John Ridgely (born John Huntington Rea, September 6, 1909 – January 18, 1968 ) was an American film character actor with over 175 film credits.

Early years

Ridgely was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of John Ridgely Rea. He completed his elementary schooling was in Hinsdale, Illinois, and he attended Kemper Military School in Boonville, Missouri. He also studied at Stanford University before making his movie debut.

Film

He appeared in the 1946 Humphrey Bogart film The Big Sleep as blackmailing gangster Eddie Mars and had a pivotal role as a suffering heart patient in the film noir Nora Prentiss (1947). His most prominent other roles were his top-billed part as the bomber captain in Howard Hawks's Air Force and as real-life fighter pilot Tex Hill in 1945's God is My Co-Pilot. The Chicago-born actor appeared in a large number of other films, particularly for Warner Bros., in the 1930s and 1940s. Freelancing after 1948, Ridgely continued to essay general-purpose parts until he left films in 1953.

Later life and death

He worked in summer-theater productions and television until his death from a heart attack at the age of 58 in 1968.

Selected filmography

Radio appearances