Richard Whorf

American actor, director and author (1906–1966)

Margaret Harriet Smith

(m. 1929)

^[1]RelativesBenjamin Lee Whorf (brother)

Richard Whorf (June 4, 1906 – December 14, 1966) was an American actor, writer and film director.

Life and acting career

Whorf was born in Winthrop, Massachusetts to Harry and Sarah (née Lee) Whorf. His older brother was linguist Benjamin Lee Whorf.^[2] Whorf began his acting career on the Boston stage as a teenager, then moved to Broadway at age 21, debuting there in The Banshee (1927).^[3] He played a famous painter who had resorted to drinking in the 1960 episode "The Illustrator" of The Rifleman, starring Chuck Connors and Johnny Crawford.

Directing career

He began his film directing career with the 1942 short subject March On, America and the 1944 feature film Blonde Fever.

He directed a number of television programs in the 1950s and 1960s, including early episodes of Gunsmoke, the entire second season of My Three Sons and 67 episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies. He directed the short-lived series Border Patrol and the 1964–1965 ABC sitcom Mickey, starring Mickey Rooney. In the summer of 1960, he guest-starred in one episode and directed other segments of the short-lived western series Tate, and he directed episodes of the 1961–1962 CBS sitcom Father of the Bride, starring Leon Ames. .

Whorf directed the unsuccessful 1961 stage comedy Julia, Jake and Uncle Joe.^[4]

Personal life

In 1929, Whorf married Margaret H. Smith.^[5] He was a brother of John Whorf ((1903–1959), an artist.^[6]

Partial filmography

As actor

Midnight (1934) - Arthur Weldon
Blues in the Night (1941) - Jigger Pine
Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) - Sam Harris
Juke Girl (1942) - Danny Frazier
Keeper of the Flame (1943) - Clive Kerndon
Assignment in Brittany (1943) - Jean Kerenor
The Cross of Lorraine (1943) - François
The Impostor (1944, aka Strange Confession) - Lt. Varenne
Christmas Holiday (1944) - Simon Fenimore
Blonde Fever (1944) - Chef (uncredited)
Chain Lightning (1950) - Carl Troxell
The Groom Wore Spurs (1951) - Film Director Richard Whorf (uncredited)

As director

Blonde Fever (1944)
The Hidden Eye (1945)
The Sailor Takes a Wife (1945)
Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)
It Happened in Brooklyn (1947)
Love from a Stranger (1947)
Luxury Liner (1948)
Champagne for Caesar (1950)
The Groom Wore Spurs (1951)
Gunsmoke (1958)

As producer

References

^ Richard Whorf myheritage.com
^ Carrol, John B. (1956) "Introduction" in "Language, Thought and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin Lee Whorf". MIT Press. pp. 2-3
^ "Richard Whorf". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
^ Julia, Jake and Uncle Joe at the Internet Broadway Database
^ Pryor, Thomas M. (October 22, 1944). "Man of Talents". The New York Times. p. X 3. ProQuest 106833766. Retrieved November 7, 2020 – via ProQuest.
^ "The Whorf Family in Winthrop". winthropmemorials.org. 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2024.