Background
Haines was born on August 3, 1918 in Mount Vernon, New New York
Haines was born on August 3, 1918 in Mount Vernon, New New York
Some sources say August 18, 1918, in the same city. He had been active in dramatics in high school, and while he was in college, he was advised to try acting. After a few months of instruction in dramatics, he passed an audition with Columbia Broadcasting System. He dropped out during his sophomore year of college and "went right into radio working on little stations all around New York City," beginning at WWRL. Haines first became known in the 1930s as an actor on the radio crime series Gangbusters.
Playing Joe Lincoln, he was the star of Treasury Agent on the Mutual Broadcasting System in 1947-1948, and he had the title role of Mike Hammer in That Hammer Guy on Mutual in 1953-1954.
He also was featured in The Chase, Cloak and Dagger, Inner Sanctum Mystery, The Manitoba Behind the Gun, and This Is Nora Drake. lieutenant was estimated that he acted in more than 15,000 radio programs in the 1940s and 1950s.
Four decades later, he would return to radio, starring in 82 episodes of the Columbia Broadcasting System Mystery Theater. Haines" Broadway debut came in 1962, when he played in A Thousand Clowns.
He earned Tony nominations for his work in Generation (1965) and Promises, Promises (1968).
His other Broadway appearances were in Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Twigs, Number Hard Feelings, and Tribute. Haines died in Delray Beach, Florida, on July 17, 2008. He was survived by one niece.
