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)
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