John Crawford

John Crawford

1920-09-13 – 2010-09-21 (age 90) Colfax, Washington, USA
View on IMDb ↗

Biography

Burly, handsome and rugged character actor John Crawford appeared in over 200 movies and TV shows combined in a career that spanned over 40 years, usually cast as tough and/or villainous characters.

Crawford was born Cleve Richardson on September 13, 1920, in Colfax, Washington. He was discovered by a Warner Bros. scout while attending the University of Washington's School of Drama. Although he failed his screen test, Crawford nonetheless joined RKO as a laborer. He then got a job building sets at Circle Theater in Los Angeles, and eventually persuaded the producers to cast him in some of their plays. He was soon signed to Columbia Pictures to act in secondary roles in westerns. In the late 1950s he graduated to bigger parts in such films as Ordre de tuer

 (1958), La clé (1958) and Un homme pour le bagne (1960), all of which were made in the UK. Crawford returned to America in the early 1960s and began a prolific career in both movies and TV series, up until 1986. His most memorable film roles include the ill-fated chief engineer inL'aventure du Poséidon (1972), the hearty Tom Iverson in La fugue (1975), the bumbling mayor of San Francisco in L'inspecteur ne renonce jamais (1976), hard-nosed police chief Buzz Cavanaugh in Un couple en fuite (1977) and amiable old mine hand Brian Deerling in The Boogens (1981). John had recurring parts as Sheriff Ep Bridges inLa famille des collines (1971) and Capt. Parks on Sergent Anderson (1974). Among the many TV shows he made guest appearances in are The Lone Ranger (1949), Superman(1952), Les espions (1965), La quatrième dimension (1959), Les incorruptibles (1959),La grande caravane (1957), Le fugitif (1963), Star Trek (1966), Perdus dans l'espace(1965), Bonanza (1959), Stalag 13 (1965), Mission impossible (1966), Gunsmoke(1955), Super Jaimie (1976), Dallas (1978) and Dynastie (1981). Crawford died at age 90 following complications from a stroke on September 21, 2010, in Thousand Oaks, California. He's survived by his ex-wife Ann Wakefield, four daughters and two grandchildren. - IMDb Mini Biography

Photos

Known For

The Longest Day
The Longest Day

1962

as Col. Caffey (uncredited)

The Towering Inferno
The Towering Inferno

1974

as Callahan

The Poseidon Adventure
The Poseidon Adventure

1972

as Chief Engineer

Exodus
Exodus

1960

as Capt. Hank Schlosberg

The Enforcer
The Enforcer

1976

as The Mayor

Jason and the Argonauts
Jason and the Argonauts

1963

as Polydeuces (uncredited)

The Greatest Story Ever Told
The 300 Spartans
The 300 Spartans

1962

as Agathon the Spartan Spy

The Big Heat
The Big Heat

1953

as Al - Bannion's Brother-in-Law (uncredited)

Solomon and Sheba
Solomon and Sheba

1959

as Joab

The Asphalt Jungle
The Asphalt Jungle

1950

as Reporter (uncredited)

Mystery Street
Mystery Street

1950

as Reporter (uncredited)

Night Moves
Night Moves

1975

as Tom Iverson

Duel at Diablo
Duel at Diablo

1966

as Clay Dean

Without Reservations
Without Reservations

1946

as Soldier (uncredited)

Return of the Gunfighter
Return of the Gunfighter

1967

as Butch Cassidy

The Macahans
The Macahans

1976

as Hale Crowley

Cyrano de Bergerac
Cyrano de Bergerac

1950

as Cadet

Desperate Women
Rebel City
Rebel City

1953

as Joe Spencer