Ron Shand

Ronald Ernest McMurtry (3 February 1906, Carlton, Melbourne, Australia – 8 August 1993, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia), professionally known as Ron Shand and earlier in his career billed as Ronnie McMurtry, was an Australian actor and comedian who worked extensively in numerously genres of the show business industry including, circus, soft shoe, theatre, cabaret, revue vaudeville, radio, television and film and was also a recording artist in a career spanning over 70 years. He started his career performing in circus and vaudeville, but was probably best known however in his later years for his role as Herb Evans the elderly hen-pecked husband of Dorrie Evans in television soap opera Number 96 and at 65 was then the oldest member of the regular cast. He continued to appear in TV and film roles into his mid-80s and died in August 1993, aged 87.<ref=Giles, Nigel "Number 96, Australian Most Infamous Address"</ref> Biography Early life Shand came from a background in show business, particularly of circus performers, that spanned four generations on his mother's side and three generations on his father's side: his grandfather Patrick Montgomery was an Irish-born ringmaster and horse trainer and was married to Annie Gordon, who was half French and half Spanish.