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John Ireland (1914-1992)
John Ireland

Stage Stop, November 26, 1966 Written, by Hal Sitowitz, Directed by Irving Moore, Guest Cast: John Ireland, Anne Whitfield, Jack Ging, Steve Raines, Joseph Ruskin, Michael Vandever, Sid Haig, Andy Albin

Vengeance (Part One), October 2, 1967 Written by Calvin Clements, Directed by Richard Sarafian, Guest Cast: John Ireland, Kim Darby, James Anderson, Victor French, James Stacy, Morgan Woodward, Buck Taylor, Paul Fix, Royal Dano, Sandy Kevin

Vengeance (Part Two), October 9, 1967 Written by Calvin Clements, Directed by Richard Sarafian, Guest Cast: John Ireland, Kim Darby, James Anderson, Victor French, James Stacy, Morgan Woodward, Buck Taylor, Paul Fix, Royal Dano, Sandy Kevin

Ireland was a veteran character actor whose career spanned some 50 years. Pictured here early in his career he was tall, dark and handsome with intense eyes, He began his career as a leading man in the 1940s and 50s. Initially he appeared in roles as a villain and graduated to the romantic lead, later reverting back to villains and other assorted character types. He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on January 30, 1914 and was raised in New York. He began his show business career as a professional swimmer in a water show. He soon moved on to the theatre beginning in stock companies and graduating on to Broadway productions. His film debut in "A Walk in the Sun" won him acclaim and he was on his way. Among his film credits were: "A Walk in the Sun" (1945) as Windy; "Wake Up and Dream" (1946) as Howard Williams; "My Darling Clementine" (1946) with Henry Fonda and Victor Mature, as Billy Clanton, in a terrific performance; "The Gangster" (1947) as Karty; "Raw Deal" (1948) as Fantail; one of my favorites of his roles "Red River" (1948) with John Wayne and Montgomery Clift, as Cherry Valance; "I Shot Jesse James" (1949) as Bob Ford; "The Doolins of Oklahoma" (1949) as Bitter Creek; "Anna Lucasta" (1949) as Danny Johnson; "All the King's Men" (1949) with Broderick Crawford, as Jack Burden, for which he was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar; "Little Big Horn" (1951) as Lt. John Haywood; "Hurricane Smith" (1952) as Hurricane Smith; "The Steel Cage" (1954) as a Ringleader; "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" (1957) as Johnny Ringo; "Spartacus" (1960) with Kirk Douglas, as Crixus; "55 Days at Peking" (1963) as Sgt. Harry; "The Fall of the Roman Empire" (1964) as Ballomar; "Arizona Bushwackers" (1968) as Dan Shelby; "Farewell My Lovely" (1975) with Robert Mitchum, as Lt. Nulty; "Tomorrow Never Comes" (1978) as Captain; "The Incubus" (1981) as Hank Walden; "Martin's Day" (1984) as Brewer and "Waxwork II: Lost in Time" (1992) as King Arthur, his last theatrical film. He appeared in a series of Italian Spaghetti westerns in the 1960s and 70s. On TV he was a regular on the series: "The Cheaters" (1961) as John Hunter; "Rawhide" (1965-66) as Jed Colby and "Cassie & Co." (1982) as Lyman 'Shack' Shackleford. He appeared in TV movies including: "The Phantom of Hollywood" (1974); "The Millionaire" (1978) and "Marilyn: The Untold Story" (1980) as John Huston. He also guest starred on many TV series including: "Zane Grey Theater"; "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"; "Rawhide"; "Gunsmoke"; "The Virginian"; "Mission: Impossible"; "Little House on the Prairie" and "Magnum P.I." He had two 1/2 brothers, Michael Ireland and the comedy star, Tommy Noonan, plus a 1/2 sister Kathleen as well as another sister in Canada whom he had not seen since birth. He was married three times; the first two times to actresses Elaine Rosen (born Gudmand) and Joanne Dru and the third to Daphne Myrick Cameron lasting 30 years until his death. He had 2 sons, John Jr. and Peter by Elaine Rosen and a daughter, Daphne by Daphne Cameron. He died on March 22, 1992 of leukemia in Santa Barbara, California at age 78.

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