Richard Easton

John Richard Easton (March 22, 1933 – December 2, 2019) was a Canadian actor, best known for his portrayal of Brian Hammond in the 1970s BBC serial The Brothers. Life and career Easton was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the son of Mary Louise (née Withington) and Leonard Idell Easton, a civil engineer. He started acting in a children's theatre group before moving, at the age of seventeen, to Ottawa to work in a weekly repertory theatre. Easton has performed in a number of stage productions, as well as various film roles. He also had television guest appearances on Doctor Who, L.A. Law, Frasier, and Ed. In 2002, Easton starred in the title role in a three-part documentary, Benjamin Franklin, on PBS. Between 2005 and 2011, Easton appeared as Benjamin Franklin in a series of commercials and videos about Freemasonry, produced for the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts A.F. & A.M.