, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-2834-2. P. 39.
  12. 1 2 "Bradley Buys Talc Firm But Continues in Radio". September 15, 1937. p. 26. Retrieved 27 April 2015.
  13. ↑ "Truman Bradley Sued Again by Wife". The Times. March 17, 1941. p. 14. Retrieved April 25, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Divorces". Billboard. November 29, 1947. p. 46. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  15. ↑ "Phyllis Ruth To Seek A Divorce". The Morning Herald. August 30, 1945. p. 5. Retrieved April 26, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ Carroll, Harrison (January 23, 1946). "Behind The Scenes In Hollywood". The Morning Herald. p. 9. Retrieved April 26, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ "Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood". Joplin Globe. July 14, 1946. p. 28. Retrieved April 26, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Truman Bradley dies in Hollywood". The Pantagraph. July 29, 1974. p. 1. Retrieved April 25, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

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