Robert G. Jordan (April 1, 1923 – September 10, 1965) was an American actor, most notable for being a member of the Dead End Kids, the East Side Kids, the Little Tough Guys, and the Bowery Boys.
Early life and career
Jordan was born in Harrison, New York. He worked to support his family as a door-to-door photograph salesman and as a roughneck for an oil driller.
He did manage a few roles on television. On July 1, 1957, Jordan played Bob Ford, the assailant of Jesse James, in the television series Tales of Wells Fargo. One of his later performances was in an episode of Bonanza titled "The Many Faces of Gideon Flinch", where he played one of Bullet Head Burke's men.
In 1957, Jordan and his wife divorced; they had one son, Robert Jr.
Death
On August 25, 1965, Jordan entered the Veterans Hospital in Sawtelle, California, for treatment of cirrhosis of the liver. He died on September 10, 1965 at the age of 42. He was buried at Los Angeles National Cemetery.
Filmography
Film (partial)
- Kid Millions (1934) as Tourist (uncredited)
- Dead End (1937) as Angel
- A Slight Case of Murder (1938) as Douglas Fairbanks Rosenbloom
- Crime School (1938) as Lester "Squirt" Smith
- Reformatory (1938) as Pinky Leonard
- My Bill (1938) as Reginald Colbrook Jr.
- Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) as Swing
- They Made Me a Criminal (1939) as Angel
- Off the Record (1939) as Mickey Fallon
- Hell's Kitchen (1939) as Joey Richards
- The Angels Wash Their Faces (1939) as Bernie Smith
- Dust Be My Destiny (1939) as Jimmy Glenn
- On Dress Parade (1939) as Cadet Ronny Morgan
- Young Tom Edison (1940) as Joe "Joey" Doyle
- You're Not So Tough (1940) as Rap
- Boys of the City (1940) as Danny Dolan
- Military Academy (1940) as Dick Hill
- That Gang of Mine (1940) as Danny Dolan
- Give Us Wings (1940) as Rap
- Pride of the Bowery (1940) as Danny
- Flying Wild (1941) as Danny Dolan
- Bowery Blitzkrieg (1941) as Danny Breslin
- Spooks Run Wild (1941) as Danny
- Mr. Wise Guy (1942) as Danny Collins
- Let's Get Tough! (1942) as Danny Connors
- Smart Alecks (1942) as Danny Stevens
- Neath Brooklyn Bridge (1942) as Danny Lyons
- Junior Army (1942) as Jockey
- Kid Dynamite (1943) as Danny Lyons
- Keep 'Em Slugging (1943) as Tommy Banning (leading role)
- Clancy Street Boys (1943) as Danny
- Ghosts on the Loose (1943) as Danny
- Destroyer (1943) as Sobbing Sailor (uncredited)
- Adventures of the Flying Cadets (1943, Serial) as Cadet "Jinx" Roberts
- Bowery Champs (1944) as Bobby Jordan
- Live Wires (1946) as Bobby
- In Fast Company (1946) as Bobby
- Bowery Bombshell (1946) as Bobby
- Spook Busters (1946) as Bobby
- Mr. Hex (1946) as Bobby
- The Beginning or the End (1947) as Radioman on Tinian Receiving A-Bomb Message (uncredited)
- Hard Boiled Mahoney (1947) as Bobby
- News Hounds (1947) as Bobby
- Bowery Buckaroos (1947) as Bobby
- Treasure of Monte Cristo (1949) as Tony Torecelli
- The Fat Man (1951) as Ted - Bellhop (uncredited)
- The Eddie Cantor Story (1953) as Customer (uncredited)
- The Man Is Armed (1956) as Thorne
Television
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year !! Series !! Role !! Notes
|-
| 1951 ||Boston Blackie || Waiter || Episode: "The Devil's Daughters"
|-
| 1951/1952/1958 ||The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok || Conductor / Steve Manson / Sandy Smith || 3 Episodes
|-
| 1952 ||The Unexpected || Unknown || Episode: "Calculated Risk"
|-
| 1952 ||Gruen Guild Theater || Unknown || Episode: "For Life"
|-
| 1952 ||Fireside Theatre || Unknown || Episode: "A Grand for Grandma"
|-
| 1955 ||I Led 3 Lives || Comrade Kapotek || Episode: "Brainwash"
|-
| 1956 ||Ford Star Jubilee || Third Sailor || Episode: "High Tor"
|-
| 1956 ||Dragnet || Unknown || Episode: "The Big Search"
|-
| 1957 ||The Millionaire || Press Agent || Episode: "The Professor Amberson Adams Story"
|-
| 1957 ||State Trooper || Ed Howard || Episode: "The Live Shell Game"
|-
| 1957 ||Tales of Wells Fargo || Ernest 'Ernie' Handsfelt / Sonny Stillwell / Bob Ford || 3 Episodes
|-
| 1957 ||Casey Jones || Billy Mapes || Episode: "Storm Warning"
|-
| 1957/1958 ||Highway Patrol || Ed / Market Manager || 2 Episodes
|-
| 1958 ||Richard Diamond, Private Detective || Connie Thorpe || Episode: "The Payoff"
|-
| 1958 ||The Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin || Bart Desay || Episode: "Top Gun"
|-
| 1958/1959 ||Maverick || Bank Teller / Willy / Kansas City Hotel Desk Clerk || 3 episodes
|-
| 1959 ||77 Sunset Strip || Auto Mechanic|| Episode: "Not an Enemy in the World"
|-
| 1959 ||M Squad || Car Lot Employee || Episode: "Death by Adoption"
|-
| 1960 ||The DuPont Show with June Allyson || Willie || Episode: "Once Upon a Knight"
|-
| 1960 ||Rawhide || Adair || S2:E28, "Incident of the Murder Steer"
|-
| 1960 ||Peter Gunn || Waiter || Episode: "Tramp Steamer"
|-
| 1961 ||Michael Shayne || Mel Steele || Episode: "The Body Beautiful"
|-
| 1961 ||Route 66 || Garage Attendant || Episode: "A Skill for Hunting"
|-
| 1961 ||The Roaring 20's || Herbie || Episode: "Royal Tour"
|-
| 1961 ||Bonanza || Thug #2 || Episode: "The Many Faces of Gideon Flinch"
|}
References
Further reading
- Dye, David. Child and Youth Actors: Filmography of Their Entire Careers, 1914-1985. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 1988, p. 120.
- Holmstrom, John. The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995, Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, p. 116.