Billie Mae Richards

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Billie Mae Richards
Lorne Greene Academy of Radio Arts
OccupationActress
Years active1925–2004
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1946; div. 1966)​
Children3 (including Judi)

Billie Mae Richards (née Dinsmore, November 21, 1921 – September 10, 2010) was a Canadian actress who also appeared onstage and on television. She was the voice of

Rankin/Bass' version of the Christmas character Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer from 1964 to 1979,[1]
and of the Kid in the radio series Jake and the Kid.

Early life and education

Richards was born Billy Mae Dinsmore, in

Lorne Greene Academy of Radio Arts in Toronto.[3]

Career

Richards worked at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, speaking and singing in radio dramas. From 1950 to 1956, she was the voice of the Kid in the ongoing radio series Jake and the Kid.[4][5]

As well has her portrayal of Rudolph, Richards also voiced Tenderheart Bear in the

television series.[2]

Richards' four other appearances in

Willy McBean and his Magic Machine, The King Kong Show, The Smokey Bear Show and The Daydreamer (both from the mid-1960s) and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and its sequels all written in the United States and animated in Japan. About that same time, she appeared in the original Spider-Man television series. She also voiced Chris and Robbie, plus all the female characters, in The Undersea Adventures of Captain Nemo and The Toothbrush Family with Len Carlson, who voiced all the male ones. Additionally, she voiced puppet characters in the Canadian produced TV shows We Live Next Door, and its spin-off, Calling All Safety Scouts.[6] She made guest appearances on the television shows Maniac Mansion, My Secret Identity, War of the Worlds and The Hidden Room. She also had a bit part in the 1998 horror film Bram Stoker's Shadow Builder, in which her character was attacked with an axe by Paul Soles (who had played Hermey the elf in the original Rudolph special), and the 2001 short
Bluehair.

Personal life

Billie Mae Dinsmore married musician Bill Richards in 1946 in Yorkshire, England, they remained married until their divorce in 1966.[7] Together they have four children, Stephen Richards, Judi Richards, a singer-songwriter,[7] Barbara Jayne Richards and Cynthia "Cyndi" Richards-Jamieson. She also has 12 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren.

Death

Richards died on September 10, 2010, at the age of 88 following a stroke.[8][9][3]

Filmography

Film

  • Meet the Navy (1946) -
  • Willy McBean and his Magic Machine
     (1965) - Willie McBean (voice)
  • The Daydreamer (1966) - Various voices
  • Jailbait Babysitter (1977)
  • The Care Bears Movie (1985) - Tenderheart Bear, Mrs. Cherrywood (voices)
  • Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation (1986) - Tenderheart Bear (voice)
  • The Video Adventures of Clifford the Big Red Dog
     (1988) (Direct-to-Video Series) - Mrs. Gomez
  • The Big Slice (1991) - Lady Overboard
  • Shadow Builder (1998) - Mrs. Butterman
  • Bluehair (2001) - Peg
  • Care Bears: Forever Friends (2004) - Brightheart Raccoon (voice)

Television

References

  1. ^ "Yule watch these 11 holiday TV specials". O Canada.com, Melissa Hank. December 5, 2017
  2. ^ a b Schaefer, William M. "Billie Mae Richards: The Voice of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", billiemaerichards.com; retrieved December 17, 2008.
  3. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  4. ISBN 978-1-4269-3363-9
    . p. 173, 279.
  5. ISBN 978-1-55002-921-5
    . p. 216–.
  6. ^ "NamesPro.ca | Register with Confidence".
  7. ^
    Encyclopedia of Music in Canada. Historica Canada
    . Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  8. ^ Young, John (14 September 2010). "Billie Mae Richards, voice of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, dies at 88". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  9. ISBN 978-1-84901-772-5
    . p. 431–.

External links
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Billie_Mae_Richards&oldid=1214317160"