John Dehner
| John Dehner | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
John Forkum November 23, 1915 Staten Island, New York, U.S. |
| Died | February 4, 1992 (aged 76) Santa Barbara, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Emphysema, diabetes |
| Resting place | Carpinteria Cemetery in Carpinteria, California |
| Occupation | Radio, film, and television actor |
| Years active | 1941-1988 |
| Spouse(s) | Roma Leonore Meyers (1941-1970; divorced; 2 children) Evelyn Severance (1973-1992; his death) |
John Dehner (November 23, 1915 – February 4, 1992), born John Forkum, 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.
Dehner was born in Staten Island, New York, the middle child of three. His father was an artist, a painter. While he was a youngster, his father's artistic work took the family to Oslo, Copenhagen, London, and Paris. While in Oslo, he played in some musicals. Dehner initially went into art after studying at the Grand Central School of Art in New York City, New York. He worked as an animator at Walt Disney Studios. He was also a professional pianist.
Dehner's early radio jobs included being a news editor and a disc jockey. While working at KFWB in Los Angeles, California, he was a member of a news team that won a Peabody Award for its reporting on the first United Nations conference.
He had an extensive career as a radio actor, appearing as a lead or supporting player in such series as "The Whistler", 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 western series that opened with a trumpet theme by Jerry Goldsmith and this introduction:
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.
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 was reteamed with Keith in a subsequent series The Westerner. He played the sheriff-turned-outlaw Henry Plummer in an episode of the 1954-55 syndicated Stories of the Century, starring Jim Davis as Matt Clark, the fictitious detective of the Southwest Railroad.
...
Wikipedia