Richard Jordan
Actor

Richard Jordan Net Worth

Richard Jordan was born on July 19, 1937 in  New York City, New York, United States, is Actor, Producer. Harvard-educated stage and screen actor Richard Jordan was born into a socially prominent family on July 19, 1937 in New York City, the grandson of Learned Hand, the greatest American jurist never to have served on the U.S. Supreme Court. Newbold Morris, his stepfather, was a member of the New York City Council during Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia's administration. Young Richard was educated in private Manhattan schools and then at the exclusive Hotchkiss prep school in Lakeville, Connecticut. While at Hotchkiss, he was outstanding as the eponymous lead of the school play "Mr. Roberts", which won him a place in the Sharon, Connecticut summer stock company. Jordan went to England as an exchange student at the Sherbourne School, a college (private school) that was over 1,000 years old. After graduating from Sherbourne, Jordan entered Harvard College and took his degree in three years.At Harvard, Jordan was a member of the Dramatic Club, both as an actor and as a director. It was while at Harvard that he decided to become a professional actor and began performing with off-campus stage companies. After graduating from Harvard, Jordan launched what was to be a prolific stage career in New York, making his Broadway debut in December 1961 in the play "Take Her, She's Mine" under the direction of the venerable George Abbott in Biltmore Theatre. The play, which starred Art Carney, Elizabeth Ashley in a Tony Award-winning turn, and Heywood Hale Broun, was a hit, playing 404 performances.Jordan next appeared in a one-night flop, in "Bicycle Ride to Nevada", which opened and closed on September 24, 1963. He was more lucky with his next play, "Generation", a comedy starring Henry Fonda that played for 300 performances in the 1965-66 season. He last appeared on Broadway in a success d'estime, John Osborne's "A Patriot for Me", directed by Peter Glenville and starring Maximilian Schell and Tommy Lee Jones, who was making his Broadway debut. By that time, Jordan had established himself as a leading player Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway, which accounted for the majority of his over 100 New York stage appearances.Jordan, as actor and director, was a major force in the development of New York's "Off-Off-Broadway" theater that flourished in the 1960s. He was one of the founders of the Gotham Arts Theater, which put on plays in an old funeral parlor on West 43rd Street. Fittingly, the company's first play was about necrophilia. Jordan engaged young New York artists to design the sets, the results of which were not always auspicious. Jordan said of this development, "With our weirdo plays against their far-out sets...it was total insanity!" He made a significant breakthrough, career-wise, with his appearance in the anti-war play "The Trial Of The Catonsville Nine" in both New York and California.Jordan spent eight years with Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival. He made his debut with Papp's Shakespeare Festival in 1963, playing "Romeo" opposite the "Juliet" of Kathleen Widdoes, the fellow Papp stock company member who would become his wife, in Papp's Shakespeare in the Park series. The couple married in 1964, and their eight-year marriage produced a daughter, Nina Jordan, born in 1964, who would later co-star with her father in the movie Old Boyfriends (1979).Although he appeared on television during the 1960s, the tall, handsome and talented Jordan did not make his motion picture debut until 1971, when he appeared in a supporting role in Michael Winner's horse opera Lawman (1971), which featured a first-rate cast, including Burt Lancaster, Robert Ryan, Lee J. Cobb and Robert Duvall. However, it was his role as the baby-faced, amoral Treasury agent in The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973) that made him a known commodity on-screen, while it was the monumental mini-series Captains and the Kings (1976) that made his reputation. His performance as the Irish immigrant "Joseph Armagh" brought him an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe award, and it also brought him his long-time companion, co-star Blair Brown, whom he lived with for many years and by whom he had a son.An actor rather than a star, Jordan played many unsympathetic roles, including that of Nazi Albert Speer in the TV movie The Bunker (1981). He continued to appear on the stage, Off-Broadway and in stock companies touring the major cities of the U.S., while appearing in films and on TV. Jordan was the manager of the L.A. Actors Theater in Los Angeles during the 1970s, where he produced, directed and wrote his own plays. For the 1983-84 Off-Broadway season, he won an Obie Award for his performance in Czech playwright Václav Havel's "A Private View". He won the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for directing Havel's "Largo Desolato" at the Taper, Too in 1987.In 1992, Jordan had begun filming The Fugitive (1993) when his fatal illness forced him to leave the production. Thus, Jordan's final role was that of "General Lewis Armistead" in the film Gettysburg (1993), which was a labor of love for him. He was close friends with Michael Shaara, the author of the novel "The Killer Angels", which the movie was based upon, and contributed to the screenplay. Jordan's last appearance as an actor was the death of his on-screen character, "General Armistead".Richard Jordan died in Los Angeles, California of a brain tumor on August 30, 1993. He was 56 years old.
Richard Jordan is a member of Actor

Age, Biography and Wiki

Who is it? Actor, Producer
Birth Day July 19, 1937
Birth Place  New York City, New York, United States
Age 83 YEARS OLD
Died On August 30, 1993(1993-08-30) (aged 56)\nLos Angeles, California, U.S.
Birth Sign Leo
Cause of death Brain tumor
Occupation Stage, film, and television actor
Years active 1961–93
Spouse(s) Kathleen Widdoes (1964–72) one daughter, Nina Jordan
Partner(s) Blair Brown (1976–85) 1 son, Robert Christian Anson Jordan III Marcia Cross (1985–93; his death)

💰 Net worth: $11 Million (2024)

Richard Jordan is a multi-talented figure in the American entertainment industry, encompassing both acting and producing. With an impressive net worth of $11 million, projected to grow even more by 2024, he has carved a niche for himself. Known for his remarkable performances on screen, Jordan has captivated audiences worldwide with his versatility and charisma. As a producer, he has also played a pivotal role in delivering exceptional content to the masses. With his immense talent and business acumen, Richard Jordan continues to leave a lasting impact on the entertainment world.

Biography/Timeline

1942

Jordan was born in New York City, to Robert Anson Jordan, Sr., from Boston, Massachusetts, and Constance (née Hand), from New York. His maternal grandfather was Learned Hand, judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and one of the most respected jurists in the United States. In 1942, when Jordan was five years old, his parents divorced. His mother married Newbold Morris, President of the New York City Council. Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia officiated at the ceremony held in Gracie Mansion, the first marriage performed there.

1958

Jordan attended the Hotchkiss School. Following his graduation from Harvard University in 1958, Jordan began his acting career in earnest. In 1961, he appeared on Broadway with Art Carney and Elizabeth Ashley in Take Her, She's Mine. He also began working in television productions, appearing in episodes of The Defenders, Naked City, Ben Casey, 1963 TV series; Empire and The Wide Country. He performed with Joseph Papp's Public Theater in productions of Shakespeare's plays, such as The Tempest, The Merchant of Venice and As You Like It. In 1966, Jordan returned to Broadway, appearing in Generation with Henry Fonda.

1964

Jordan's daughter, Nina Jordan, was born in 1964, during his 1964–72 marriage to Actress Kathleen Widdoes. His son, Robert Christian Anson Jordan III, was born in 1982, during his nine-year relationship with Actress Blair Brown. At the time of his death, Jordan was in a relationship with Actress Marcia Cross.

1970

Beginning in 1970, Jordan turned from television to feature film work. He co-starred in Lawman (1971) and Valdez Is Coming (1971) with Burt Lancaster, and appeared opposite Robert Mitchum twice, in The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1973), as the informant-Coyle's handler, a pragmatic U.S. Treasury agent; and in The Yakuza (1975) as the bodyguard of Mitchum's friend, George Tanner. He played a host of villains and mixed good guy-villains in films such as the western Rooster Cogburn (1975), sci-fi adventure Logan's Run (1976) and the Woody Allen-directed drama Interiors (1978). There was also the occasional "good guy," as in Old Boyfriends (1979), in which he played the father of his own daughter, Nina.

1978

Jordan also continued on the stage, joining Ralph Waite in the L.A. Actors' Theatre. He wrote, directed and performed in plays such as Venus of Menschen Falls (1978). In 1976, he starred as Joseph Armagh, an Irish immigrant who fights his way to power and wealth but loses his soul along the way, in the television miniseries Captains and the Kings. Jordan earned a Golden Globe award, and an Emmy nomination for the production. In the 1980s, Jordan performed in films including Raise the Titanic (1980), Flash of Green (1984), Dune (1984), The Mean Season (1985) and The Secret of My Success (1987). He co-starred in an acclaimed television production of The Bunker (1981), playing Albert Speer to Anthony Hopkins's Hitler. In ten episodes of the popular television series The Equalizer (1987–1988), he helped fill in while the star, Edward Woodward, recovered from a heart attack. On stage, he won an Obie award for his appearance in New York in the Czech Playwright Václav Havel's A Private View (1983) and an L.A. Drama Critics' Award for directing another Havel play, Largo Desolato (1987). In Romero (1989), Jordan played Romero's friend, Father Rutilio Grande.

1990

In 1990, Jordan directed a production of Macbeth in New York City. He played U.S. National Security Advisor Jeffrey Pelt in The Hunt for Red October. He starred in a television production of Three Hotels (1991) and the 1991 "Deadline" episode of Tales from the Crypt. In Posse (1993), Jordan portrays Bates, a racist sheriff with his own plans for land on which the Negro town of Freemanville stands.

1993

A memorial in Jordan's honor was held at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles on October 8, 1993, the day Gettysburg was released.

Some Richard Jordan images

About the author

Lisa Scholfield

As a Senior Writer at Famous Net Worth, I spearhead an exceptional team dedicated to uncovering and sharing the stories of pioneering individuals. My passion for unearthing untold narratives drives me to delve deep into the essence of each subject, bringing forth a unique blend of factual accuracy and narrative allure. In orchestrating the editorial workflow, I am deeply involved in every step—from initial research to the final touches of publishing, ensuring each biography not only informs but also engages and inspires our readership.