John Clark Howat (January 22, 1918 – October 30, 2009) was an American film and television actor.

Life and career

Howat was born in

Calaveras County, California Calaveras County (), officially the County of Calaveras, is a county in both the Gold Country and High Sierra regions of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 45,292. The county seat is San Andreas. Angels C ...

. He began his career in 1947, appearing in the Broadway play ''The Wanhope Building'', playing the roles of the "Interviewer" and "Pilot". Howat began his film career in July 1947, playing the role of the "Patron in Macy's Lunchroom" in the film ''

Miracle on 34th Street ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (initially released as ''The Big Heart'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1947 American List of Christmas films, Christmas comedy-drama film released by 20th Century Fox, written and directed by George Seaton and based on ...

''. His early film career was mostly uncredited and co-starring roles. His later credits include ''

The Doctor and the Girl ''The Doctor and the Girl'' (also known as ''Bodies and Souls'') is a 1949 American drama (film and television), drama film directed by Curtis Bernhardt and starring Glenn Ford, Charles Coburn, Gloria DeHaven and Janet Leigh that was inspired by t ...

'', ''

Customs Agent ''Customs Agent'' is a 1950 American thriller film directed by Seymour Friedman and starring William Eythe, Marjorie Reynolds and Griff Barnett.Blottner p.263 Synopsis In Shanghai an American customs agent tries to track down a drug-smuggling o ...

'', ''

Airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

'', '' My Blue Heaven'' and ''

California Passage ''California Passage'' is a 1950 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane starring Forrest Tucker, Adele Mara and Estelita Rodriguez.Pitts, p. 52. Plot Cast * Forrest Tucker as Mike Prescott * Adele Mara as Beth Martin * Estelita Rodri ...

'', among others. He began appearing on television in 1952, appearing in '' Beulah'', playing the role of "Pete Bradley". In 1956, Howat played the main role of "Dr. Jack (John) Petrie" in the short-lived sitcom television series ''

The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu ''The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu'' is a syndicated American television series that aired in 1956. The show was produced by Hollywood Television Service, a subsidiary of Republic Pictures. Cast and characters * Glen Gordon as Dr. Fu Manchu * ...

''. He also appeared in '' Dragnet'', ''

Highway Patrol A highway patrol, or state patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is prima ...

'', ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was ren ...

'', ''

Navy Log ''Navy Log'' is an American drama anthology series created by Samuel Gallu that presented stories from the history of the United States Navy. This series ran on CBS from September 20, 1955, until September 25, 1956.On October 17, 1956, it moved t ...

'', ''

Tales of Wells Fargo ''Tales of Wells Fargo'' is an American Western television series starring Dale Robertson that ran from 1957 to 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until its final season, when it expanded to ...

'', ''

Bat Masterson Bartholemew William Barclay "Bat" Masterson (November 26, 1853 – October 25, 1921) was a U.S. Army scout, lawman, professional gambler, and journalist known for his exploits in the 19th and early 20th-century American Old West. He was born to ...

'' and '' The Millionaire''. He also wrote the episode "Walk a Crooked Line" for the

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

television series '' The Detectives'', in 1962. Howat also starred or co-starred in other films: ''

Billy Jack ''Billy Jack'' is a 1971 American action drama independent film, the second of four films centering on a character of the same name which began with the movie ''The Born Losers'' (1967), played by Tom Laughlin, who directed and co-wrote the scr ...

'', playing the role of "Sheriff Cole", ''

The Hitch-Hiker ''The Hitch-Hiker'' is a 1953 American film noir thriller co-written and directed by Ida Lupino, starring Edmond O'Brien, William Talman and Frank Lovejoy, about two friends taken hostage by a hitchhiker during an automobile trip to Mexico. ...

'', playing the role of the "Government Agent", ''

The Giant Claw ''The Giant Claw'' is a 1957 American monster film from Columbia Pictures, produced by Sam Katzman, directed by Fred F. Sears, that stars Jeff Morrow and Mara Corday. Both Sears and Katzman were well known as low-budget B film genre filmmakers. ...

'', playing the role of "Maj. Bergen" and ''

The High Powered Rifle ''The High Powered Rifle'' is a 1960 American action film produced and directed by Maury Dexter and written by Joseph Fritz. The film stars Willard Parker, Allison Hayes, Dan Simmons, John Holland, Shirley O'Hara and Terrea Lea. The film was re ...

'', playing the role of "George Merkle". In 1985, Howat retired, last appearing in the television series ''

T.J. Hooker ''T. J. Hooker'' is an American police drama television program starring William Shatner in the title role as a 15-year veteran police sergeant. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement on March 13, 1982, on ABC and ran on the network un ...

''.

Death

Howat died in October 2009 in

Arroyo Grande, California Arroyo Grande (Spanish language, Spanish for "Big Creek") is a city in San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. The population was 18,441 as of the 2020 census, up from 17,252 as of the 2010 Census. ...

, at the age of 91.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * *
Rotten Tomatoes profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howat, Clark 1918 births 2009 deaths People from Calaveras County, California Male actors from California American male film actors American male television actors 20th-century American male actors