Howard Petrie

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title: "Howard Petrie" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1906-births", "1968-deaths", "people-from-beverly,-massachusetts", "entertainers-from-somerville,-massachusetts", "male-actors-from-middlesex-county,-massachusetts", "american-male-film-actors", "american-male-radio-actors", "american-male-television-actors", "male-western-(genre)-film-actors", "20th-century-american-male-actors", "male-actors-from-essex-county,-massachusetts"] description: "American actor (1906–1968)" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Petrie" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American actor (1906–1968) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]

Field	Value
name	Howard Petrie
image	Howard Petrie in Rage at Dawn.jpg
caption	Petrie in Rage at Dawn (1955)
birth_name	Howard Alexander Petrie
birth_date
birth_place	Beverly, Massachusetts, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Keene, New Hampshire, U.S.
resting_place	Worcester Rural Cemetery, Worcester, Massachusetts
occupation	Actor
years_active	1929–1965
spouse
children	1
::

| name = Howard Petrie | image = Howard Petrie in Rage at Dawn.jpg | image_size = | caption = Petrie in Rage at Dawn (1955) | birth_name = Howard Alexander Petrie | birth_date = | birth_place = Beverly, Massachusetts, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = Keene, New Hampshire, U.S. | resting_place = Worcester Rural Cemetery, Worcester, Massachusetts | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1929–1965 | spouse = | children = 1

Howard Alexander Petrie (November 22, 1906 – March 24, 1968) was an American radio, television, and film actor.

Early life

Howard Petrie was born in Beverly, Massachusetts on November 22, 1906. When Howard was three years old his family moved to Concord. The Petries later lived in Arlington and then Somerville, where Petrie received his secondary school education. A talented musician, he conducted his high school glee club and played with various instrumental groups. He was a member of the debating team, a captain in the School Regiment and Chairman of the Senior Night Committee. He appeared in school dramatic productions including a starring role as "Marquis de la Seigliere" in the senior class play and the Jules Sandeau three-act comedy, Mademoiselle de la Seigliere.

Radio career

After he graduated from Somerville High School in 1924, Petrie worked briefly as a bank clerk and a securities salesman. While on a sales call to a radio station, his sonorous bass voice landed him a job. He joined WBZ Radio in Boston in 1929 as a junior announcer. After ten months at the WBZ studios, Petrie left for New York City in June, 1930 where he joined the staff of NBC.

Petrie soon became the head announcer for many of the network's shows. His first major network assignment was on Everything Goes, starring Garry Moore. He was the announcer for scores of shows including Abie's Irish Rose, Big Sister, Camel Caravan, Blondie, The Ray Bolger Show, The Judy Canova Show, The Jimmy Durante Show, and The Garry Moore Show.

In 1936, Petrie won the Batten, Barten and Durstine Award for Good Announcing. In 1942 he was the recipient of the H.P. Davis Memorial Announcers' Award for "personality, adaptability, diction, voice and versatility". He moved to California in 1943 to become the announcer for The Judy Canova Show. As a "personality announcer", he became a character in the show.

Film and television career

In 1947, a movie producer who was looking for a tall man for a character role, saw Petrie on the radio stage and offered him the part. At 6 feet four (193 cm) and 240 pounds (109 kg), Petrie played numerous "big man" roles. He worked as a character actor in over thirty feature films and forty television shows. He often appeared in Westerns in both mediums. He played Sheriff Akers in "Wanted Dead or Alive" S2 E13 "No Trail Back" which aired 11/26/1959.

Personal life

On April 21, 1933, Petrie married Alice Wood, whom he met when he worked at NBC, where she was a hostess between 1931 and 1936. She had been an actress. The Petries had one son.

Later years and death

Howard Petrie had been living in semi-retirement at his home, Autumn Hill, in Walpole, New Hampshire, when he died in Keene, New Hampshire, on March 24, 1968. He was interred in Worcester Rural Cemetery, Worcester County, Massachusetts.

Filmography

::data[format=table]

Film	Year	Title	Role	Notes	Television	Year	Title	Role	Notes
1947	The Hal Roach Comedy Carnival	George Baxter, in "Fabulous Joe"
The Fabulous Joe	George Baxter
1950	Fancy Pants	Secret Service Man	Uncredited
Walk Softly, Stranger	Bowen
Rocky Mountain	Cole Smith / California Beal
1951	No Questions Asked	Franko
Cattle Drive	Cap
The Racket	The Governor	Uncredited
The Golden Horde	Tugluk	Alternative title: The Golden Horde of Genghis Khan
1952	Bend of the River	Tom Hendricks	Alternative title: Where the River Bends
The Wild North	Brody
Carbine Williams	Sheriff
Red Ball Express	Major General Lee Gordon
Woman of the North Country	Rick Barton
Pony Soldier	Insp. Frazer
1953	Fair Wind to Java	Reeder
Trouble Along the Way	Marvin Adams	Uncredited
Fort Ti	Maj. Rogers
The Veils of Bagdad	Karsh
1954	Border River	Newlund
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers	Pete Perkins
The Bounty Hunter	Sheriff Brand
The Bob Mathias Story	Dr. Charles Mathias
Sign of the Pagan	Gundahar
1955	Timberjack	'Axe-Handle' Ole
Rage at Dawn	Lattimore, Prosecuting Attorney	Alternative title: Seven Bad Men
How to Be Very, Very Popular	Desk Sergeant
The Return of Jack Slade	Joseph Ryan
1956	The Maverick Queen	Butch Cassidy
A Kiss Before Dying	Howard Chesser, Chief of Police
Johnny Concho	Joe Helguson, Blacksmith
1957	The Tin Star	Mayor Harvey King
1954	Waterfront	Hugh Perry	1 episode
1955	The Ford Television Theatre	Baker	1 episode
1956	Gunsmoke	Abe Brant	1 episode "Yorky"
1957	Broken Arrow	Sam Carson	1 episode
Letter to Loretta	Scoutmaster	1 episode
Casey Jones	George Newsome	1 episode "Dark Rider"
1958	The Californians	Stryker	1 episode
Alcoa Theatre	Lieutenant Gifford	1 episode
Cheyenne	Burt Wrangel	1 episode "Wagon-Tongue North"
1959	Frontier Justice	Kroll	1 episode
Bonanza	Major Ormsby	1 episode
Lawman	Hal Mead	1 episode
Maverick	Mike Burke	1 episode
Colt .45	John Porter	1 episode
The DuPont Show with June Allyson	Abbott	1 episode
Wanted: Dead or Alive	Sheriff Akers	Episode: "No Trail Back"
1960	Shotgun Slade	Major Kennedy	1 episode
Wanted: Dead or Alive	Sam Pryor	Episode: "Angela"
M Squad	Mr. Patrick - Head of heist team	1 episode
Have Gun – Will Travel	Jack Foster	S3 E23 "Lady on the Wall"
Mr. Lucky	John Dort	1 episode
Johnny Ringo	Ed Blanchard	1 episode
Bat Masterson	Hugh Blaine	4 episodes
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp	Governor Gibbs	2 episodes
Bronco	Rigby	1 episode
Hennesey	Admiral Wright	1 episode
Peter Gunn	Lockland	1 episode
The Tom Ewell Show	Paul Wilkins	Episode: "The Spelling Bee"
Rawhide	Abner Carter	S2:E28, "Incident of the Murder Steer"
1960–1962	Death Valley Days	Joseph Hooker	2 episodes, (final appearance)
1961	National Velvet	Bjorensen	1 episode
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis	Col. McCurdy	1 episode
Rawhide	Hunneker	S3:E11, "Incident of the Broken Word"
1964–1965	The Edge of Night	Otto Zimerman	Unknown episodes
::

References

• Beverly (Mass.) City Directory and North Shore Map. Crowley and Lunt, 1907, 1908, 1909.
• Birth record: 1906, Vol. 558, page 407. Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910. From original records held by the Massachusetts Archives. Online database: NewEnglandAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2004.
• Buxton, Frank, and Bill Owen. The Big Broadcast, 1920-1950. New York: Viking Press, 1976.
• Dunning, John. Tune in Yesterday: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio, 1925-1976. Englewood Cliffs. N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1976.
• Frizzell, Martha McDanolds. A History of Walpole, New Hampshire. Walpole: Walpole Historical Society, 1963, page 263.
• Jones, Ken D., Arthur F. McClure and Alfred E. Twomey. Character People, The Stalwarts of the Cinema. Secaucus, N.J.:, 1976, page 163.
• "Howard Petrie, 61, A Radio Announcer and Actor, Is Dead." March 26, 1968, New York Times, page 46.
• "Obituaries," March 27, 1968, Boston Globe, page 44.
• Poindexter, Ray. Golden Throats and Silver Tongues: The Radio Announcers. Conway, Ark: River Road Press, 1978, page 68.
• Somerville (Mass.) City Directory. Boston: W.A. Greenough Co., 1924, pages 122, 457.
• The Radiator, 1924. Somerville (Mass.) High School Yearbook.
• U.S. Census Records, 1910 and 1920, for Beverly and Arlington, Massachusetts.

References

1. (November 26, 1930). "Before the Mike". The Daily Tribune.
2. (March 1, 1936). "Howard Petrie Wins Medal for Good Announcing". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
3. Buxton, Frank and Owen, Bill (1972). ''The Big Broadcast: 1920-1950''. The Viking Press. SBN 670-16240-x. P. 4.
4. (April 23, 1933). "Studio Hostess, Announcer United in Radio Wedding". The Morning Call.
5. Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.

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