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Appeared on radio showEd Latimer ( February 14. 1897 - 1956)





Marriage (Feb 7.1924 - 1956, his death):
(1) Catherine  F. Weber (May 5. 1900 - 1963)
      Children:
      Agnes F. (Oct 15. 1924 - 2000)
      Edward B. (Nov 3. 1928 - Mar 30. 2000) ,
      Frances Maria (1937 - Oct 14.1943),
      Thomas (1940 - )
Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library. Ed Latimer Retrieved from http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-10db-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
Boven rechts: Uit de  Billy Rose Theatre Division collectie, The New York Public Library. Ed Latimer.
 

Edward Bancroft Latimer was born on February 14. 1897 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Daniel B. Latimer (b. 1866 d. Mar 21. 1924), a salesman and Bertha M. Hayney (b. 1869 - d 1929)

A student of psychology In Philadelphia, a Master of Arts Mr. Latimer had some very practical ideas about "audience psychology", a subject in which he was intensely interested and one with which he said every actor should be familiar. He considered the study and practice of "character" makeup's a delight, and spent much time on it when necessary.

"The Aeschylean Players", a Tioga N.J. organization much lauded for its excellent stage performances, performed the comedy Polly In Politics. Edward B. Latimer not only participated but was the club's president (1914-1915).

Began his theatrical climb at the Little Theater, Philadelphia in a repertoire of Shaw, Galsworthy, Chekov, Ibsen,.... And at 18, received the only laudatory poem review of the entire company for his Dr. Rank in "A Doll's House" (1915)

To add to his income Ed took on a daytime job. The two jobs dovetailed neatly in an A to Z pattern. At night in the theatre he played roles ranging from juveniles to aged, bearded grandfathers; during the day he completed the A to Z pattern—working as a typist.

The first performance of Altruism, a satire by Karl Ettlinger was given by "The Stage Society Players" of Philadelphia at the Little Theatre, Philadelphia, on January 28, 1916 with Ed Latimer playing a Parisian. Philadelphian Edward B. Latimer made his vaudeville debut with Marie Baer in The Lingerie Laureate, a novel playlet by Lee Pape, a Philadelphia newspaperman. The sketch was the comedy hit of the Stage Society's season at the Little Theatre. (Jul 8, 1917) and was also performed at Keith's.

With a good foundation secure after two years in the city of his birth. Lewis & Gordon engaged him for one of their acts, which played the Orpheum Circuit an entire season.  While on the Coast Mr. Latimer played with Mae Murray in de theaterversie van Danger, Go Slow (1916?). The next season came a transcontinental tour in Frank Wilcox's presentation of It Pays To Advertise, in which he enacted Ambrose Peale (Dec 1916 -?).

So he made his first trip "on the road" as one of "The Washington Square Players" in a one-act play on the Orpheum Circuit, traveling from Philadelphia to the West Coast (WSP toured from Oct 1916-Feb 1917).


Above: Publicity photographs, like this one for  It Pays to Advertise, usually relied on pictures from professional productions, often from New York, and gave Circuit audiences little indication of what the production they would see actually looked like. Iowa. Ed Latimer is possibly the second from the right.

Following a season in London & Winnipeg, Canada, and Salem and Lowell, Mass. he spent two years with the southern company of Abie Irish Rose and then signed a five-year contract with the "Century Players" van de John B. Mack Co. of Lynn, Mass. (ca 1923-24) After more engagements on the road Latimer established and developed a little theatre movement in Elizabeth and Plainfield, N.J. He has acted with "The New York Civic Repertory Co." and "The Theatre Guild" and was at one time associated with Jasper Deeter, founder of the Hedgerow Theatre in Philadelphia.

Descriptions of his early career vary as the following shows. Then followed stock, with "The Mae Desmond Players", Philadelphia; "The Majestic Players", London, Canada; stock in Hamilton, Ont. Canada with "The William Grew Players" at the Grand Opera House in Civilian Clothes (Summer 1921). He also did spend time to be the deputy of the 100 per cent Equity company in Lynn, Mass. A tour thru the Dominion in Charley's Aunt.

For one season Edward joined "The Frances McGrath Resident Players" which presented comedies* such as Turn to the Right, Cappy Ricks, The Brat, Fair and Warmer, Broadway and Buttermilk, Ten Nights in a Barroom, Dawn O' the Mountains, The Naughty Wife, and Getting Gertie's Garter at the Lyceum Theatre in Paterson, NJ (Sep 1921-Mar 1922). This led to his engagement with "The Permanent Players", Winnipeg, Canada in September 1922. Afterward he announced in May 1923 he would go on the road with a New York company.

* For Alma, Where Do You Live? (Feb 6. 1922) he was replaced since the morning of the performance Latimer suffered an attack of pneumonia and was confined to bed.

On February 7. 1924 Ed married Catherine Weber, a secretary, in the St. Pauls Cathedral in Boston.

On March 29. 1924 Edward Latimer of "The Century Players" is described as not only an able actor but also a well-read journalist, who has contributed to the trade journal The Billboard and other publications, including the breezy little house program of the Auditorium Theater, Lynn, Mass.

Ed Latimer, Jr., in a character role, was well made up, but his voice showed the strain of imitation of an elderly man" (1926).
In 1930 he was taking leads in musical stock companies in the burlesque and regular circuit in New York.

In August 1932 he also appeared as Sloppy in a Broadway play called The Devil's Little Game. But his theater experience was far greater than this one credit seems to imply.

In April 1936 Edward was chosen to replace Charles Schofield as company director at the Binghamton Repertory Theatre. Among the credits mentioned were roles in Street Scene and Abraham Lincoln.

Specializing in straights, heavies and narrations in the 30s (since 1937?) he already had an impressive list of radio shows in which he had appeared: Mrs.Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch, Just Plain Bill, David Harum, Mr. Keen Tracer of Missing Persons, Alias Jimmy Valentine (with Bert Lytell), Gang Busters, Society Girl, Columbia Workshop, Americans at Work, Arch Oboler's Plays to name a few.

Ed Latimer became program director of WBNF, and in 1937 directed the WPA Federal Theater Radio Division's oldest series, Pioneers of Science then in its second year over WHN.

Having played supporting parts in films starring Nancy Carroll, Claudette Colbert and Maurice Chevalier one other report in 1941 boasted Ed played 2,327 performances of Abie's Irish Rose on the legitimate stage.
Together with Sean Dillon, former member of the Irish Players Dublin Ed Latimer collaborated on a comic Irish series
Two Harps In Three-Quarter Time (Aug 1941)

The radio actor who has played more than 300 different roles in four years on the air, stepped out of all his characters to visit Nancy Craig's Woman of Tomorrow, Ed described the development of his hobby: makeup for the theater, and demonstrated several of the dialects collected by him in more than a decade of theatrical experience. Like other good radio actors, he talks in the voice of the character he plays. Whether that character be king of rackets on The Adventures of the Thin Man, sheriff on The Mystery Man, Middle-Western farmer The World is Yours,  tramp on Famous Jury Trials or Sergeant McKenna on the Mary Marlin program.  (Nov 1941)

In 1941 he was presented with two season passes for the 77th session of Congress. Not only did this imply studying New York-to-Washington train schedules. He also loved to ride on those "roller-coaster" cars that swish around under government buildings to facilitate legislative transportation.

Ed Latimer (R) played Doc Gordon opposite Casino (Sammie Hill) in Home of the Brave (1941) radio's tender story of gallant people. (Picture below left)

Kindness was something Casino (Sammie Hill) had never known until she met Joe Meade (Ed Latimer), who said, "There's lots of folks in the world that need a new chance."  "Home of the Brave" (1941) radio's tender story of gallant people.In "Rosemary" Mr. Dennis (played by Ed Latimer) has managed to gain Susan Dawson's confidence with a story about her husband even though the fact that he swore her to secrecy should have made her more suspicious (1945).
Above left: Kindness was something Casino (Sammie Hill) had never known until she met Joe Meade (Ed Latimer), who said, "There's lots of folks in the world that need a new chance." Home of the Brave (1941) radio's tender story of gallant people
Above right: In Rosemary Ed Latimer played Mr. Dennis (1945).


Sleep no More, a flop by Lee Loeb and Arthur Strawn (Cort Theatre, Aug-Sep 1944) tells of a shady promoter named Clifford Gates who promotes a pill that kills sleep so you can be active 24 hours a day. Then a mattress manufacturer (Ed Latimer), fearful that his product will become useless, tries to buy the formula. Sleep no More had "a central situation which inspires laughter, but it has been treated in a yawning manner".

In Rosemary (1945) Mr. Dennis (played by Ed Latimer) has managed to gain Susan Dawson's confidence with a story about her husband even though the fact that he swore her to secrecy should have made her more suspicious. (Picture above right)

He also played in radio's Brownstone Theater (1945) opposite Gertrude Warner and Jackson Beck.

Dual roles on the same broadcast have brought painful experiences to many a performer, but few can match the strange assignment of character actor Ed Latimer, who murdered himself in a Nick Carter (1945) sequence then -according to the script- went to the electric chair for his crime.  Ed Latimer, normally featured as police sergeant Mathison during Nick Carter, Master Detective
(1943-1955) received an honorary membership in the "Police Sergeant's Benevolent Society, New York Chapter. " The real sergeants voted the membership to the radio actor "because of his radio presentation of the police sergeant as a warm, human guy, not just a hard-boiled cop."

In The Romance of Helen Trent, a daytime radio institution, Bugsy O'Toole (Ed Latimer) played Gil's general handyman. It was during the war, in the course of Gil's confidential government work, that the two became friendly. Bugsy is a rough but likeable person, and is very devoted to Gil. (1946) (Picture below left) . Gil (David Gothard) lives with Helen (Julie Stevens) in a charming white house in San Fernando Valley, not far from Hollywood, they're being served by Bugsy (Ed Latimer) (Picture below right, 1949).
With the rough exterior and, under it, the sweetness of a child and the devotion of a man who would lay down his life for his friend the role fit Ed Latimer to perfection.

In Helen Trent, a daytime radio institution, Bugsy O'Toole (Ed Latimer) played Gil's general handyman. It was during the war, in the course of Gil's confidential government work, that the two became friendly. Bugsy is a rough but likeable person, and is very devoted to Gil (1946).Gil (David Gothard) lives with Helen (Julie Stevens) in a charming white house in San Fernando Valley, not far from Hollywood, they're being served by Bugsy (Ed Latimer) (1949).
Above left: In Helen Trent, Bugsy O'Toole (Ed Latimer) as general handyman (1946).
Above right: Gil (David Gothard) and Helen (Julie Stevens) are being served by Bugsy (Ed Latimer) (1949).


Ed Latimer started rewriting and selling news stories into radio mysteries. In 1947 he boasted never to have gotten a reject.

He also played the smalltime gangster George Terry, on the CBS serial Young Dr. Malone (Feb 1947). He secured his first professional engagement at the Little Theatre in Philadelphia. To add to his income Ed took on a daytime job. The two jobs dovetailed neatly in an A to Z pattern. A night in the theatre he played roles ranging from juveniles to aged, bearded grandfathers; during the day he completed the A to Z pattern - working as a typist.

In 1947 he played Sergeant Velie on The Adventures of Ellery Queen. In Dec 1947 he played congressman Borgsen for 7 performances in the Mansfield Theatre in the comedy stage play The Gentlemen from Athens.

When the casting for the popular A House in the Country was completed, it turned out that Ray Knight and Ed Latimer were to portray the 35-year-long enemies, Clarence Brown and Walter Pattison. This was the occasion for a good laugh, for those two radio veterans have been the best of friends for a decade or more. (Jan 14. 1948)

On TV Ed Latimer is most famous for his roles in The Clock (1949), a Suspense/Anthology series based on a ABC radio series which ran from 1946-48.

The Doctor’s Wife was a 15 minute, Monday thru Friday continuing series, broadcast on NBC radio during the 1950s. It featured Patricia Wheel as Julie Palmer and Donald Curtis as Dr. Dan Palmer. Ed Latimer was Frank Johnson (1953).

In Robert Montgomery Presents (1950-57), he took on the role of justice of the peace in the episode "A Stone for His Son" (aired March 14, 1955) and Trayford in "The Drifter" (aired May 23, 1955).

Not much is known as to when exactly or how Ed passed away. In 1956 he did appear on the July 13. broadcast of CBS radio workshop and died later that year. He was buried in Hawthorne, Westchester County, New York.

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References
(1) IMDb
(2) IBDB
(3) OTRRPedia
(4) Radiogoldindex
(5) RUSC

Additional video & audio sources
(1) Old Time Radio Downloads

 
This actor profile is a part of Ellery Queen a website on deduction. The actor above played Velie in the 1947 radio series of The Adventures of Ellery Queen. Click Uncle Sam if you think you can help out...!
Many of the profiles on this site have been compiled after very careful research of various sources. Please quote and cite ethically!


Page first published on March 4. 2018 
Last updated August 6. 2023 

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