Richard Long was an American actor better known for his leading roles in
three ABC television series, including The Big Valley, Nanny and the Professor,
and Bourbon Street Beat. He was also a series regular on ABC's 77 Sunset Strip
from 1960-62. Background
Long was the fifth of six children born in Chicago, to Sherman D. Long, a
commercial artist who operated his own studio, and Dale McCord Long. The family
settled in Evanston, where Long attended grammar school. He attended Waller High
School in Chicago and Evanston Township High School. In 1944, the family
relocated again, to Hollywood, California, and Long attended Hollywood
High School for his senior year. Long said that as a teenager he had "no
intention of becoming an actor. I took senior drama class because it was a snap
course, and I needed the credit for my English requirement".
At Hollywood High School, Long caught the eye of a talent scout from
Universal-International by accident. Casting director Jack Murton gave a ride
to a couple of students and asked them if a school play was scheduled. The boys
told Murton about the excellent male lead actor, Richard Long.
Film roles In 1946, Long was cast in his first
film, Tomorrow Is Forever as Drew, the son of Claudette Colbert and Orson
Welles. The role had been unfilled for months, and producers selected Long who
most closely matched the credentials required.
Early in his career, Long appeared in several films as a juvenile lead,
including four of the nine Ma and Pa Kettle pictures. He was cast as Tom
Kettle, the eldest son of the characters played by Percy Kilbride and Marjorie
Main. His second film was the Orson Welles film, The Stranger as Noah
Longstreet, the brother of Loretta Young's character. He also played "Jeff
Taylor" in The Life of Riley and played "Frank James" in the 1950 movie Kansas
Raiders. In 1956, Richard Long played a leading roll in the western "Fury at
Gunsight Pass". He moved into leading man status in
horror movies such as Cult of the Cobra,and House on Haunted Hill. In
1963, Long was cast in the MGM romantic musical Follow the Boys, along with
costars Connie Francis, Paula Prentiss, and Roger Perry.
Television Long achieved considerable success on
television, including the Warner Brothers detective series set in New
Orleans, Bourbon Street Beat, with co-star Andrew Duggan.
He appeared on episodes of Hey, Jeannie!, The Twilight Zone, 77 Sunset
Strip, and The Tenderfoot for Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. He
played the recurring role of "Gentleman Jack Darby" in four episodes of the
ABC/WB western series, Maverick beginning in 1958, including the most
remembered "Shady Deal at Sunny Acres" installment.
Five months before he was cast in Bourbon Street Beat, Long appeared as
United States Army Capt. Clayton Raymond in the episode "The Vultures" of another
ABC/WB series, Sugarfoot, with Will Hutchins in the title role. Raymond
faces court martial for desertion at a western fort prior to a deadly Indian
attack. Fledgling lawyer Sugarfoot defends Raymond, who refuses to explain
the incident in question, which also involves Isabel Starkey, the wife of the
fort commander, Colonel Starkey. Philip Ober is cast as General Humphrey, who is
determined to find the truth of the matter.
In 1963, Long guest starred in the episode "Hear No Evil" of ABC's Going My
Way, a drama series starring Gene Kelly about a Roman Catholic priest in New
York City. That same year, he was cast as Eddie Breech in the episode "Blood
Bargain" of CBS's The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. In 1965, at the age of
thirty-eight, Long began his role as attorney Jarrod Barkley, the oldest son
to rancher Victoria Barkley, in 112 episodes of The Big Valley, the last of
the major Four Star Television series, a Western which ran on ABC from 1965–1969.
The series was set in the 1870s. Long also directed several episodes of The
Big Valley. In 1953, Long had costarred with Stanwyck in the film All I Desire.
In 1970–71, he and Juliet Mills starred in the ABC sitcom Nanny and the
Professor. In 1973 he starred alongside Julie Harris in the short-lived series,
Thicker than Water. He finished a television movie called Death Cruise,
which would be his last work before his death at age 47.
Personal life Long served in the United States Army
during the Korean War where he was posted to Ft. Ord, California alongside
actors Martin Milner, David Janssen and Clint Eastwood. He was twice married.
His first wife, singer and actress Suzan Ball, whom he had married fourteen
months earlier, died of cancer in 1955, at age 21. In 1957, he married
actress/model Mara Corday, with whom he had three children: Carey, Valerie, and
Gregory. Long was a brother-in-law of actor Marshall Thompson, with whom he
appeared in the 1955 film, Cult of the Cobra.
Death Long had cardiac problems throughout his
adult life and had suffered a heart attack in the late 1950s. As a boy, he
had suffered pneumonia, which apparently weakened his heart. He was also a heavy
smoker and drinker. After suffering several heart attacks, he died on
December 21, 1974, at Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles, just four days
after his 47th birthday. He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered
at sea. Filmography
The Stranger The Dark) Mirror
Cult of the Cobra He Laughed Last
"Fury at Gunsight Pass" House on Haunted Hill
Tomorrow Is Forever References