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Richard Coogan

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Richard Coogan
Coogan in 1958
Born(1914-04-04)April 4, 1914
Madison, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedMarch 12, 2014(2014-03-12) (aged 99)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActor
Years active1941–1963
PartnerLeona
Children1[1]

Richard Charles Potter Coogan[2] (April 4, 1914 – March 12, 2014) was an American actor best known for his portrayal of Captain Video in Captain Video and His Video Rangers from 1949 to 1950.

Career

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Born in Madison, New Jersey,[2] Coogan worked in radio for some time,[3] including appearing as Abie Levy in Abie's Irish Rose. He appeared on Broadway in five different productions between 1945 and 1955, all of them short-lived except for Diamond Lil with Mae West, and The Rainmaker. He was still appearing on Broadway with West when he took the role of Captain Video and His Video Rangers on the DuMont Television Network on June 27, 1949. After the live telecast each day, ending at about 7:30 pm EST, he took a cab to the theatre where Diamond Lil was playing. As the popularity of Captain Video increased, Coogan grew less and less comfortable with both the role and the very, very low budget of the production. He left Captain Video in December 1950 and was replaced by Al Hodge, who played the part until the series ended on April 1, 1955. Coogan transferred to the soap opera Love of Life, where he played the heroic Paul Raven. [citation needed]

Between 1954 and 1961, Coogan appeared in such films as Three Hours to Kill, The Revolt of Mamie Stover, Vice Raid, and Girl on the Run. On the NBC Western television series, The Californians (1957–1959) set in the California Gold Rush in San Francisco during the 1850s, Coogan appeared as Marshal Matthew Wayne, a character who struck most viewers and critics as a deliberate clone of Gunsmoke's Marshal Matt Dillon. His co-stars included Carole Mathews in a romantic role as the young widow Wilma Fansler and later Jeopardy! host, Art Fleming.

He also had a continuing role on the police procedural series Vice Raid (1960–1961), as Sergeant Whitey Brandon. During 1951–1963 he guest-starred on a number of other television series, mainly Westerns such Gunsmoke, Laramie, Bonanza, Maverick, Stagecoach West, Cheyenne, Sugarfoot, Bronco, and Wichita Town, as well as crime dramas, such as Perry Mason, Surfside 6, and 77 Sunset Strip. In 1960 Coogan appeared as Sheriff Charley Emmett on Cheyenne in the episode titled "Alabi for the Scalped Man".[citation needed] In 1960 he appeared as Hank Lawson on Maverick in the episode "Thunder from the North".[citation needed]

Coogan retired from film and television in 1963 following an appearance on Perry Mason as Police Sgt. Gifford in "The Case of the Shoplifter's Shoe", and his final appearance as Luke Ryan in an episode of Gunsmoke. In later life, he was best known as a professional golfer and golf instructor.

Death

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Coogan died on March 12, 2014, in Los Angeles from natural causes a few weeks before his 100th birthday.[4]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1953 Girl on the Run Bill Martin
1954 Three Hours to Kill Niles Hendricks
1956 The Revolt of Mamie Stover Captain Eldon Sumac
1959 Vice Raid Whitey Brandon

References

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  1. ^ "Richard Coogan, Star of 'Captain Video and His Video Rangers,' Dies at 99". The Hollywood Reporter. 12 March 2014.
  2. ^ a b Adams, Val (March 26, 1950). "Space Opera Hero". The New York Times. p. 107. ProQuest 111446103. Retrieved December 6, 2020 – via ProQuest.
  3. ^ Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. ISBN 0-7864-0351-9.
  4. ^ Barnes, Mike (March 12, 2014). "Richard Coogan, Star of 'Captain Video and His Video Rangers,' Dies at 99". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
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