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John Ericson (Actor)
Encyclopedia
John Ericson (born John Meibes on September 25, 1926) is a German-American actor
and film and television
star.
He trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts
in New York
, played the lead role in Stalag 17 by Donald Bevan and Edmund Trzcinski on Broadway
(1951). He went on to make a number of films for MGM in quick succession in the 1950s.
His first appearance was in Teresa (1951), directed by Fred Zinnemann
, which also launched the film careers of Pier Angeli
and Rod Steiger
. He then went on to appear in a series of films which included Rhapsody
, The Student Prince
, Green Fire
(all in 1954), and opposite Spencer Tracy
in the western classic Bad Day at Black Rock
(1955). Ericson also co-starred with Barbara Stanwyck
(as her brother) in Samuel Fuller
's western Forty Guns
.
His career continued, mostly on television, for the next thirty years. He appeared in the lead role in "The Peter Bartley Story" of CBS's fantasy
drama, The Millionaire. Child actor
Johnny Washbrook
appeared in the same episode in a flashback segment of Ericson as a boy. He appeared with Dorothy Malone
in the January 1, 1956, episode entitled "Mutiny" of CBS's Appointment with Adventure
. He guest starred in 1958 in the NBC
western
series The Restless Gun
, starring John Payne
and in the 1961 ABC
crime drama, Target: The Corruptors!
From 1965–66, Ericson co-starred as the partner of Anne Francis
in the ABC detective series Honey West
, a unique concept about a female private eye. He and Francis had been in the Bad Day at Black Rock cast together.
He also appeared in such films as Pretty Boy Floyd (1960), 7 Faces of Dr. Lao
(1964) and Bedknobs and Broomsticks
(1971).
He has been married twice and has two children from his first marriage to Milly Coury.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and film and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
star.
He trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts
American Academy of Dramatic Arts
The American Academy of Dramatic Arts is a fully accredited two-year conservatory with facilities located in Manhattan, New York City – at 120 Madison Avenue, in a landmark building designed by noted architect Stanford White as the original Colony Club – and in Hollywood, California...
in New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, played the lead role in Stalag 17 by Donald Bevan and Edmund Trzcinski on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
(1951). He went on to make a number of films for MGM in quick succession in the 1950s.
His first appearance was in Teresa (1951), directed by Fred Zinnemann
Fred Zinnemann
Fred Zinnemann was an Austrian-American film director. He won four Academy Awards and directed films like High Noon, From Here to Eternity and A Man for All Seasons.-Life and career:...
, which also launched the film careers of Pier Angeli
Pier Angeli
Pier Angeli was an Italian-born television and film actress. Her American cinematographic debut was in the starring role of the 1951 film Teresa, in which she won a Golden Globe Award...
and Rod Steiger
Rod Steiger
Rodney Stephen "Rod" Steiger was an Academy Award-winning American actor known for his performances in such films as On the Waterfront, The Big Knife, Oklahoma!, The Harder They Fall, Across the Bridge, The Pawnbroker, Doctor Zhivago, In the Heat of the Night, and Waterloo as well as the...
. He then went on to appear in a series of films which included Rhapsody
Rhapsody (film)
Rhapsody is a 1954 MGM film directed by Charles Vidor, and produced by Lawrence Weingarten. It is based on the novel Maurice Guest by Henry Handel Richardson...
, The Student Prince
The Student Prince
The Student Prince is an operetta in four acts with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly. It is based on Wilhelm Meyer-Förster's play Alt Heidelberg. The piece has elements of melodrama but lacks the swashbuckling style common to Romberg's other works...
, Green Fire
Green Fire
Green Fire is a 1954 MGM movie directed by Andrew Marton and produced by Armand Deutsch, with original music by Miklós Rózsa. It stars Grace Kelly, Stewart Granger, Paul Douglas and John Ericson.-Plot:...
(all in 1954), and opposite Spencer Tracy
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was an American theatrical and film actor, who appeared in 75 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy was one of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, ranking among the top ten box office draws for almost every year from 1938 to 1951...
in the western classic Bad Day at Black Rock
Bad Day at Black Rock
Bad Day at Black Rock is a 1955 thriller film directed by John Sturges that combines elements of Westerns and film noir. It tells the story of a mysterious stranger who arrives at a tiny isolated town in a desert of the southwest United States in search of a man...
(1955). Ericson also co-starred with Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress. She was a film and television star, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
(as her brother) in Samuel Fuller
Samuel Fuller
Samuel Michael Fuller was an American screenwriter, novelist, and film director known for low-budget genre movies with controversial themes.-Personal life:...
's western Forty Guns
Forty Guns
Forty Guns is a 1957 CinemaScope western film written and directed by Samuel Fuller and released by the 20th Century Fox studio. The film stars Barbara Stanwyck, Barry Sullivan and Gene Barry.-Plot:...
.
His career continued, mostly on television, for the next thirty years. He appeared in the lead role in "The Peter Bartley Story" of CBS's fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
drama, The Millionaire. Child actor
Child actor
The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting in motion pictures or television, but also to an adult who began his or her acting career as a child; to avoid confusion, the latter is also called a former child actor...
Johnny Washbrook
Johnny Washbrook
John "Johnny" Washbrook is a former child actor best known for his role as 12-year-old Ken McLaughlin on the western television series My Friend Flicka, originally broadcast from 1956-1957 on CBS.-My Friend Flicka:...
appeared in the same episode in a flashback segment of Ericson as a boy. He appeared with Dorothy Malone
Dorothy Malone
Dorothy Malone is an American actress. Her film career began in 1943, and in her early years she played small roles, mainly in B-movies. After a decade in films, she began to acquire a more glamorous image, particularly after her performance in Written on the Wind , for which she won the Academy...
in the January 1, 1956, episode entitled "Mutiny" of CBS's Appointment with Adventure
Appointment with Adventure
Appointment with Adventure is a half-hour adventure/dramatic anthology television series broadcast live on CBS from 1955-1956. The program has no host. It aired at 10 p.m...
. He guest starred in 1958 in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
series The Restless Gun
The Restless Gun
The Restless Gun is a western television series that appeared on NBC between 1957 and 1959, with John Payne in the role of Vint Bonner, a wandering cowboy in the era after the American Civil War. A skilled gunfighter, Bonner is an idealistic person who prefers peaceful resolutions of conflict...
, starring John Payne
John Payne (actor)
John Payne was an American film actor who is mainly remembered as a singer in 20th Century Fox musical films, and for his leading roles in Miracle on 34th Street and the NBC western television series The Restless Gun.-Background:Payne was born in Roanoke, Virginia...
and in the 1961 ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
crime drama, Target: The Corruptors!
Target: The Corruptors!
Target: The Corruptors! is a 35-episode crime drama starring Stephen McNally as newspaper reporter Paul Marino, which aired on ABC from September 29, 1961 to June 8, 1962. The character Jack Flood, Marino's undercover agent, was portrayed by Robert Harland...
From 1965–66, Ericson co-starred as the partner of Anne Francis
Anne Francis
Anne Lloyd Francis was an American actress, best known for her role in the science fiction film classic Forbidden Planet , and as the female private detective in the television series Honey West . She won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Emmy award for her role in Honey West...
in the ABC detective series Honey West
Honey West (TV series)
Honey West is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC during the 1965-1966 television season. The series stars Anne Francis as female private detective Honey West and John Ericson as her partner Sam Bolt....
, a unique concept about a female private eye. He and Francis had been in the Bad Day at Black Rock cast together.
He also appeared in such films as Pretty Boy Floyd (1960), 7 Faces of Dr. Lao
7 Faces of Dr. Lao
7 Faces of Dr. Lao is a Metrocolor 1964 film adaptation of the 1935 fantasy novel The Circus of Dr. Lao by Charles G. Finney. It details the visit of a magical circus to a small town in the southwest United States, and the effects that visit has on the people of the town...
(1964) and Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Bedknobs and Broomsticks is a 1971 musical film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by Buena Vista Distribution Company which combines live action and animation and was released in North America on December 13, 1971...
(1971).
He has been married twice and has two children from his first marriage to Milly Coury.