Bob Bailey (actor)
Encyclopedia
Bob Bailey was an American actor who appeared mostly on radio
.
In the early 1940s Bailey was regularly featured on network radio programs emanating from Chicago. He was signed by 20th Century-Fox and appeared in seven feature films; the first two (in which he was most prominent) starred Laurel and Hardy
.
Starting in 1946, Bailey starred as freelance detective George Valentine in the radio drama Let George Do It
. but he is best remembered as the title character in the long-running radio series Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar
. The program ran from 1949 until 1962 (it was the last major series on the air) and featured the exploits of "America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator"; Bailey starred as Johnny from 1955 through 1960 and wrote the script for the December 22, 1957 episode "The Carmen Kringle Matter" using the pen name "Robert Bainter".
When Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar relocated to New York in 1960, Bailey gave up the role. Having appeared in almost five hundred episodes, he had made the role his own. With the end of his involvement, the show would wind down over the following two years before being taken off the air in 1962, by which time Bailey had virtually given up acting. Near the end of the 1962 film Birdman of Alcatraz
, he can be seen as one of the reporters gathered around Burt Lancaster
and Edmond O'Brien
; O'Brien had portrayed Johnny Dollar on the radio from 1950 to 1952.
Bailey struggled with alcoholism
as his health declined, but did recover toward the end of his life. He died in California at age 70 on August 13, 1983.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
.
In the early 1940s Bailey was regularly featured on network radio programs emanating from Chicago. He was signed by 20th Century-Fox and appeared in seven feature films; the first two (in which he was most prominent) starred Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
.
Starting in 1946, Bailey starred as freelance detective George Valentine in the radio drama Let George Do It
Let George Do It (radio)
Let George Do It was a radio drama series produced by Owen and Pauline Vinson from 1946 to 1954. It starred Bob Bailey as detective-for-hire George Valentine ....
. but he is best remembered as the title character in the long-running radio series Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar
Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar was a radio drama of "the transcribed adventures of the man with the action-packed expense account — America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator." The show aired on CBS Radio from January 14, 1949 to September 30, 1962...
. The program ran from 1949 until 1962 (it was the last major series on the air) and featured the exploits of "America's fabulous freelance insurance investigator"; Bailey starred as Johnny from 1955 through 1960 and wrote the script for the December 22, 1957 episode "The Carmen Kringle Matter" using the pen name "Robert Bainter".
When Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar relocated to New York in 1960, Bailey gave up the role. Having appeared in almost five hundred episodes, he had made the role his own. With the end of his involvement, the show would wind down over the following two years before being taken off the air in 1962, by which time Bailey had virtually given up acting. Near the end of the 1962 film Birdman of Alcatraz
Birdman of Alcatraz
Robert Franklin Stroud , known as the "Birdman of Alcatraz", was a federal American prisoner who reared and sold birds and became an ornithologist...
, he can be seen as one of the reporters gathered around Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
and Edmond O'Brien
Edmond O'Brien
Edmond O'Brien was an American actor who is perhaps best remembered for his role in D.O.A. and his Oscar winning role in The Barefoot Contessa...
; O'Brien had portrayed Johnny Dollar on the radio from 1950 to 1952.
Bailey struggled with alcoholism
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
as his health declined, but did recover toward the end of his life. He died in California at age 70 on August 13, 1983.