Templeton Fox

Templeton Fox
Fox in 1938
Born
Esther May Fox

(1916-07-24)July 24, 1916
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedJanuary 9, 1993(1993-01-09) (aged 79)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Other namesTempleton Welch, Templeton McLeod
EducationPomona College
OccupationActress
Known forTony Rome
Spouse
Robert Lyon Welch
​
​
(m. 1938; died 1964)​
Reid McLeod
​
(m. 1970⁠–⁠1993)​
Children2, including Bob Welch

Templeton Fox (July 24, 1916 – January 9, 1993) was an American actress best known for her work in old-time radio.

Early years

Fox was the daughter of Lawrence Brainard Fox (1880 – 1960) and his wife, Anne "Annie" Templeton (1885 – 1948). Sources disagree as to where and when she was born. A 1938 issue of the Radio Mirror Almanac wrote she was born in Pasadena, California on July 24, 1913, but her birth record states she was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 24, 1916; the latter is better supported by official documents. She was raised in Elgin, Illinois and attended Pomona College. She won a talent contest sponsored by a hotel in Los Angeles and gained early acting experience at the Pasadena Community Playhouse. She began using the name Templeton Fox, Templeton being her mother's maiden name, after being advised by a numerologist to do so.

Career

Radio

Before Fox became an actress, she was a singer in Los Angeles. After her parents moved to Chicago, they challenged her to audition with NBC, which resulted in her gaining a contract as a dramatic actress on that network in September 1935. Her roles on radio programs included those shown in the table below.

ProgramCharacter
Dan Harding's WifeMargot Graham
Hilltop HouseTrudy Reynolds
Kate Hopkins, Angel of MercyTrudy
Linda Fairchild, StepmotherLinda Fairchild
The Story of Mary MarlinBunny Mitchell: 318 
This Day Is OursEleanor MacDonald: 331 
Those We LoveAnn
Young HickoryMarilyn Fletcher
Your Family and MineClaudia Foster

Programs on which Fox had supporting roles included Manhattan at Midnight, Lights Out and The Mystery Man.

Film

Fox worked at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, mostly in bit parts. Her film credits include Tony Rome, Fate Is the Hunter, Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte, Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?, and Shock Treatment.

Stage

In 1942, Fox portrayed Miriam Blake in a production of Guest in the House in Boston.

Television

Fox's television appearances include roles in Hazel, Route 66, Dennis the Menace, The Thin Man, My Three Sons, Slattery's People, Gentle Ben, My Living Doll, and Peyton Place. In 1975, she was a last-minute replacement to play Ralph Kramden's mother-in-law on the 25th anniversary episode of The Honeymooners after Doro Merande, the actress slated for that role, died suddenly.

Personal life

Fox married Robert Lyon Welch (1910 – 1964), a radio advertising executive who later became a film producer for Paramount Pictures, on August 15, 1938, in New York City, New York. She and Welch had a son, Robert "Bob" Welch (1945 – 2012), a musician and early member of Fleetwood Mac, and a daughter. They remained married until his death in 1964. She married William Reid McLeod (1913 – 2005) on August 6, 1970, in Miami, Florida.

Fox died on January 9, 1993, in Los Angeles, California.

References

  1. ↑ "Illinois, Cook County, Birth Certificates, 1871-1953", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N7SP-799 : Mon Jan 13 16:17:13 UTC 2025), Entry for Esther May Fox and Lawrence Brainard Fox.
  2. ↑ "Stars of the Air". The Evening Independent. Ohio, Massillon. November 6, 1936. p. 21. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Highlights For Monday, April 11". Radio Mirror. 10 (1): 45. May 1938. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  4. ↑ "Weddings Announced". Chicago Tribune. Illinois, Chicago. August 17, 1938. p. 15. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ↑ "Illinois, Cook County, Birth Certificates, 1871-1953", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:N7SP-799 : Mon Jan 13 16:17:13 UTC 2025), Entry for Esther May Fox and Lawrence Brainard Fox.
  6. ↑ "American Beauties". Mount Carmel Item. Pennsylvania, Mount Carmel. Newspaper Enterprise Association. October 12, 1937. p. 5. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  7. ↑ "Templeton Fox". The San Bernardino County Sun. California, San Bernardino. December 29, 1935. p. 8. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ↑ "Stars of the Air". The Evening Independent. Ohio, Massillon. November 6, 1936. p. 21. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  9. ↑ "Began Acting in Pasadena". The Evening News. Pennsylvania, Harrisburg. November 16, 1937. p. 14. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  10. ↑ "News of Stars and Stations". The St. Louis Star and Times. Missouri, St. Louis. January 8, 1936. p. 20. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  11. 1 2 3 Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924–1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4.
  12. ↑ "Hilltop House, Kate Hopkins Change Times". The Times. Louisiana, Shreveport. October 6, 1940. p. 27. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  13. ↑ "Premieres". The Des Moines Register. Iowa, Des Moines. October 7, 1940. p. 13. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  14. ↑ "Studio Gossip". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Missouri, St. Louis. May 30, 1937. p. 40. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  15. ↑ "(photo caption)". Radio Mirror. 23 (4): 92. March 1945. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  16. ↑ "Acts". The San Francisco Examiner. California, San Francisco. April 25, 1937. p. 20. Retrieved August 23, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  17. ↑ Damai, Paul (December 10, 1939). "Radio Short Circuits". The Times. Indiana, Munster. p. 7. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  18. ↑ "In New Series". Star Tribune. Minnesota, Minneapolis. July 28, 1940. p. 26. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  19. ↑ Dunning, John (1998). "Lights Out". On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 399–401. ISBN 978-0-19-507678-3. Retrieved 2024-12-30.
  20. ↑ Cox, Jim (2002). Radio Crime Fighters: Over 300 Programs from the Golden Age. McFarland. pp. 190–191. ISBN 978-0-7864-4324-6.
  21. 1 2 Kelly, Herb (July 3, 1966). "by herb kelly". The Miami News. Florida, Miami. p. 43. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  22. ↑ Reid, John Howard (2 August 2015). A Risky Business Crime in the Movies. Lulu.com. p. 150. ISBN 9781329436206. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  23. 1 2 Kelly, Herb (July 3, 1966). "Miami Was An Accident". The Miami News. Florida, Miami. p. 42. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  24. ↑ "The Stage: Plymouth Theatre". The Boston Globe. Massachusetts, Boston. October 20, 1942. p. 23. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  25. ↑ Gardner, Marilyn; Gardner, Hy (December 14, 1975). "It Wasn't 'Sudden Fame' For Templeton Fox, Long-Time Performer". Asheville Citizen-Times. North Carolina, Asheville. p. 64. Retrieved August 24, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  26. ↑ "Marriages" (PDF). Billboard. August 27, 1938. pp. 34, 104. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
  27. ↑ "Article clipped from Chicago Tribune". Chicago Tribune. 1938-08-17. p. 15. Retrieved 2026-08-06.
  28. ↑ "Florida, Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VJS4-K8K : Tue Feb 25 05:19:03 UTC 2025), Entry for William Reid Mcleod and , 06 Aug 1970.