John Forde Cazabon (3 August 1914 – 22 June 1983) was an English actor and stage writer whose career began in Sydney, Australia.

History

Cazabon was born in

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, ne ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, to violinist and composer Albert Cazabon (1883–1970) and Norah Cazabon née Delaney, a professional actress born in Australia. He had an older sister Norah Cazabon and a younger brother Robert Brendan Cazabon (born c. 1919), who was killed in action in 1941. In 1927 the family moved to Sydney, where Albert Cazabon had secured the post of musical director to the

Prince Edward Theatre The Prince Edward Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Old Compton Street, just north of Leicester Square, in the City of Westminster, London. History The theatre was designed in 1930 by Edward A. Stone, with an interior designed by Ma ...

's orchestra, and Gladys, née Curtin, a professional actress born in Australia. Cazabon and sister Norah were members of Sydney's Impressionist Theatre in 1933 and in 1934, with their mother, joined the

Independent Theatre Independent Theatre, formerly known as The Independent Theatre Ltd., was an Australian dramatic society founded in 1930 by Dame Doris Fitton in Sydney, Australia. It is also the name given to the building it occupied from 1939 (then known as the ...

and Pickwick Theatre Group, both run by

Doris Fitton Dame Doris Alice Lucy Walkden Fitton, (3 November 18972 April 1985) was an Australian actress of stage and film and theatrical director and producer who founded and for 35 years headed The Independent Theatre Ltd. in Sydney, New South Wales. ...

. They later joined

Beryl Bryant Beryl Annear Bryant (1893 – 31 May 1973) was an Australian stage actress and theatrical producer born in America who was active in the 1930s and 1940s. She was responsible for first bringing the plays of Patrick White to the stage. Her career ...

's group. Albert Cazabon returned to London in 1936, living at Aberdeen Place, and was hired by the BBC, but Cazabon stayed behind and secretly married actress Margery Gielis of Toowoomba. They had a son Charles who married Margaret Burns on 20 May 1967. His sister Norah married Stephen Merivale of Middleton Hall,

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. Stephen was cousin of

Philip Merivale Philip Merivale (2 November 1886 – 12 March 1946) was an English film and stage actor and screenwriter. Life and career Merivale was born in Rehutia, Manickpur, India, to railway engineer Walter Merivale (1855–1902) and Emma Magda ...

who married

Gladys Cooper Dame Gladys Constance Cooper, (18 December 1888 – 17 November 1971) was an English actress, theatrical manager and producer, whose career spanned seven decades on stage, in films and on television. Beginning as a teenager in Edwardian musi ...

Writer

*An early venture into this field was the playlet ''Hearts to Mend'' in 1933. *''Good Catch'' (musical) with George S. English *''Stranger Walk In'' (comedy in three acts) at

Bryant's Playhouse Beryl Annear Bryant (1893 – 31 May 1973) was an Australian stage actress and theatrical producer born in America who was active in the 1930s and 1940s. She was responsible for first bringing the plays of Patrick White to the stage. Her career ...

As stage actor

*''Snappy Sydney'' (1933 revue) *''The Corn Is Green'' at the Minerva Theatre

Radio

*''The First Gentleman'' (1949) with

Robert Morley Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE (26 May 1908 – 3 June 1992) was an English actor who enjoyed a lengthy career in both Britain and the United States. He was frequently cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment, of ...

and

Queenie Ashton Ethel Muriel Ashton (11 November 190321 October 1999), known professionally as Queenie Ashton, was a character actress, born in England, who had a long career in Australia as a theatre performer and radio personality, best known for her radio ...

*''Mary Livingstone MD'' (drama serial) as Russ Livingstone *

Journey Into Space ''Journey Into Space'' is a BBC Radio science fiction programme written by British Broadcasting Corporation, BBC producer Charles Chilton. It was the last UK radio programme to attract a bigger evening audience than television. Originally, fou ...

for

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

Screen career

*''

Eureka Stockade The Eureka Rebellion was a series of events involving gold miners who revolted against the British administration of the colony of Victoria, Australia during the Victorian gold rush. It culminated in the Battle of the Eureka Stockade, which ...

'' (1949) *''

Curtain Up ''Curtain Up'' is a 1952 British comedy film directed by Ralph Smart and starring Robert Morley, Margaret Rutherford and Kay Kendall. Written by Jack Davies and Michael Pertwee it is based on the play ''On Monday Next'' by Philip King. It w ...

'' (1952) *''

Mandy Mandy or Mandie may refer to: People * Mandy (name), a female given name and nickname * Iván Mándy (1918-1995), Hungarian writer * Mark Mandy (born 1972), Irish retired high jumper * Philip Mandie (born 1942), a former judge on the Supreme Cou ...

'' (1952) *''

The Queen in Australia ''The Queen in Australia'' is a 1954 documentary about the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Australia in 1954. It was the first colour film made in Australia. It was released in the US by the Australian government information service.

'' (1954) (commentary) *'' The Shiralee'' (1957) *''

The Snake Woman ''The Snake Woman'' (a.k.a. ''The Terror of the Snake Woman'') is a low budget black-and-white 1961 British horror film produced by George Fowler and directed by Sidney J. Furie. It stars Susan Travers and John McCarthy. The film was shown o ...

'' (1961) *'' Mary Had a Little...'' (1961) *''

Edgar Wallace Mysteries The ''Edgar Wallace Mysteries'' is a British second-feature film series mainly produced at Merton Park Studios for Anglo-Amalgamated. There were 48 films in the series, which were released between 1960 and 1965. The series was screened as ''The E ...

'' (1961, TV series episode "Backfire!") as Willy Kyser *''

The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a 1967 British television series about an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village, where his captors designate him as Number Six and try to find out why he abruptl ...

'' (1968, TV series episode ''

Once Upon a Time "Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 (according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'') in storytelling in the ...

'') as Umbrella Man

Recognition

*Macquarie Award 1948 for part in radio play ''Sleeping Clergyman''"Macquarie Awards for Radio Drama" ''Sydney Morning Herald'' 21 February 1949
/ref> *Macquarie Award 1950 for part in comedy

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cazabon, John 1914 births 1983 deaths English male film actors English male radio actors English people of Australian descent People from Hertford 20th-century English male actors 20th-century English dramatists and playwrights English male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century English male writers