John Dehner
| John Dehner | |
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| Born | John Forkum November 23, 1915 Staten Island, New York, United States |
| Died | February 4, 1992 (aged 76) Santa Barbara, California, United States |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1941 - 1988 |
John Dehner (November 23, 1915 - February 4, 1992) was an American actor in radio, television, and films, playing countless roles, often as a droll villain. Between 1941 and 1988, he appeared in over 260 films and television programs. Prior to acting, Dehner had worked as an animator at Walt Disney Studios, and later became a radio disc jockey. He was also a professional pianist.
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[edit] Radio
Dehner had an extensive career as a radio actor, appearing as a lead or supporting player in such series as Gunsmoke and Philip Marlowe. He starred as Paladin in the radio version of Have Gun — Will Travel, one of the few times a show began on television and then was later adapted for radio. On CBS radio in 1958, he starred in Frontier Gentleman, a radio Western series that opened with a trumpet theme by Jerry Goldsmith and this introduction:
- Herewith, an Englishman's account of life and death in the West. As a reporter for The Times, he writes his colorful and unusual accounts. But as a man with a gun, he lives and becomes a part of the violent years in the new territories. Now, starring John Dehner, this is the story of J. B. Kendall, Frontier Gentleman...
Written and directed by Antony Ellis, the short-lived series followed the adventures of journalist Kendall as he roamed the Western United States in search of stories for The Times.
[edit] Television and films
Dehner appeared with Maudie Prickett in the 1953 episode "Bad Men of Marysville" of the syndicated Western television series The Adventures of Kit Carson, starring Bill Williams. He guest starred on the 1955-1956 NBC Western anthology series, Frontier and in the CBS Cold War drama, Crusader, starring Brian Keith. He played Sheriff Henry Plummer in an episode of the 1954-1955 syndicated Stories of the Century, starring Jim Davis as Matt Clark, the fictitious detective of the Southwestern Railroad. In 1966 he played assassin "Iron Man" Torres in the Night of the Steel Assassin episode of The Wild, Wild West, starring Robert Conrad.
He delivered two memorable performances on ABC's Maverick (1957) opposite James Garner in the episodes "Shady Deal at Sunny Acres" ("...if you can't trust your banker, whom can you trust?") and "Greenbacks, Unlimited." Dehner also played Pat Garrett in Gore Vidal's The Left Handed Gun, opposite Paul Newman as Billy the Kid. Dehner appeared in Scaramouche (1952) as Doutreval of Dijon, and he played the non-singing role of Mr. Bascombe, the mill owner and intended robbery victim, in the 1956 film version of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel.
He took the role of Colonel Tedesco in the Playhouse 90 original drama by A.E. Hotchner, The Killers of Mussolini. More of his television appearances can be seen on three episodes of Hogan's Heroes. In 1957, he was in Texas Rangers with Gale Storm.
Dehner appeared in three episodes of The Twilight Zone: as Captain Allenby in the 1959 episode "The Lonely"; a 1961 episode, "The Jungle", as an engineer who receives an African curse; and "Mr. Garrity and the Graves" in the series' fifth and final season. He guest starred in the episode "Three" of the syndicated crime drama The Brothers Brannagan, starring Stephen Dunne and Mark Roberts as well as playing Arvid Lacey in the Rawhide episode "Incident at Sulphar Creek" in 1960. Appeared as an old WWI French General who assists the Americans during WWII in a episode of Combat entitled "the General and the Sargent". During the same time period, he also appeared on another, shorter lived WW II television drama "The Gallant Men" in an episode titled "A Moderately Quiet Sunday", playing a disillusioned German captain who contrives to surrender himself to an American private.
Dehner appeared in a number of Rifleman episodes as various characters. He guest-starred in NBC's The Wide Country, a drama about rodeo performers which aired in 1962-63. He also guest starred on an episode of "The Andy Griffith Show" playing Colonel Harvey, purveyor of a magic elixir that casts a spell over Aunt Bee. The next season he guest-starred on Jack Palance's ABC circus drama, The Greatest Show on Earth and on the short-lived CBS sitcom/drama Glynis, starring Glynis Johns and Keith Andes. He was featured in the F Troop Season One Episode "Honest Injun" as a dishonest traveling patent medicine salesman. In 1966, he guest starred in the episode "Power of Fear" of Barry Sullivan's NBC western series The Road West and played the recurring role of Morgan Starr on The Virginian. In 1970, he appeared in The Cheyenne Social Club with James Stewart and Henry Fonda.
From 1971-73 he was Cy Bennett, Doris Martin's overbearing boss on The Doris Day Show. One of his last appearances was as the sympathetic judge in the courtroom thriller Jagged Edge. He appeared in the Columbo episodes Swan Song (1974) and Last Salute to the Commodore (1978), playing the title role in the latter. In 1983, he starred in the short-lived NBC prime time soap opera Bare Essence as "Hadden Marshall".
Dehner also portrayed a number of historical figures, including Pat Garrett in the 1957 western film The Left Handed Gun; Jean Lafitte in the 1964 episode "The Gentleman from New Orleans" of TV western TV series Bonanza; Thomas Jefferson in the 1964 episode "Plague" of the TV anthology series The Great Adventure; Dean Acheson in the 1974 TV-movie The Missiles of October; Lafayette C. Baker in the 1977 film The Lincoln Conspiracy; John Muir in the 1979 TV movie Guardian of the Wilderness (also known as Mountain Man); Henry Luce in the 1983 film The Right Stuff; and Admiral Ernest J. King in the 1988 TV miniseries War and Remembrance.
He died of emphysema and diabetes at the age of 76 in Santa Barbara, California. His interment is at Carpinteria, California's cemetery.
[edit] Partial filmography
- Fantasia (1940) - animator
- Bambi (1942) - animator
- The Secret of St. Ives (1949)
- Ten Tall Men (1951) as Jardine
- China Corsair (1951)
- Scaramouche (1952)
- Plymouth Adventure (1952) as Gilbert Winslow
- The Steel Lady (1953)
- Apache (1954)
- The Scarlet Coat (1955)
- Carousel (1956)
- The Fastest Gun Alive (1956)
- The Left Handed Gun (1958)
- Man of the West (1958)
- Apache Territory (1958)
- Cast A Long Shadow (1959)
- The Jungle (The Twilight Zone)(1961)
- Critic's Choice (1963)
- Youngblood Hawke (1964)
- Stiletto (1969)
- Dirty Dingus Magee (1970)
- Support Your Local Gunfighter (1971)
- Slaughterhouse-Five (1972)
- The Day of the Dolphin (1973)
- The Missiles of October (1974)
- Fun with Dick and Jane (1977)
- The Lincoln Conspiracy (1977)
- The Boys from Brazil (1978)
- Nothing Personal (1980)
- Airplane II: The Sequel (1982)
- The Right Stuff (1983)
- Creator (1985)
- Jagged Edge (1985)
