Kerwin Mathews
Encyclopedia
Kerwin Mathews was an American
actor
best known for playing the titular heroes in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958
), The Three Worlds of Gulliver
(1960
) and Jack the Giant Killer (1962
).
, Wisconsin
. He attended Janesville High School, graduating in 1943. Mathews said that "a kind high school teacher put me in a play, and that changed my life."
According to a classmate, he was a "handsome rascal".
After serving in the Army Air Corps during World War II, he attended and performed at nearby Milton College for two years before transferring to Beloit College
on drama
and music
scholarships. He remained at Beloit three years after graduation teaching speech and dramatic arts and appeared in regional theater. He also taught high school English in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1954, Mathews acted at the Pasadena Playhouse
, where he met the head of casting for Columbia Pictures
, leading to a seven-year studio contract
. He appeared in several action/adventure and fantasy films of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Although he felt typecast, he "looked fondly" on his Hollywood career, with his favorite role being Johan Strauss, Jr.
in the Disney two-part telefilm The Waltz King (1963). Matthews played Jean Bruce
's OSS 117
in a series of French films and played The Viscount based on another hero written by Bruce.
He retired from acting in 1978 and moved to San Francisco, where he ran a clothing and antiques shop. He died in his sleep in San Francisco on July 5, 2007 at the age of 81. He leaves behind his partner of 46 years, Tom Nicoll. The City of Janesville subsequently renamed a one-block street adjacent to the former Janesville High School "Kerwin Mathews Court". The renovated building now houses the Janesville Performing Arts Center.
† Pilots for unsold series
‡ OSS 117
film
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
best known for playing the titular heroes in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958
1958 in film
The year 1958 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 16- "In the Money" by William Beaudine is released on this date. It would be the last installment of The Bowery Boys series which began back in 1946....
), The Three Worlds of Gulliver
The Three Worlds of Gulliver
The Three Worlds of Gulliver is a 1960 Columbia Pictures fantasy film loosely based upon the 18th-century English novel Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. The film stars Kerwin Mathews as the titular character, June Thorburn as his fiancée Elizabeth, and child actor Sherry Alberoni as...
(1960
1960 in film
The year 1960 in film involved some significant events, with Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho the top-grossing release in the U.S.-Events:* April 20 - for the first time since coming home from military service in Germany, Elvis Presley returns to Hollywood, California to film G.I...
) and Jack the Giant Killer (1962
1962 in film
The year 1962 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May - The Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards are officially founded by the Taiwanese government....
).
Life and career
Mathews was born in Seattle, Washington and was two years old when moved with his divorced mother to JanesvilleJanesville
Janesville is the name of several places in the United States of America:*Janesville, California*Janesville, Iowa*Janesville, Minnesota*Janesville, Wisconsin*Janesville , Wisconsin*Janesville Township, Minnesota...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. He attended Janesville High School, graduating in 1943. Mathews said that "a kind high school teacher put me in a play, and that changed my life."
According to a classmate, he was a "handsome rascal".
After serving in the Army Air Corps during World War II, he attended and performed at nearby Milton College for two years before transferring to Beloit College
Beloit College
Beloit College is a liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, USA. It is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, and has an enrollment of roughly 1,300 undergraduate students. Beloit is the oldest continuously operated college in Wisconsin, and has the oldest building of any college...
on drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
and music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
scholarships. He remained at Beloit three years after graduation teaching speech and dramatic arts and appeared in regional theater. He also taught high school English in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Lake Geneva is a city in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 7,148 at the 2000 census. A resort city located on Geneva Lake, it is southwest of Milwaukee and popular with tourists from metropolitan Chicago and Milwaukee.-History:...
.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1954, Mathews acted at the Pasadena Playhouse
Pasadena Playhouse
The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engagements each year.-History:...
, where he met the head of casting for Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
, leading to a seven-year studio contract
Studio system
The studio system was a means of film production and distribution dominant in Hollywood from the early 1920s through the early 1960s. The term studio system refers to the practice of large motion picture studios producing movies primarily on their own filmmaking lots with creative personnel under...
. He appeared in several action/adventure and fantasy films of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Although he felt typecast, he "looked fondly" on his Hollywood career, with his favorite role being Johan Strauss, Jr.
Johann Strauss II
Johann Strauss II , also known as Johann Baptist Strauss or Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, or the Son , was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed over 500 waltzes, polkas, quadrilles, and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas...
in the Disney two-part telefilm The Waltz King (1963). Matthews played Jean Bruce
Jean Bruce
Jean Bruce born Jean Brochet on 22 March 1921 was a prolific French popular writer who died in 26 March 1963 in a car accident. He also wrote under the pseudonyms of Jean Alexandre, Jean Alexandre Brochet, Jean-Martin Rouan, and Joyce Lindsay....
's OSS 117
OSS 117
OSS 117 is the codename for Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath, a fictional secret agent initially from the pen of the prolific Jean Bruce. Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath is described as being an American Colonel from Louisiana of French descent...
in a series of French films and played The Viscount based on another hero written by Bruce.
He retired from acting in 1978 and moved to San Francisco, where he ran a clothing and antiques shop. He died in his sleep in San Francisco on July 5, 2007 at the age of 81. He leaves behind his partner of 46 years, Tom Nicoll. The City of Janesville subsequently renamed a one-block street adjacent to the former Janesville High School "Kerwin Mathews Court". The renovated building now houses the Janesville Performing Arts Center.
Television
- Space Patrol, "The Escape of Mr Proteus" (1954)
- Ford TheatreFord TheatreFord Theatre was a radio and television anthology series broadcast in the United States in the 1940s and 1950s. At various times the television series appeared on all three major television networks, while the radio version was broadcast on two separate networks and on two separate coasts...
- Charlie C company (1954)
- The Lady in the Wind (1955)
- Catch at Straws (1956)
- Playhouse 90Playhouse 90Playhouse 90 is an American television anthology series that was telecast on CBS from 1956 to 1960 for a total of 133 episodes. It originated from CBS Television City in Los Angeles, California...
- The Country Husband (1956)
- Matinee TheatreMatinee TheatreMatinee Theatre is an American anthology series that aired on NBC during the Golden Age of Television, from 1955 to 1958. The series, which ran daily in the afternoon, was frequently live. It was produced by Albert McCleery, Darrell Ross, George Cahan and Frank Price with executive producer George...
- Show of Strength (1957)
- The Suicide Club (1958)
- Goodyear Television PlayhouseGoodyear Television PlayhouseThe Goodyear Television Playhouse produced live television dramas from 1951 to 1957 during the "Golden Age of Television".Sponsored by Goodyear, the hour-long anthology series was telecast Sundays at 9pm on NBC...
- The Obenauf Story (1959)†
- Walt Disney's Wonderful World of ColorDisney anthology television seriesThe Walt Disney anthology television series refers to a television series which has been produced by the Walt Disney Company under several different titles from 1955 to 2008...
- The Waltz King (1963) (two parts)
- Ghostbreaker (1967)†
- Dead of Night: A Darkness at Blaisedon (1969)†
- Ironside (1972)
- "Hey, Buddy, Can You Spare a Life?"
- "Achilles' Heel"
- Death Takes a Holiday (1971)
† Pilots for unsold series
Film
- Five Against the HouseJack FinneyJack Finney was an American author. His best-known works are science fiction and thrillers, including The Body Snatchers and Time and Again. The former was the basis for the 1956 movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers and its remakes.-Biography:Finney was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and given the...
(1955) - The Garment JungleThe Garment JungleThe Garment Jungle is a 1957 American crime film noir directed by Vincent Sherman and Robert Aldrich and written by Lester Velie and Harry Kleiner. The drama features Gia Scala, Lee J. Cobb, Kerwin Matthews and Richard Boone, among others.-Plot:...
(1957) - Tarawa BeachheadTarawa BeachheadTarawa Beachhead is a 1958 film directed by Paul Wendkos. It stars Columbia Pictures contract star Kerwin Mathews in his first leading role and the husband and wife team of Ray Danton and Julie Adams. The working title of the film was Flag over Tarawa and was originally to have starred Ronald...
(1958) - The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958)
- The Last BlitzkriegThe Last BlitzkriegThe Last Blitzkrieg is a 1959 World War II film produced by Sam Katzman and filmed at the Cinetone Studios in Amsterdam for a Columbia Pictures release. Arthur Dreifuss directed Van Johnson and Columbia contract stars Dick York and Kerwin Mathews in a fictional account on Operation Grief in the...
(1959) - Saffo, venere di Lesbo aka The Warrior Princess (1960)
- Man on a String (1960)
- The Three Worlds of GulliverThe Three Worlds of GulliverThe Three Worlds of Gulliver is a 1960 Columbia Pictures fantasy film loosely based upon the 18th-century English novel Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. The film stars Kerwin Mathews as the titular character, June Thorburn as his fiancée Elizabeth, and child actor Sherry Alberoni as...
(1960) - The Devil at 4 O'ClockThe Devil at 4 O'ClockThe Devil at 4 O'Clock is a 1961 disaster film with elevated themes, starring Spencer Tracy and Frank Sinatra and directed by Mervyn LeRoy. Based upon an eponymous novel by Max Catto, film was a precursor to the disaster movies of the 1970s, such as The Poseidon Adventure, Earthquake, and The...
(1961) - Pirates of Blood RiverPirates of Blood RiverPirates of Blood River is a 1962 Hammer Film Productions pirate film starring Christopher Lee and Kerwin Matthews.While in a penal colony, Huguenot Jonathan Standish is captured by pirates led by Capt...
(1962) - Jack the Giant Killer (1962)
- OSS 117 (1963) ‡
- Maniac (1963)
- Panic in Bangkok (1964) ‡
- Shadow of EvilBanco à Bangkok pour OSS 117Banco à Bangkok pour OSS 117 released in the USA as Shadow of Evil is a 1964 French Eurospy spy-fi film. It was based on Jean Bruce's 1960 novel Lila de Calcutta, the 74th OSS 117 novel. It was the second OSS 117 film directed by André Hunebelle and produced by Paul Cadéac, the first in the series...
(1966) ‡ - Battle Beneath the Earth (1967)
- The Viscount (1967)
- The Killer Likes Candy (1968)
- A Boy...a Girl (1969)
- Barquero (1970)
- Octaman (1971)
- Achilles Heel (1972)
- The Boy Who Cried WerewolfThe Boy Who Cried WerewolfThe Boy Who Cried Werewolf is a 1973 film directed by Nathan H. Juran. The film stars Kerwin Matthews in the last film both he and Juran did after a few early films, including The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad. In this thriller, a boy visits his father in a secluded cabin; the father is attacked by a...
(1973) - Nightmare in Blood (1978)
‡ OSS 117
OSS 117
OSS 117 is the codename for Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath, a fictional secret agent initially from the pen of the prolific Jean Bruce. Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath is described as being an American Colonel from Louisiana of French descent...
film