Ralph Barton (1891 - 1931)

Cartoonist, Illustrator. One of America’s most famous artists of the 1920s. His stylish celebrity caricatures, playful yet not mocking, became synonymous with the “Jazz Age” and were widely influential. “It is not the caricaturist’s job to be penetrating”, he said. “It is his job to put down the figure a man cuts before his fellows […]

Ralph Bates (1940 - 1991)

Actor. Born in Bristol, England, he was the great grand nephew of Louis Pasteur. He attended the University of Dublin and studied at the Yale Drama School. His first noticeable role was as a critically acclaimed portrayal of Caligula in the BBC production of ‘The Caesars’ in 1968. In 1970, he was chosen by Hammer […]

Ralph Bellamy (1904 - 1991)

Ralph Rexford Bellamy was born in Chicago, Illinois. He was the son of Lilla Louise (née Smith), a native of Canada, and Charles Rexford Bellamy. He ran away from home when he was 15 and managed to get into a road show. He toured with road shows before finally landing in New York. He began […]

Ralph Bennett Ryder (1970 - 2001)

Founding member of Ryder Trucking Company which grew into one of the world’s largest truck-leasing companies. In 1933, Ryder’s younger brother James started the Miami-based business by buying a Ford Model A truck for $35.00. Ralph Ryder bought the second truck, and the brothers hauled meat to ports on the beach and debris and cement […]

Ralph Buckland (1812 - 1892)

Born in Leyden, Massachusetts Ralph Buckland moved with his parents to Ravenna, Ohio, the same year. He attended the country schools, Tallmadge (Ohio) Academy, and Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. After studying law, he was admitted to the bar in 1837 and commenced practice in Fremont, Ohio. He served as the mayor of Fremont from […]

Ralph Byrd (1909 - 1952)

Ralph Byrd married actress and model Virginia Carroll in 1936. The couple remained together until Byrd’s death in 1952. Byrd was a good, all-purpose actor with a gift for delivering dialogue in a natural, ingratiating way. His screen characters could be breezy and affable, or tough and authoritative as the role required. Once established in Republic […]

Ralph Chambers (1892 - 1968)

Actor. He appeared on stage and in film and television from the 1920s to the 1940s He was in the origianl casts of “Lost Boy” (1932), “The More the Merrier” (1941), “John Loves Mary” (1947), and “Call Me Madam” (1950. He was ‘Chalrie’ in “The Pajama Game”(1954) on stage, as well as the film in […]

Ralph Chubb (1892 - 1960)

British Poet, Printer, and Artist. He was born in Harpenden, Hertfordshire and he died at Fair Oak Cottage in Hampshire. He was influenced by Whitman, Blake, and the Romantics, and his work was the creation of a personal mythology, one that was anti-materialist and sexually revolutionary. His liberalised, nature based romantic view was set out […]

Ralph Cookerly Wilson, Jr (1918 - 2014)

Hall of Fame Sports Team Owner. From 1960 until his death, he was the proprietor of the Buffalo Bills. Along with Lamar Hunt and other businessmen, Wilson formed what was nicknamed “The Foolish Club”. The group initiated the American Football League in 1960 which went on to merge with the National Football League in 1970, […]

Ralph Edwards (1913 - 2005)

Radio and Television Game Show Icon. He is probably best remembered as the producer for the radio and later television, game shows “Truth or Consequences” and “This is Your Life.” Born Ralph Livingston Edwards, he moved with his family to Oakland, California where he graduated from high school in 1931. He then attended the University […]

Ralph Fults (1911 - 1993)

Born to a U.S. postal worker in Anna, Texas, Ralph Fults was arrested in Aspermont, Texas after police found him carrying a suitcase full of stolen goods. The 14-year-old Fults escaped from the town’s jail a week later after making a key from an old tobacco can. With the town sheriff attending the county fair, […]

Ralph Huchenson (1970 - 1606)

President of St. John’s College, Oxford, and one of the translators of the New Testament for the Authorized Version. (bio by: David Conway)

Ralph Kuhner Morgan (1883 - 1956)

Actor. He was the brother of Frank Morgan of “Wizard of Oz” fame. He helped found the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and was its first president in 1933 and also from 1938 to 1940.  Family links:  Parents:  George Diogracia Wuppermann (1838 – 1915)  Josephine Wright Hancox Wuppermann (1851 – 1936)  Spouse:  Grace Arnold (1886 – […]

Ralph Larsen (1938 - 2016)

Ralph Larsen was born in Brooklyn, New York City in a family of five siblings in 1938. His father was a first-generation immigrant from Norway. He joined the United States Navy for a few years. He worked his way through college, taking electrical jobs, and he received a Bachelor of Business Administration from Hofstra University […]

Ralph Lawrence Carr (1887 - 1950)

U.S. District Attorney. Republican governor of Colorado 1939 to 1943. Spearheaded fiscal reforms by transferring state income taxes from school districts to the General Fund. Also worked with the General Assembly to pass the State Reorganization Act resulting in a more efficient state government. Known for his opposition to the internment of Japanese-Americans during World […]

Ralph M. Parsons (1896 - 1974)

Founder (1944) of the engineering and construction company that bears his name. In 2000 the company had over 11,000 employees and operated in 50 states and 80 countries. A major US philanthropist, he created the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation. The company logo is on his marker in the lower left corner.

Ralph M. Parsons (1896 - 1974)

Founder (1944) of the engineering and construction company that bears his name. In 2000 the company had over 11,000 employees and operated in 50 states and 80 countries. A major US philanthropist, he created the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation. The company logo is on his marker in the lower left corner.

Ralph Meeker (1920 - 1988)

Ralph Meeker made his film debut in 1951 with a small role in MGM’s Teresa, followed by a starring role in the Swiss-made Four in a Jeep (1951), directed by Leopold Lindtberg. In 1953, he was cast as a misfit ex-cavalryman in the classic western The Naked Spur directed by Anthony Mann. For his performance in […]

Ralph Michael (1907 - 1994)

Ralph Michael (26 September 1907 – 9 November 1994) was an English actor. He was born as Ralph Champion Shotter in London. His film appearances included Dead of Night, A Night to Remember, Children of the Damned, Grand Prix, The Assassination Bureau, and Empire of the Sun. Television credits include: The Adventures of Robin Hood, A […]

Ralph Nelson (1916 - 1987)

Ralph Nelson was born into a Swedish-American family in Long Island City, New York in 1916. He became interested in the theater while attending high school, and won an oratory contest sponsored by the “New York Times” in 1932. His interest in the theater lead him to Broadway, where he worked as an errand boy […]

Ralph Plaisted (1927 - 2008)

Ralph Plaisted (30 September 1927 – 8 September 2008) and his three companions, Walt Pederson, Gerry Pitzl and Jean-Luc Bombardier, are regarded by most polar authorities to be the first to succeed in a surface traverse across the ice to the North Pole on 19 April 1968, making the first confirmed surface conquest of the […]

Ralph Reed Freeto (1931 - 1997)

Actor. Born in Wichita, Kansas, he made his first screen appearance as a child performer in “Since You Went Away” (1944). After serving in the US Army during the Korean War, he resumed acting, appearing in the films “High Noon” (1952), “Saginaw Trail” (1953), “Not of This Earth” (1957), “North by Northwest” (1959) and “A […]

Ralph Richardson (1902 - 1983)

Sir Ralph David Richardson (19 December 1902 – 10 October 1983) was an English actor who, along with his contemporaries John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He worked in films throughout most of his career, and played more than sixty cinema roles. From an artistic but not theatrical […]

Ralph Stanley (1927 - 2016)

Known in the world of bluegrass music by the popular title, “Dr. Ralph Stanley” (after being awarded an honorary Doctorate of Music from Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee in 1976), Ralph Stanley was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor in 1992 and in 2000, and became the first person to be […]

Ralph Taylor Graves (1900 - 1977)

Actor. He was born Ralph Taylor Horsburgh. He appeared in many films produced by Mack Sennett. He had a long career in film work, spanning the years between 1918 to 1949. Graves co-starred with many of the era’s leading ladies, including Mae Murray, Dorothy Gish, Ina Claire, Viola Dana, Anita Page, Barbara Stanwyck and Fay […]

Ralph Waite (1928 - 2014)

Ralph Waite Ralph Waite (June 22, 1928 – February 13, 2014) was an American actor, voice artist, and political activist, best known for his role as John Walton, Sr. on The Waltons, which he occasionally directed. In addition, Waite appeared in many guest roles on numerous television series, most recently in a recurring role in […]

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882) was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champion of individualism and a prescient critic of the countervailing pressures of society, and he disseminated his thoughts through dozens of published essays and […]

Ralph Winstar Bell (1883 - 1936)

Actor and Writer. Appeared in “Please Get Married” (1919) and “A Connecticut Yankee” (1931).

Ralph Wright (1908 - 1983)

Ralph Wright (May 17, 1908 – December 31, 1983) was a Disney animator and story/storyboard writer who provided the gloomy, sullen voice of Eeyore from the popular Winnie-the-Pooh franchise. Ralph Wright came to the studio in the 1940s, and became well known throughout the ensuing decades for his endearingly gloomy and sullen personality traits as well […]

Ralphie May (1972 - 2017)

Ralphie May was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee on February 17, 1972, and raised in Clarksville, Arkansas. When he was 16, May broke 42 of his bones in an automobile accident. At 17, he won a contest to open for Sam Kinison, whom he considered his idol. Kinison suggested that May move to Houston to further develop […]