Born in England in 1891, Stanley Ridges was a protégé of the renowned star of musical comedies, Beatrice Lillie, and spent a considerable amount of time perfecting his craft on the stage. He eventually made the transition to America, where he became a romantic leading man on Broadway.
Stanley's first film appearance was in Success (1923),but his film career did not truly take off until he was 43 years old, in Crime Without Passion (1934),opposite the talented Claude Rains. Stanley found himself being cast in character roles, as his graying hair marked the end of his days as a romantic leading man.
Despite this, he was well-suited for his role in the horror film Black Friday (1940),opposite the iconic Boris Karloff, as a beloved professor who becomes the innocent victim of a shooting. In order to save him, Karloff's character transplants part of the brain of the criminal who shot Stanley's character. Stanley then goes on to steal the film, performing a Jekyll-and-Hyde act, transitioning from the beloved professor to the crass and uncouth criminal.
Ridges would go on to be cast in other memorable films, including The Sea Wolf (1941),Sergeant York (1941),To Be or Not to Be (1942),and The Suspect (1944). His final film would be The Groom Wore Spurs (1951),alongside the talented Ginger Rogers, before passing away in April of that year.
