Benson: Actor James Noble Dies at 94

Actor James Noble has died at the age of 94. The New York Times has confirmed his death at Norwalk Hospital in Connecticut, on Monday, March 28, 2016. Noble is perhaps best known for his role as the affable, bumbling Governor Eugene Xavier Gatling, on the Benson TV series, which was cancelled after seven seasons by ABC, only after that final season ended on a network requested cliffhanger.

Noble also played Raymond Voss on the 1988 CBS sitcom, First Impressions, starring Brad Garrett, which was cancelled after just five of eight completed episodes aired, that fall. Much of Noble’s early TV work was on now long-cancelled soap operas including The Brighter Day, The Edge of Night, As the World Turns, Another World, The Doctors, and One Life to Live.

Born James Wilkes Noble on March 5, 1922, in Dallas, Texas, Noble married Carolyn Coates, on May 19, 1956, and remained with her until her death on March 28, 2005, eleven years to the day, before his own passing. Mr. Noble is survived by their daughter, Jessica Katherine Noble Cowan.

Excerpted from The NYT:

 

He studied drama and engineering at Southern Methodist University but left to join the Navy during World War II.

After the war he studied acting under Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio in New York.

Before rising to national fame on television, Mr. Noble was primarily known as a stage actor. He made his Broadway debut in a 1949 production of the comedy “The Velvet Glove” and went on to appear in four more Broadway shows, including the musical “1776,” in which he played John Hancock. He also had a small role in the 1972 film version.

Mr. Noble [met his wife] actress Carolyn Coates… when they were both appearing in a production of “Pygmalion.”

 

We invite you to share you memories of Mr. Noble and his career, below.