John Steiner (7 January 1941 – 31 July 2022) was an English actor. Tall, thin and gaunt, he attended the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, also known by its abbreviation RADA (), is a drama school in London, England, which provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in Bloomsbury, Central London ...

and performed on-stage for the Royal Shakespeare Company, but was best known to audiences for his roles in Italian films, several of which became cult classics.

Early life and acting career

Steiner was born in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

on 7 January 1941. He attended the

and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company. He acted in the role of Monsieur Dupere in Peter Brook's production of '' Marat/Sade''. He reprised the role when the play was transferred to Broadway, and again for the 1967 film adaptation. On television, he played Grey Wyler, a

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

student in ''The Death Game'', an 1967 episode of '' The Saint''. He found work primarily in films including and the original '' Bedazzled'' (1967) with Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. In 1969, Steiner played a part in the

Spaghetti Western The spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's filmmaking style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...

'' Tepepa'', and also appeared opposite Franco Nero in '' White Fang'', directed by Lucio Fulci. In 1971 he starred in the television series '' Hine''. In 1979 he featured in the leading role of Leo in a television production of '' Design for Living'' by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

. He found himself in demand in Italy and moved there, appearing in a great number of Italian exploitation and B-films including police actioners ('' Violent Rome''), westerns ('' Mannaja''), war films ('' The Last Hunter''), nazisploitation ('' Deported Women of the SS Special Section''), sci-fi adventure films ('' Yor, the Hunter from the Future''), and horror films, such as Mario Bava's '' Shock'', Dario Argento's '' Tenebrae'', and Ruggero Deodato's '' Body Count''. He also became a favourite of famed Italian

filmmaker Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...

Tinto Brass Giovanni "Tinto" Brass (born 26 March 1933) is an Italian film director and screenwriter. In the 1960s and 1970s, he directed many critically acclaimed avant-garde films of various genres. Today, he is mainly known for his later work in the Erot ...

, featuring in '' Salon Kitty'', the infamous ''

Caligula Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), also called Gaius and Caligula (), was Roman emperor from AD 37 until his assassination in 41. He was the son of the Roman general Germanicus and Augustus' granddaughter Ag ...

'', '' Action'', and '' Paprika''. He remained in steady demand until the late 1980s.

Retirement and later life

As the Italian film industry dwindled, Steiner retired from acting in 1991 and moved to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, where he became a successful real estate agent. Steiner later contributed to DVD extras on some of his films and gave interviews about his Italian work.

Personal life

Steiner was bisexual. During the 1960s he was in a long-term relationship with director John Schlesinger and became the basis for the character Bob Elkin (played by Murray Head) in Schlesinger's semi-autobiographical film ''Sunday Bloody Sunday''. He later married, and is survived by his wife of over 30 years In addition to English, Steiner spoke French, Italian, and German.

Death

Steiner died in a car crash in La Quinta, California, on 31 July 2022, at the age of 81.

Selected filmography

* '' Marat/Sade'' (1967) – Monsieur Dupere * '' Bedazzled'' (1967) – TV Announcer (uncredited) * '' Work Is a Four-Letter Word'' (1968) – Anthony * '' Tepepa'' (1969) – Doctor Henry Price * '' The Thirteen Chairs'' (1969) – Stanley Duncan * '' El bosque del lobo'' (1970) – Robert * '' A Girl Called Jules'' (1970) – Luciano * '' May Morning'' (1970) – Roderick Stanton * ''L'asino d'oro: processo per fatti strani contro Lucius Apuleius cittadino romano'' (1970) – Aristomene * ''

Bali Bali (English:; Balinese language, Balinese: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller o ...

'' (1970) – Arthur Glenn * '' The Case Is Closed, Forget It'' (1971) – Biro * '' Slap the Monster on Page One'' (1972) – Ingegner Montelli * '' The Police Serve the Citizens?'' (1973) – Lambro * '' Massacre in Rome'' (1973) – Col. Dollmann * '' Black Holiday'' (1973) – Scagnetti * '' White Fang'' (1973) – Charles 'Beauty' Smith * '' Morel's Invention'' (1974) – Morel * '' Challenge to White Fang'' (1974) – Beauty Smith / Charles Forth * '' The Last Day of School Before Christmas'' (1975) – Il Tenente * '' I Don't Want to Be Born'' (1975) – Tommy Morris * '' Waves of Lust'' (1975) – Giorgio / Husband * '' Violent Rome'' (1975) – Franco Spadoni 'Chiodo' * '' Dracula in the Provinces'' (1975) – Count Dragulescu * '' Salon Kitty'' (1976) – Biondo * '' Le guêpier'' (1976) – Fisher * '' Mark Strikes Again'' (1976) – Paul Henkel * '' Deported Women of the SS Special Section'' (1976) – Herr Erner * '' Bloody Payroll'' (1976) – Fausto * '' Plot of Fear'' (1976) – Hoffmann * '' Von Buttiglione Sturmtruppenführer'' (1977) – Schwein * '' Shock'' (1977) – Bruno Baldini * '' Mannaja'' (1977) – Valler * '' The Criminals Attack, The Police Respond'' (1977) – Rufy * '' Gangbuster'' (1977) – Killer * '' Antonio Gramsci: The Days of Prison'' (1977) – Laurin * '' Goodbye & Amen'' (1978) – Donald Grayson * ''L'Amour en question'' (1978) – Tom Hastings * ''

'' (1979) – Longinus * '' Action'' (1980) – The Manager * '' The Last Hunter'' (1980) – Major William Cash * ''

Car Crash A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. T ...

'' (1981) – Kirby * '' The Salamander'' (1981) – Captain Roditi * '' Hunters of the Golden Cobra'' (1982) – Captain David Franks * '' Tenebrae'' (1982) – Christiano Berti * '' Yor, the Hunter from the Future'' (1983) – Overlord * '' Dagger Eyes'' (1983) – Ivanov * '' The Ark of the Sun God'' (1984) – Lord Dean * '' I due carabinieri'' (1984) – Crazy Man on Train * '' A.D.'' (1985, TV Mini-Series) – Simon the Magus * '' Cut and Run'' (1985) – Vlado * '' Commando Leopard'' (1985) – Smithy * '' The Berlin Affair'' (1985) – Oskar Engelhart * '' Troppo forte'' (1985) – Mr. Adams * '' Operation Nam'' (1986) – James Walcott * '' Body Count'' (1986) – Dr. Olsen * '' Summer Night'' (1986) – Frederick, Fulvia's lover * '' Lone Runner'' (1986) – Skorm * '' Julia and Julia'' (1987) – Alex * '' Night of the Sharks'' (1988) – Rosentski * ' (1988) – Duclaud * '' Striker'' (1988) – Kariasin * '' Appointment in Liverpool'' (1988) * '' Sinbad of the Seven Seas'' (1989) – Jaffar * '' Massacre Play'' (1989) – Danilo * '' Paprika'' (1991) – Principe Ascanio (final film role)

References

External links

* *
Biography for John Steiner (in French)

His own website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steiner, John 1941 births 2022 deaths Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art British estate agents (people) English expatriates in Italy English bisexual male actors English expatriate male actors in the United States English expatriates English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors Male actors from Chester Male Spaghetti Western actors Road incident deaths in California Royal Shakespeare Company members