Smokey Adams...(aka Scott Klavan*) as Ellery Queen
The son of New Jersey senator Ellsworth Adams, he attended the Hunn School and Princeton University, where he pursued a degree in geology. He was a splendid athlete and singer and while at Princeton developed an interest in the theatre. After college, he worked aboard a freighter, then as a special investigator for the Pennsylvania Railroad. He abruptly quit that job and made his way to Hollywood, where he got work as a band vocalist. This led to small singing roles in films beginning in 1934 and then sang on the radio. He was hired by Warner Brothers as a supporting actor who could croon a tune when called upon. His good looks and good natured personality made him a natural choice for the supporting cast. His first starring role was in the western Treachery Rides The Range. In the westerns that followed, he would sing the tune while riding the horse or romancing the gal. After several pictures in which he was billed as Chick Adams, he was signed by Warner Bros. and his name was changed to Smokey. In 1940, Smokey headed for Universal where he was, again, in the supporting case. He worked in serials, Rangers of Fortune ; horror, The Mummy’s Hand; to comedy, Ride ‘Em Cowboy. His signature theme "I'm Smokin’ With Love For You" was introduced in Lasso Lady. After that, roles were sporadic. In recent years, Smokey has devoted himself to radio full-time, appearing in soap operas and mysteries and on occasion, often providing comedy relief. A reliable and feisty second banana, he’s traded quips with the best of them: Eddie Cantor, Jack Benny, Hilda Benson, Fred Allen, Tubby Johnson, and Milton Berle.
The son of New Jersey senator Ellsworth Adams, he attended the Hunn School and Princeton University, where he pursued a degree in geology. He was a splendid athlete and singer and while at Princeton developed an interest in the theatre. After college, he worked aboard a freighter, then as a special investigator for the Pennsylvania Railroad. He abruptly quit that job and made his way to Hollywood, where he got work as a band vocalist. This led to small singing roles in films beginning in 1934 and then sang on the radio. He was hired by Warner Brothers as a supporting actor who could croon a tune when called upon. His good looks and good natured personality made him a natural choice for the supporting cast. His first starring role was in the western Treachery Rides The Range. In the westerns that followed, he would sing the tune while riding the horse or romancing the gal. After several pictures in which he was billed as Chick Adams, he was signed by Warner Bros. and his name was changed to Smokey. In 1940, Smokey headed for Universal where he was, again, in the supporting case. He worked in serials, Rangers of Fortune ; horror, The Mummy’s Hand; to comedy, Ride ‘Em Cowboy. His signature theme "I'm Smokin’ With Love For You" was introduced in Lasso Lady. After that, roles were sporadic. In recent years, Smokey has devoted himself to radio full-time, appearing in soap operas and mysteries and on occasion, often providing comedy relief. A reliable and feisty second banana, he’s traded quips with the best of them: Eddie Cantor, Jack Benny, Hilda Benson, Fred Allen, Tubby Johnson, and Milton Berle.
Irene Dahlia...(aka Laura Leopard*) as Nikki
Born Arina Torporkov in Saint Petersburg, Irene’s mother was a member of the Moscow Art Theatre founded by Constantin Stanislovski. Her family immigrated on the heels of the Russian Revolution in 1917. Once safely in New York, her mother Sonia Torporkov (stage name Mollie Anderson) began her Broadway career, appearing in The Fountain of Youth” among others. Irene made her Broadway debut in 1924 with a small role in Anthony and Cleopatra. She returned to Broadway in 1926, starring in “She Couldn’t Say No” and has been a star in her own right ever since. FDR once remarked on her performance in “The Bohemian Girl” as “moving Russian and U.S. relations to a new delicious level.” Irene will next appear in Gotham Radio Theatre’s production of Present Laughter this summer she toured the country in the Broadway hit, “Suspect”. Married briefly to screen star, John Garfield, Irene lives quietly in New York with her little dog Sasha.
Born Arina Torporkov in Saint Petersburg, Irene’s mother was a member of the Moscow Art Theatre founded by Constantin Stanislovski. Her family immigrated on the heels of the Russian Revolution in 1917. Once safely in New York, her mother Sonia Torporkov (stage name Mollie Anderson) began her Broadway career, appearing in The Fountain of Youth” among others. Irene made her Broadway debut in 1924 with a small role in Anthony and Cleopatra. She returned to Broadway in 1926, starring in “She Couldn’t Say No” and has been a star in her own right ever since. FDR once remarked on her performance in “The Bohemian Girl” as “moving Russian and U.S. relations to a new delicious level.” Irene will next appear in Gotham Radio Theatre’s production of Present Laughter this summer she toured the country in the Broadway hit, “Suspect”. Married briefly to screen star, John Garfield, Irene lives quietly in New York with her little dog Sasha.
Louie Gugliano ...(aka Vince Trani*) as Sgt. Velie
Born in Brooklyn in 1886, the son of an immigrant bread baker from Genoa, Louie’s career began in vaudeville, singing beside a young George Burns in the Pee Wee Quartet. He then went solo as Little Louie, boy crooner. A promising songwriter, Louie often brought the crowd to tears with his heartrending rendition of Your Mother Is Your Best Friend After All, which Irving Berlin himself has called “the worst song I ever heard.” Louie also appeared in silent films, most notably as the bratty kid Charley Chase dropped down the well in Who’s Your Daddy? Louie started in radio playing spooky organ for Inner Sanctum and belting out bloodcurdling screams whenever anybody was murdered. Today Louie is best known for playing a score of memorable bit parts in obscure films, and is affectionately referred to in the business as “you know…what’shisname.”
Born in Brooklyn in 1886, the son of an immigrant bread baker from Genoa, Louie’s career began in vaudeville, singing beside a young George Burns in the Pee Wee Quartet. He then went solo as Little Louie, boy crooner. A promising songwriter, Louie often brought the crowd to tears with his heartrending rendition of Your Mother Is Your Best Friend After All, which Irving Berlin himself has called “the worst song I ever heard.” Louie also appeared in silent films, most notably as the bratty kid Charley Chase dropped down the well in Who’s Your Daddy? Louie started in radio playing spooky organ for Inner Sanctum and belting out bloodcurdling screams whenever anybody was murdered. Today Louie is best known for playing a score of memorable bit parts in obscure films, and is affectionately referred to in the business as “you know…what’shisname.”
Bartholomew Redmond...(aka Martin McGeachy*) as Inspector Queen
Bartholomew “Bartie” Redmond grew up in rural Tennessee, the only son of well-known Presbyterian evangelist “Rev. Hellfire” Redmond and temperance leader Sarah Mae Angle. Expected to follow in his father’s footsteps, in 1905 on the afternoon of his sixteenth birthday, while testifying at a tent revival in Memphis on the sins of youthful whimsy, Bartie was interrupted by a cavalcade of clowns shilling for Cap’n Marvell’s Showboat Circus, and before he could stop himself, he followed the parade down to the riverside joined the troupe. Within a few years Bartie had made a name for himself playing a variety of mustachioed villains in riverboat melodramas, but finding himself unemployed in 1914 when the Floating Palace sank off St. Louis, Bartie joined a vaudevillian act as straight man for Penelope’s Performing Poodles. The dog act wintered in Edendale, California, where Bartie made the acquaintance of famed film director Mack Sennett, who began to use him in minor roles. Ironically, his greatest notoriety came playing Bishop Bittles, the tipsy priest in a series of Fatty Arbuckle shorts. In 1923, he married Penelope, and believing there was no future in the movie industry, in 1928 moved his wife and poodles to New York, where he has been a fixture of local theatre, radio and dog grooming ever since, and is proud to be the volunteer chaplain at the Ziegfeld Home for Aged Vaudevillians.
Bartholomew “Bartie” Redmond grew up in rural Tennessee, the only son of well-known Presbyterian evangelist “Rev. Hellfire” Redmond and temperance leader Sarah Mae Angle. Expected to follow in his father’s footsteps, in 1905 on the afternoon of his sixteenth birthday, while testifying at a tent revival in Memphis on the sins of youthful whimsy, Bartie was interrupted by a cavalcade of clowns shilling for Cap’n Marvell’s Showboat Circus, and before he could stop himself, he followed the parade down to the riverside joined the troupe. Within a few years Bartie had made a name for himself playing a variety of mustachioed villains in riverboat melodramas, but finding himself unemployed in 1914 when the Floating Palace sank off St. Louis, Bartie joined a vaudevillian act as straight man for Penelope’s Performing Poodles. The dog act wintered in Edendale, California, where Bartie made the acquaintance of famed film director Mack Sennett, who began to use him in minor roles. Ironically, his greatest notoriety came playing Bishop Bittles, the tipsy priest in a series of Fatty Arbuckle shorts. In 1923, he married Penelope, and believing there was no future in the movie industry, in 1928 moved his wife and poodles to New York, where he has been a fixture of local theatre, radio and dog grooming ever since, and is proud to be the volunteer chaplain at the Ziegfeld Home for Aged Vaudevillians.
Otto Schmearcase...(aka Bob Ader*) as a Guest Detective
Born in 1892 in Branau, Austria, Otto was the only child of the Baron and Baroness Von Shmearcase. After seeing his first Vaudeville show, he was bitten by the Show Business bug and became a song and dance man. OTTO and his boyfriend Adolph, formed a variety act called Shmearcase und Shickelgruber and performed all through Germany. Fifteen years later, the act broke up when Adolph opted for a career in politics. Otto then decided to become a serious dramatic actor, and in 1927, he was cast as a tap dancing robot in Fritz Lang’s classic silent film Metropolis. On Lang’s recommendation, Otto obtained an interview with Louis B. Mayer at MGM who told Otto that he had the perfect face for Radio. Following Mayer’s valuable advice, Otto was cast in The Carter’s Little Liver Pills Theatre Radio Production Of Young Abe Lincoln In Flatbush, playing the title role. Traveling to London, he spent next 12 years in elocution study with George Bernard Shaw. When he returned to American, he was contacted by Gotham Radio Theatre to appear in this evening’s production.
Born in 1892 in Branau, Austria, Otto was the only child of the Baron and Baroness Von Shmearcase. After seeing his first Vaudeville show, he was bitten by the Show Business bug and became a song and dance man. OTTO and his boyfriend Adolph, formed a variety act called Shmearcase und Shickelgruber and performed all through Germany. Fifteen years later, the act broke up when Adolph opted for a career in politics. Otto then decided to become a serious dramatic actor, and in 1927, he was cast as a tap dancing robot in Fritz Lang’s classic silent film Metropolis. On Lang’s recommendation, Otto obtained an interview with Louis B. Mayer at MGM who told Otto that he had the perfect face for Radio. Following Mayer’s valuable advice, Otto was cast in The Carter’s Little Liver Pills Theatre Radio Production Of Young Abe Lincoln In Flatbush, playing the title role. Traveling to London, he spent next 12 years in elocution study with George Bernard Shaw. When he returned to American, he was contacted by Gotham Radio Theatre to appear in this evening’s production.
Conductor: Donald J. Bixby....(aka Jacob Thomas Carr)
Son of the famous bicycle manufacturer, John Bixby, Donald grew up on the outskirts of San Francisco. The youngest of five boys, he was considered a quiet and introverted child from a very young age, and would usually respond to verbal inquires by improvising a melody on the piano, much to the great annoyance of his entire family. A studious and serious child, it was not uncommon for him to spend hours in the park charting the projectory of falling leaves. He later attended the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory, where he became an ardent attendee of Oberlin Student Film Night, as well as an active composer of incidental music for the Oberlin Shakespeare Society. After graduation he toured with the famous Robert Kranston orchestra, helping bring the music of Charlie Chaplin films to live audiences across the United States and Canada. However, that circuit was soon to dry up as technology advanced and motion pictures began to include synchronized sound. Donald then took a year long sabbatical, spending most of it in an abandoned fishing cabin in Vancouver, composing what he still considers his greatest music masterpiece “The Sound of Silence”. He would eventually find his way to New York City, working as a pianist for a number of broadway shows, including Keep of the Grass, and It Happens on Ice. He is elated to make his professional radio debut with Gotham Radio Theatre.
Son of the famous bicycle manufacturer, John Bixby, Donald grew up on the outskirts of San Francisco. The youngest of five boys, he was considered a quiet and introverted child from a very young age, and would usually respond to verbal inquires by improvising a melody on the piano, much to the great annoyance of his entire family. A studious and serious child, it was not uncommon for him to spend hours in the park charting the projectory of falling leaves. He later attended the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory, where he became an ardent attendee of Oberlin Student Film Night, as well as an active composer of incidental music for the Oberlin Shakespeare Society. After graduation he toured with the famous Robert Kranston orchestra, helping bring the music of Charlie Chaplin films to live audiences across the United States and Canada. However, that circuit was soon to dry up as technology advanced and motion pictures began to include synchronized sound. Donald then took a year long sabbatical, spending most of it in an abandoned fishing cabin in Vancouver, composing what he still considers his greatest music masterpiece “The Sound of Silence”. He would eventually find his way to New York City, working as a pianist for a number of broadway shows, including Keep of the Grass, and It Happens on Ice. He is elated to make his professional radio debut with Gotham Radio Theatre.
Director: Sydnie Gale...(aka Sydnie Grosberg Ronga)
Sydnie Gale began her career as a stage manager, most notably for Sarah Bernhardt's American tour. Miss Bernhardt brought her back to France, but not knowing the language Miss Gale moved to London. She spent the next few years touring with plays by Shaw and Wilde. While working with the Gaiety Players she was asked to direct Shaw's The Philanderer. The tour was a great success and she became the company's regular director bringing some American plays into their repertoire. In 1928 the Gaiety Players toured the United States and Miss Gale decided to stay. She directed for The Theatre Guild bringing the works of Shaw, Molnar and Pirandello to the American Stage. As radio became more popular she often adapted her .......broadcast. Miss Gale has been the primary director for Gotham Radio Theatre and is delighted to be continuing her work with with this adaptation of Ellery Queen.
Sydnie Gale began her career as a stage manager, most notably for Sarah Bernhardt's American tour. Miss Bernhardt brought her back to France, but not knowing the language Miss Gale moved to London. She spent the next few years touring with plays by Shaw and Wilde. While working with the Gaiety Players she was asked to direct Shaw's The Philanderer. The tour was a great success and she became the company's regular director bringing some American plays into their repertoire. In 1928 the Gaiety Players toured the United States and Miss Gale decided to stay. She directed for The Theatre Guild bringing the works of Shaw, Molnar and Pirandello to the American Stage. As radio became more popular she often adapted her .......broadcast. Miss Gale has been the primary director for Gotham Radio Theatre and is delighted to be continuing her work with with this adaptation of Ellery Queen.
Actors with *, appear as a courtesy from Actors Equity Association