John Abbott
Acting
- Born:
- 1905-06-05
- Died:
- 1996-05-24
- Place of birth:
- Stepney, London, England, UK
Biography
John Albert Chamberlain Kefford was an English character actor professionally known as John Abbott. His memorable roles include the invalid Frederick Fairlie in the 1948 film The Woman in White and the pacifist Ayelborne in the Star Trek episode "Errand of Mercy". as well as a Shakespearean actor. In 1934, he began his career in show business when he made his professional stage debut in a revival of Dryden's Aureng-zebe with Sybil Thorndike. He then joined the Old Vic Company and appeared in Shakespearean roles, including Claudius in a production of Hamlet at Elsinore Castle in Denmark with Laurence Olivier, Vivien Leigh and Alec Guinness. His first Broadway role was that of Count Mancini in He Who Gets Slapped in 1946. He also appeared on Broadway in Monserrat and The Waltz of the Toreadors. He made his film debut in Mademoiselle Docteur in 1937 and went on to act in scores of films in the next 30 years. Among his film credits are Mission to Moscow, Jane Eyre, A Thousand and One Nights, Humoresque, and The Greatest Story Ever Told. His television appearances in that time were even more numerous, beginning with pioneering broadcasts by the BBC before the Second World War. In the early days of the Second World War, Abbott worked at the British Embassy in Stockholm. When the time came to leave, he had to by way of the United States. While in the U.S., he was offered a part in Hollywood in 1941 and ended up living there for the rest of his life. On American television between the 1950s and 1970s, Abbott had roles on a wide variety of series such as Kraft Television Theatre, Studio 57, Gunsmoke, Matinee Theatre, Bonanza, Thriller, Star Trek, Mannix, Iron Horse, and Bewitched. Although he was blacklisted during the Red Scare of the 1950s, a producer who wanted to hire him eventually succeeded in getting the actor removed from the list.In his final years, Abbott taught acting to students free of charge. Abbott died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center from natural causes on 24 May 1996 at the age of 90.
Known For
Filmography
The Commissioner
A Hazard of Hearts
Quest
Smorgasbord
Slapstick of Another Kind
Blunt Instrument
Outside Chance
Edward and Mrs Simpson
Sherlock Holmes in New York
The Black Bird
The Cat Creature
Cool Million
The Partners
Timeslip
Paul Temple
Medical Center
The Epic That Never Was
2000 Years Later
Three Guns for Texas
Land of the Giants
The Jungle Book
Mannix
Garrison's Gorillas
Rango
Gambit
Star Trek
Get Smart
Laredo
Lost in Space
The Greatest Story Ever Told
Profiles in Courage
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
Flipper
Bewitched
Wendy and Me
The Rogues
Who's Minding the Store?
Burke's Law
The Beverly Hillbillies
Ichabod and Me
Maigret
The Islanders
Outlaws
Thriller
The Detectives
Adventures in Paradise
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
77 Sunset Strip
The Rifleman
The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen
Peter Gunn
Gigi
Perry Mason
Have Gun, Will Travel
Omar Khayyam
Public Pigeon No. 1
Telephone Time
The Miracle on 34th Street
Matinee Theater
The 20th Century Fox Hour
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Gunsmoke
The Steel Lady
Sombrero
Rogue's March
General Electric Theater
Thunder in the East
Cavalcade of America
The Merry Widow
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Thunder on the Hill
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Crosswinds
Navy Bound
Sideshow
Madame Bovary
Studio One
The Woman in White
If Winter Comes
Adventure Island
The Web
Time Out of Mind
Humoresque
Deception
Anna and the King of Siam
One More Tomorrow
The Bandit of Sherwood Forest
The Notorious Lone Wolf
Saratoga Trunk
Pursuit to Algiers
The Crime Doctor's Warning
A Thousand and One Nights
Honeymoon Ahead
The Power of the Whistler
The Vampire's Ghost
The Falcon in Hollywood
End of the Road
Cry of the Werewolf
Abroad with Two Yanks
Secrets of Scotland Yard
U-Boat Prisoner
Summer Storm
Once Upon a Time
The Mask of Dimitrios
Jane Eyre
The Cross of Lorraine
Dangerous Blondes
Mission to Moscow
Hangmen Also Die!
They Got Me Covered
The Gorilla Man
London Blackout Murders
Nightmare
Get Hep to Love
Mrs. Miniver
Rubber Racketeers
This Above All
Joan of Paris
The Shanghai Gesture
Ten Days in Paris
The Great Commandment
The Saint in London
This Man Is News
Under Secret Orders
Return of the Scarlet Pimpernel
Street of Shadows
The Conquest of the Air