Hal Riddle was a Broadway, movie and television actor. Better known as a character actor than a featured player, Riddle appeared in numerous supporting roles in the 1950s – 1980s.

Career

Riddle's interest in acting started after receiving an autographed picture from actor Billie Dove

Billie Dove

Billie Dove was an American actress.-Early life and career:She was born as Bertha Bohny in New York City to Charles and Bertha Bohny who were Swiss immigrants. As a teen, she worked as a model to help support her family and was hired at the age of 15 by Florenz Ziegfeld to appear in his Ziegfeld...

. Riddle quit a salesman job at National Cash Register Company in New York City in 1946 to join Hayloft Summer Theater in Allentown, Pennsylvania

Allentown, Pennsylvania

Allentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...

 as a secretary. While there he was given small parts and roomed with an unknown Jack Lemmon

Jack Lemmon

John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III was an American actor and musician. He starred in more than 60 films including Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, Mister Roberts , Days of Wine and Roses, The Great Race, Irma la Douce, The Odd Couple, Save the Tiger John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III (February 8, 1925June...

. After leaving Hayloft Riddle joined Sanford Meisner's Neighborhood Playhousewhere he worked with Grace Kelly and Steve McQueen.

Riddle made his Broadway debut in 1950 in Mister Roberts

Mister Roberts (play)

Mister Roberts is a 1948 play based on the 1946 Thomas Heggen novel of the same name.The novel began as a collection of short stories about Heggen's experiences aboard the USS Virgo in the South Pacific during World War II...

and moved to Hollywood to take a part in 1958 film Onionhead

Onionhead

Onionhead is a 1958 movie, set on a U.S. Coast Guard cutter during World War II, starring Andy Griffith and featuring Felicia Farr, Walter Matthau, and Erin O'Brien....

. Riddle retired from acting in 1995.

Hollywood memorabilia collection

Riddle's interest in Hollywood and acting started when, as an 11-year-old, he received an autographed picture from silent film star Billie Dove

Billie Dove

Billie Dove was an American actress.-Early life and career:She was born as Bertha Bohny in New York City to Charles and Bertha Bohny who were Swiss immigrants. As a teen, she worked as a model to help support her family and was hired at the age of 15 by Florenz Ziegfeld to appear in his Ziegfeld...

. Over the next 80 years Riddle added original movie posters, autographed pictures, and letters to the collection. In 2001, Riddle donated his collection of more than 1,700 movie-related items spanning over 70 years to his alma mater, Murray State University in Kentucky.

Billie Dove friendship

In 1995, Riddle retired to the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital

Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital

The Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital is a retirement community, with individual cottages, and a fully licensed, acute-care hospital, located at 23388 Mulholland Drive in Woodland Hills, California...

. While at there Riddle struck up a friendship with Billie Dove who in 1922 sparked Riddle's interest in acting. In 1998, Riddle delivered fellow actor Billie Dove's

Billie Dove

Billie Dove was an American actress.-Early life and career:She was born as Bertha Bohny in New York City to Charles and Bertha Bohny who were Swiss immigrants. As a teen, she worked as a model to help support her family and was hired at the age of 15 by Florenz Ziegfeld to appear in his Ziegfeld...

eulogy.