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John Wilder (producer)

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John Wilder
Wilder in 2013
Born
John Keith McGovern

(1936-05-28) May 28, 1936 (age 88)
Tacoma, Washington, U.S.
Other namesJohnny McGovern
Occupation(s)Actor, writer, director, producer
Years active1943–present
SpouseCarolyn Cunningham (divorced)
Children3

John Wilder (born John Keith McGovern; May 28, 1936) is an American television producer, writer, and former actor. He received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Drama Series for his work on The Streets of San Francisco, and created the series The Yellow Rose and Spenser: For Hire. He was also the producer of the miniseries Centennial.

As an actor, he appeared in films including Tumbleweed Trail (1946), When I Grow Up (1951), Singin' in the Rain (1952), The Pride of St. Louis (1952), Peter Pan (1953), Hold Back the Night (1956), and Five Guns to Tombstone (1960).

Life and career

Wilder was born in Tacoma, Washington, on May 28, 1936.[1][2] He began performing as a tap dancer by the time he was four years old. His family moved to Los Angeles in 1943, and, under his birth name, Johnny McGovern, he began a career as a child actor.[2] For four years, he starred on the Red Ryder radio series as Little Beaver,[3] and performed over 2500 broadcasts during the 1940s and early 1950s.[2]

Wilder's first stage role was a Geller Theatre Workshop production in Los Angeles Watch on the Rhine (1943).[2] In films, he later played Freckles in the western Tumbleweed Trail (1946), starred alongside Ronald Reagan in Don Siegel's Night Unto Night (1949), and appeared as Duckface in the drama When I Grow Up (1951). He appeared in minor roles in Singin' in the Rain and The Pride of St. Louis (1952),[4] and voiced the Raccoon Twins in Walt Disney Productions' Peter Pan (1953).[5] In the mid-1950s, Wilder planned to abandon acting to pursue a baseball scholarship at the University of Southern California, but producer Ed Chevie persuaded him to appear in the film Rock, Pretty Baby (1956), which lead to roles in other films such as Hold Back the Night (1956), The Unguarded Moment (1956), Until They Sail (1957), and Imitation General (1958).[2] By then, he had begun using the name "John Wilder", which he legally adopted in 1958.[6]

In the early 1960s, Wilder decided to abandon acting, believing it to be unfulfilling and feeling he had no future in the profession. He began attending Santa Monica City College and later transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles. Chuck Connors, a friend of Wilder's who co-starred with him in Hold Back the Night, enlisted Wilder to write a script for his show The Rifleman. Wilder later wrote for Connors' series Branded, and afterwards wrote for the soap opera Peyton Place for several seasons.[2] He wrote for The Streets of San Francisco in the 1970s, which earned him two nominations for the Outstanding Drama Series Primetime Emmy.[7] Wilder served as the creator of The Yellow Rose and Spenser: For Hire, and was also the producer of the miniseries Centennial.

Wilder and his ex-wife, Carolyn Cunningham, have three children. He has worked as a professor at Westmont College since 2019.[2]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role
1943 Watch on the Rhine Boy (uncredited)
1946 Tumbleweed Trail Freckles Ryan
1949 Night Unto Night Willie Shawn
1950 Tea for Two Richard Smith
1951 When I Grow Up Duckface
1952 The Pride of St. Louis Batboy
Room for One More Patrol Leader
Singin' in the Rain Boy
1953 Peter Pan Raccoon Twins
1956 The First Texan Soldier
Hold Back the Night Tinker
Rock, Pretty Baby 'Fingers' Porter
The Unguarded Moment Sandy Krupp
1957 Until They Sail Tommy
1958 Imitation General Lt. Jeff Clayton
Summer Love Mike Howard
1960 Five Guns to Tombstone Ted Wade

Television

As actor

Year Series Role Notes
1951–1953 Big Town Alan Donovan Episodes: "Success Story", "On Their Own"
1953–1961 The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet Various 8 episodes
1954 Death Valley Days Bill Spencer Episode: "The Rainbow Chaser"
1955 The Stu Erwin Show Teenager Episode: "One of the Boys"
The Loretta Young Show Pete Preston Episode: "The Refinement of 'Ab'"
1956 Crossroads Smiley Episode: "St. George and the Dragon"
Studio 57 Don Baxter Episode: "The Baxter Boy"
Alfred Hitchcock Presents Don Season 2 Episode 10: "Jonathan"
1956–1957 The West Point Story Cadet Jacoby
Cadet Wilson		 Episode: "Officer's Wife"
Episode: "Backfire"
1956–1958 Navy Log Steve Polachek
Lover		 Episode: "The Plebe"
Episode: "The Soapbox Kid"
1957 Circus Boy Anthony Gambino Episode: "The Great Gambini's Son"
The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin Pete Benton Episode: "Stagecoach Sally"
Telephone Time Dabney Episode: "Pit-a-Pit and the Dragon"
The Adventures of Jim Bowie Dan Jeffers Episode: "House Divided"
1958 Jane Wyman Presents Jay Dee Episode: "My Sister Susan"
Broken Arrow Ben Swallow Episode: "The Duel"
Wanted Dead or Alive Joe Sands Episode: "Die By the Gun"
Rescue 8 Stan Smith Episode: "Danger! 20,000 Volts"
Hey, Jeannie! Tom Episode: "The Landlord"
1959 The Millionaire Joe McGrath Episode: "Millionaire Father Gillooly"
The David Niven Show Jerry Episode: "Maggie Malone"
Wagon Train Stanley Blower Episode: "The Elizabeth McQueeny Story"
1960 The Tom Ewell Show Arthur Banning Episode: "Salesmanship Lesson"
1961 The Barbara Stanwyck Show Joe Episode: "Call Me Annie"
Perry Mason Dick Wilson Episode: "The Case of the Brazen Request"
1962 The Real McCoys Soldier Episode: "Money from Heaven"
1963 Petticoat Junction Arthur Gilroy Episode: "The Little Train Robbery"

As producer or writer

References

  1. ^ Kaplan, Mike (1983). Variety International Show Business Reference, 1983. Garland Pub. p. 319. ISBN 9780824090890 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Stenzel, Wesley. "Inside John Wilder: screenwriting professor reflects on eight decades in the entertainment industry". The Horizon. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  3. ^ "John Wilder". True West Magazine. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  4. ^ "Johnny McGovern". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  5. ^ Hischak, Thomas (October 6, 2011). Disney Voice Actors. McFarland. p. 243. ISBN 9780786486946.
  6. ^ "Name change, 1958". University of Southern California Digital Library. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  7. ^ "John Wilder". emmys.org. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
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