Richard Coogan

Richard Charles Potter Coogan (April 4, 1914 – March 12, 2014) was an American actor born in Madison, New Jersey, who built a career spanning Broadway, early television, film, and radio. He is perhaps best remembered for originating the role of Captain Video in the DuMont Television Network series Captain Video and His Video Rangers, a part he held from the program's debut on June 27, 1949, through December 1950.

Before his television work, Coogan established himself in radio, including a role as Abie Levy in Abie's Irish Rose. His Broadway career ran from 1945 to 1954 and encompassed productions including S. S. Glencairn, the comedy Alice in Arms, Skipper Next to God, Diamond Lil, and The Rainmaker. Of those productions, Diamond Lil, which starred Mae West, and The Rainmaker proved to be the most enduring runs. During his time in Diamond Lil, Coogan was simultaneously performing as Captain Video in live daily telecasts. Each evening, after the broadcast concluded around 7:30 pm EST, he traveled by cab to the theater where the production was playing. As Captain Video's audience grew, Coogan became increasingly dissatisfied with both the demands of the role and the program's extremely limited budget. He departed the series in December 1950 and was succeeded by Al Hodge, who continued in the part until the series concluded on April 1, 1955.

Following his exit from Captain Video, Coogan joined the soap opera Love of Life, portraying the heroic character Paul Raven. Between 1954 and 1961, he appeared in a number of films, among them Three Hours to Kill, The Revolt of Mamie Stover, Vice Raid, and Girl on the Run. On television, he took on the recurring role of Marshal Matthew Wayne in the NBC Western series The Californians, which aired from 1957 to 1959 and was set during the California Gold Rush in San Francisco in the 1850s. His co-stars on that series included Carole Mathews, who played the widow Wilma Fansler, and Art Fleming, later known as the host of Jeopardy. Coogan also held a continuing role as Sergeant Whitey Brandon in the police procedural Vice Raid from 1960 to 1961.

From 1951 through 1963, Coogan made guest appearances across a wide range of television series. His Western credits included Gunsmoke, Laramie, Bonanza, Maverick, Stagecoach West, Cheyenne, Sugarfoot, Bronco, and Wichita Town. In 1960 he appeared as Sheriff Charley Emmett in the Cheyenne episode "Alibi for the Scalped Man" and as Hank Lawson in the Maverick episode "Thunder from the North." He also appeared in crime dramas including Perry Mason, Surfside 6, and 77 Sunset Strip. His final screen credits came in 1963, with a role as Police Sergeant Gifford in the Perry Mason episode "The Case of the Shoplifter's Shoe" and an appearance as Luke Ryan in an episode of Gunsmoke.

After retiring from acting in 1963, Coogan pursued a second career as a professional golfer and golf instructor. He died on March 12, 2014, in Los Angeles from natural causes, a few weeks before what would have been his 100th birthday.