Ralph Bell
Ralph Bell was born Ralph Scognamiglio on November 27, 1915 in New York City. He was a very successful radio personality and was best known for his work as a voiceover actor as well as radio announcer. He could be heard as a cast member in at least 13 radio shows over his lifetime, but there were two shows that stood out from the crowd.
From 1951-1953, Bell became Lieutenant Travis Rogers on Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator. This show was a detective drama that aired on the NBC radio network. It was broadcast in New York from 1951-1954 and then moved to Hollywood. While Bell performed with the New York cast, he didn’t make the transition to the West Coast.
As Lieutenant Rogers, Bell worked with the private detective, Barrie Craig. They worked in New York and each episode solved a different mystery. The 30-minute show was never a major hit because it couldn’t keep sponsorship. However, it did have a small following of devoted fans that tuned in weekly to hear about the newest case.
Bell’s longest radio gig was on The CBS Radio Mystery Theater. This show featured a mix of regular radio cast as well as featured guest stars from television and film.
The show ran from 1974-1982 on CBS radio – long past the golden age of radio in an effort to regenerate drama on radio. It received mixed reviews, but ultimately stayed on the air for 8 years. Perhaps old time radio fans drove the success of the show because it echoed back to the nostalgic feeling of old time radio, though it never quite brought it back completely. We do have some episodes of these but I have always been under the illusion that they were under copyright to CBS. However as far as I can see they appear to be in the public domain so I am going to begin adding them to RUSC.
Bell can still be heard on recordings of the old time radio shows that he performed on. There are approximately 60 episodes of Barrie Craig that have been preserved and many more episodes of The CBS Radio Mystery Theater. Other radio shows that Ralph Bell appeared in include Lux Radio Theater, CBS Radio Workshop, Cloak & Dagger, The Chase, X-One, Mysterious Traveler, Cavalcade of America, Yours Truly Johnny Dollar, Treasury Agent and Suspense.
After the golden age of radio, Bell could be seen on television in guest appearances. He performed on shows such as Wanted: Dead or Alive, The Andy Griffith Show, The Patty Duke Show, Guiding Light, Kate and Allie, and finally, Law and Order.
Bell could also be heard on a recording of Death of a Salesman playing the character of Charlie, the neighbor of Willy Loman. Also featured on that recording is a young Dustin Hoffman playing Bernard, Charlie’s son.
Not much is known about Bell’s personal life. He was married to Pert Kelton who passed away in 1968 and they had two children together. Bell passed away August 2, 1998 of a heart attack in his hometown of New York City.
Happy listening my friends,
