John Lupton
| John Rollin Lupton | |
|---|---|
 Lupton with daughter Rollin and Michael Ansara, 1957. | |
| Born |
August 23, 1928 Highland Park, Illinois, USA |
| Died |
November 3, 1993 (aged 65) Los Angeles, California, USA |
| Alma mater | American Academy of Dramatic Arts |
| Years active | 1951-1993 |
| Spouse(s) |
Dian Friml (?-1993, his death) Anne (?-1959, divorced) |
| Children | One daughter, Rollin |
John Rollin Lupton (August 23, 1928 - November 3, 1993) was an American film and television actor.
Biography
Upon graduation from New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Lupton secured immediate stage work. He was then signed as a contract player at MGM in Hollywood.
Lupton was tall, lanky and handsome very much like James Stewart or Henry Fonda but never achieved similar fame while accumulating over 260 credits in film productions and on television.
Filmwise, Lupton is primarily remembered today for his role as "Sister Mary" in Battle Cry (1955).
He co-starred in 1956 with Fess Parker in the very popular film Disney's The Great Locomotive Chase, and in 1959 played a struggling writer in The Rebel Set.
He later appeared in the 1965 biblical film The Greatest Story Ever Told as the Speaker of the town of Capernaum, and as Jesse James in the cult horror western Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter (1966).
His later film career included roles in The Day of the Wolves (1971), The Astronaut (1972), Cool Breeze (1972), Napoleon and Samantha (1972), The Slams (1973), The Phantom of Hollywood (1974) and Airport 1975 (1974).
Lupton's other Disney film appearances were in The World's Greatest Athlete (1973) as the Race Starter, The Whiz Kid and the Carnival Caper (1976), The Young Runaways (1978) and The Secret of Lost Valley (1980).
During the 1954-1955 television season, Lupton appeared in several episodes as a college student in the CBS sitcom, The Halls of Ivy.
In 1956, he was cast in the ABC western series, Broken Arrow, which ran for two seasons, co-starring with Michael Ansara, who played the Apache Chief Cochise. The "broken arrow" is the symbol of peace between the white man and the Indians.
On October 30, 1959, Lupton was cast in the episode "Client Peter Warren" of the ABC western series Black Saddle, starring Peter Breck as gunfighter-turned-lawyer Clay Culhane. Lupton portrays Peter Warren, a man accused by townspeople of starting a fire that caused the death of his estranged wife's wealthy and respected aunt. The motive is inheritance of joint property from the aunt's pending estate. Culhane agrees to defend Warren but instead finds evidence that Warren had been present at the scene of the fire. Ed Nelson portrays Lee Coogan, a former suitor of Mrs. Mary Warren (played by Aneta Corsaut), who is also determined to show Warren's guilt.[1]
Lupton made two guest appearances on Perry Mason in 1959 and 1960. His first role was as Wally Dunbar in "The Case of the Bartered Bikini," then he played Peter Nichols in "The Case of the Lavender Lipstick."
In 1960, Lupton guest starred as Andrew Sykes in "The Triple Cross" of the syndicated crime drama, U.S. Marshal, which starred John Bromfield. That same year, he also appeared in a variety of programs, including Sea Hunt, Men into Space, Richard Diamond, Private Detective, Tales of Wells Fargo, and Checkmate.[2]
On April 25, 1961, Lupton played the role of Fred Powers in "Killer Odds, an episode of NBC's Laramie. Series character Jess Harper (Robert Fuller) comes upon Powers, a stranger with a price on his head, and Laramie costar Slim Sherman (John Smith) offers Fred employment on the ranch though he is pursued by gunslingers portrayed by Lee Van Cleef and Russell Johnson. The charge against Fred is fraudulent because he had killed in self-defense. Fred begins to court a local girl, Sue Fenton, played by Patricia Michon, in whom Slim Sherman also has a romantic interest. Ultimately, Slim, Jess, and Fred must rescue Sue and her family from the gunmen. Sue and Fred end up heading by covered wagon to California, where Sue had inherited unseen property.[3]
In 1961, he was cast as Buzz in the episode "Doctor to Town" of the CBS comedy/drama, Window on Main Street, starring Robert Young, as an author who returns to his hometown after the death of his wife. Character actor Karl Swenson also appeared in this episode.[4]
Lupton guest starred as Amber in the 1961 episode, "The Platinum Highway", of ABC's crime drama, Target: The Corruptors! with Stephen McNally as a newspaperman and Robert Harland as his investigator. He appeared, too, on NBC's Daniel Boone, with Fess Parker.
In 1965, Lupton starred in a well-remembered TV commercial for pain reliever Anacin, playing a harried husband with a headache, yelling at his hectoring wife, "Helen, please, I just got home...Don't rush me!"
Addirionally, he was featured on the daytime soap opera "Days of Our Lives in the pivotal role of Dr. Tom (Tommy) Horton Jr from 1967-1980.
Walk of Fame
John Lupton has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located on the west side of the 1700 block of Vine Street.[5]
Personal
John Lupton died in 1993 at the age of only sixty-five.
He was survived by his daughter, Rollin Tyson Lupton, with his second wife, Dian Friml Beckley, the granddaughter of musical composer Rudolf Friml, and three granddaughters: Parker, named for his acting friend Fess Parker, Holly and Hilary. He also has a granddaughter Brianna, who resides in Florida.
External links
References
- ↑ "Black Saddle: "Client Peter Warren", October 30, 1959". imdb.com. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
- ↑ "John Lupton". Internet Movie Data Base. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- ↑ "Laramie: "Killer Odds", April 25, 1961". Internet Movie Data Base. Retrieved October 6, 2012.
- ↑ ""Doctor to Town" on Window on Main Street, October 16, 1961". Internet Movie Data Base. Retrieved February 19, 2013.
- ↑ John Lupton. , Retrieved on May 23, 2013.