Austin St. John
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Austin St. John | |
|---|---|
 St. John in June 2014. | |
| Born | Jason Geiger September 17, 1974 |
| Occupation | Actor |
Austin St. John (born Jason Geiger;[1] on September 17, 1974) is an EMT and former American actor and martial artist known for his role in the children's television series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers as Jason Lee Scott, the original Red Ranger and first leader of the Power Rangers.[2] He has also worked as an East Coast emergency medical technician and firefighter [3]
Personal life
St. John has been practicing martial arts since he was five years old and holds a second-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do,[4] a first-degree black belt in Judo, and he also practices Kenpo.
His stage name came as his management team at Pat O’Brien Management Talents thought Jason Geiger was not a strong name, with the actor coming up with "St. John" himself, and Austin being suggested by the managers inspired by Steve Austin, from The Six Million Dollar Man.[1]
Power Rangers
St. John's first major role in acting was in 1993, when he starred as Jason Lee Scott, the Red Power Ranger, in Saban Entertainment's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. At the age of 17, when the series premiered on the Fox Network, he was the youngest member of the original cast, but was also the most experienced at martial arts, which was integrated into his character on the show. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was an instant success and quickly became one of the highest-rated children's television programs ever. However, Austin left the series mid-way through the second season, due to a contract and pay dispute, and was replaced as the Red Ranger on the show by Steve Cardenas, who also played the role of the Red Ranger in the first Power Rangers movie instead of St. John.
St. John later returned to the franchise as the Gold Ranger in Power Rangers: Zeo and as a guest star in the second Power Rangers movie, along with his former castmate Amy Jo Johnson (Kimberly Hart, the original Pink Ranger). He also co-hosted the 1999 Power Rangers special titled "The Lost Episode," with his former castmate and close friend Walter Emanuel Jones (Zack Taylor, the original Black Ranger), in which they both discussed the history of Power Rangers up to that point and also presented the original, never-before-seen pilot of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
St. John's last Power Rangers appearance was in the tenth anniversary special "Forever Red," where he joined nine other Red Ranger actors. He once again played the original Red Ranger and was reunited with his former cast mate Jason David Frank (Tommy Oliver, the franchise's longest-serving Power Ranger). St. John was also one of the guest speakers who appeared at the 2007 Power Morphicon convention held in Los Angeles, which celebrated the 15th anniversary of the Power Rangers franchise.
After several years of service overseas St. John began making convention appearances in 2014 including a return to Power Morphicon.[5][6]
Filmography
Television
| Year | Television program | Portraying | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–1996 | Mighty Morphin Power Rangers | Jason Lee Scott / Red Power Ranger | Starring role (80 episodes) |
| 1996 | Power Rangers: Zeo | Jason Lee Scott / Gold Zeo Ranger | Starring role (17 episodes) |
| 1998 | Exposé | Detective Anderson | TV film |
| 1999 | Power Rangers: The Lost Episode | Himself / Jason Lee Scott / Red Power Ranger | Co-host / Co-star (original pilot) |
| 2002 | Power Rangers: Wild Force | Jason Lee Scott / Red Power Ranger | Guest star ("Forever Red") |
Film
| Film | Year | Portraying |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Encyclopedia of Martial Arts: Hollywood Celebrities | Himself |
| 1997 | Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie | Jason Lee Scott |
Books
- Austin St. John is the author of the book Karate Warrior: A Beginner's Guide to Martial Arts. - ISBN 1-56138-784-3
References
- ^ a b PAT O’BRIEN’S BIGGEST SUCCESS STORIES
- ^ Dale, Steve (1995-03-10). "It's Pink Floyd For Children". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2010-08-30.
- ^ http://www.austinstjohn.net/index.php?article_id=6
- ^ Rivera, Candida; Matamoros, Stephanie (1994-12-24). "KIDSDAY TALKING WITH Austin St. John". Newsday.
- ^ Power Morphicon 4 ~ August 22nd-24th 2014
- ^ 'Mighty Morphin Power Rangers': Where are they now? Entertainment Weekly, Retrieved November 7, 2014
External links
- Austin St. John at IMDb
- Austin St. John on X
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| National | |
