John Tracy is a fictional character from

Gerry Anderson Gerald Alexander Anderson (; 14 April 1929 – 26 December 2012) was an English television and film producer, director, writer and occasional voice artist. He remains famous for his futuristic television programmes, especially his 1960s produ ...

Supermarionation Supermarionation (a portmanteau of the words "super", "marionette" and " animation")La Rivière 2009, p. 67. is a style of television and film production employed by British company AP Films (later Century 21 Productions) in its puppet T ...

television series '' Thunderbirds'' and the subsequent films '' Thunderbirds Are Go'', ''

Thunderbird 6 ''Thunderbird 6'' is a 1968 British Science fiction film, science fiction puppet film based on ''Thunderbirds (TV series), Thunderbirds'', a Supermarionation television series created by Gerry Anderson, Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by ...

'' and the live-action film '' Thunderbirds''.

''Thunderbirds'' (1965-66)

Background

John was originally intended to play a larger role in '' Thunderbirds'', but after creator

took a dislike to the character he ended up appearing less often than planned. He was the first of the Tracy brothers to be voice-cast. Actor Ray Barrett was so impressed with the marionette, whose face was modeled on singer

Adam Faith Terence Nelhams Wright (23 June 1940 – 8 March 2003), known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. A teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK Singles Chart with "What Do You Want?" (1959) and "Poo ...

and actor

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923April 5, 2008) was an American actor and political activist. As a Hollywood star, he appeared in almost 100 films over the course of 60 years. He played Moses in the epic film ''The Ten C ...

, that he immediately advised co-producer Sylvia Anderson that he wanted to play the studious young astronaut with the boyish quiff.

Character biography

The third son of

Jeff Tracy Jeff Tracy is a fictional character from Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's Supermarionation television show '' Thunderbirds'' and the subsequent films '' Thunderbirds Are GO'' and ''Thunderbird 6''. The voice for the character in these shows was suppl ...

(founder and financier of International Rescue), John was named after astronaut

John Glenn John Herschel Glenn Jr. (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was an American Marine Corps aviator, engineer, astronaut, businessman, and politician. He was the third American in space, and the first American to orbit the Earth, circling ...

. Sources vary in the canon of the ''Thunderbirds'' series as to John's age and birth date, although one written source suggests that he was born on 28 October 2002 or 2041—this would make him the third son. The majority of sources and two decades of Thunderbirds calendars cite John's birthday as 8 October and he is 24 years of age. Chris Bentley, author of ''The Complete Book of Thunderbirds'', erroneously cited Gerry Anderson as the source of the misinformation about the birth order of the Tracy brothers, but later admitted that he was using the order of the brothers as shown in the credits. Most sourcebooks on ''Thunderbirds'' prior to the ''Complete'' book noted that the birth order matches the number of the Thunderbirds ships, save that the third brother (John) and fifth brother (Alan) trade shifts aboard their respective crafts. Also, the novel ''Operation: Asteroids'' from 1965 clearly states that Scott and

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...

are "Jeff's eldest sons". John is a noted scholar of

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

, and has authored several popular astronomy textbooks. He is a graduate of

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

with a degree in Advanced Telecommunications. John's quiet intellectual nature and interest in astronomy make him the natural choice for the solitary life as the occupant of space station ''

Thunderbird 5 The Thunderbird machines are a series of vehicles imagined for the mid-1960s film and television '' Thunderbirds'' series developed by Gerry Anderson. The released work began with the Supermarionation television series '' Thunderbirds'' and wa ...

'', monitoring for distress calls from around the world. He has only ever been seen physically involved in a rescue during the episode "Danger at Ocean Deep", although he reveals in a conversation with his father in that same episode that he has already been on a "dozen" rescues. According to Carlton Books' ''Lady Penelope's Secrets'', John is known to be exceedingly patient, kindly and gracious and possessed of both great intelligence and poise as gifts inherited from his talented mother.

Live-action film

Lex Shrapnel Alexander Carey Shrapnel (born 6 October 1979) is an English actor and voice actor. Early life Shrapnel was born on 6 October 1979 in London, the second of three boys for actor John Shrapnel and Francesca Ann (née Bartley). He is the brother of ...

portrayed John in the 2004 live-action film. Owing to the film focusing on

Alan Tracy Alan Tracy is a fictional character who first appeared in the 1960s British Supermarionation television series '' Thunderbirds'', its film sequels '' Thunderbirds Are Go'' (1966) and ''Thunderbird 6'' (1968), as well as the TV remake '' Thunde ...

, little is known about this version of John; according to Alex Pang's ''Thunderbirds: X-Ray Cross Sections'', he is 22 years of age, and a "computer whizz kid". John's tours of duty last for three weeks at a time, after which he gets a week's rest and relaxation on Tracy Island. A brief scene between him and his father

demonstrates that, like the original, he is a kind and patient person, listening to and providing encouragement for Jeff, who is concerned about Alan's behaviour. Over the course of the film, John is nearly killed by the Hood, who launches a missile at Thunderbird 5, in order to lure International Rescue away from their base and allow him to steal their equipment.

''Thunderbirds Are Go'' (TV series)

In the 2015 series, John is still the 'pilot' of Thunderbird 5, but his role is greatly expanded beyond simply receiving calls for help, often providing aid in coordinating the rescue missions via long-distance communication. He is voiced by

Thomas Brodie-Sangster Thomas Brodie-Sangster (born 16 May 1990), also credited as Thomas Sangster, is an English actor. He is known for playing Sam in ''Love Actually'' (2003), Simon in ''Nanny McPhee'' (2005), Ferb in ''Phineas and Ferb'' (2007–2015), Jojen Reed ...

and is now a redhead, instead of being a blond (he and Gordon have traded hair colours). John is shown as being an emotional introvert, who prefers spending his spare time eating bagels, watching TV (his favourite show is ''

Stingray Stingrays are a group of sea rays, which are cartilaginous fish related to sharks. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae ( ...

'') and stargazing. He is generally a loner, who doesn't like having to spend more time on Earth than he has to, as he's now the lone operator of TB5 until EOS comes, a program that he designed by himself. Carolyn Percy of the ''

Wales Arts Review ''Wales Arts Review'' is a critical writing hub for Wales. Originally published fortnightly, the site has published daily since 2016. It offers a critique, by Welsh and Wales-based writers, of various social and cultural aspects of Wales. Histor ...

'' comments that because he was disliked by Gerry Anderson, the original John was the least developed Tracy brother. She considers the new John to be "something of a

breakout character A breakout character is a character in serial fiction, especially a member of an ensemble cast, who becomes much more prominent, popular, discussed, or imitated than expected by the creators. A breakout character may equal or overtake the oth ...

", also noting that the series characterises him as a "slightly anti-social loner".

References

External links

www.fab1.co.nz - ''Thunderbirds'' characters
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tracy, John American male characters in television Fictional American scientists and engineers Fictional astronauts Fictional astronomers Fictional Harvard University people John Glenn Male characters in animated series Male characters in film Television characters introduced in 1965 Thunderbirds (TV series) characters