Howard St. John (October 9, 1905 – March 13, 1974) was a

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

-born character actor who specialized in unsympathetic roles. His work spanned

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

. Among his best-remembered roles are the bombastic General Bullmoose in the stage and screen versions of the 1956 musical ''

Li'l Abner ''Li'l Abner'' is a satirical American comic strip that appeared in many newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe. It featured a fictional clan of hillbillies in the impoverished mountain village of Dogpatch, USA. Written and drawn b ...

'', and his supporting roles in the classic comedies '' Born Yesterday'' (1950) and ''

One, Two, Three ''One, Two, Three'' is a 1961 American political comedy film directed by Billy Wilder and written by Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond. It is based on the 1929 Hungarian one-act play ''Egy, kettő, három'' by Ferenc Molnár, with a "plot borrowed par ...

'' (1961).

Early years

St. John was born in Chicago and grew up in several Canadian cities. When he was a boy, his main interest lay in sports. His participation in football and hockey led to his breaking his nose three times. St. John toured Canada as a boy singer, and he was a newspaperman and a stockbroker.

Stage

St. John made his Broadway debut portraying James Manton in ''The Blonde Sinner'' (1926), and subsequently appeared in more than 20 Broadway productions including ''Someone Waiting'' and ''The Highest Tree''. St. John's most high-profile role was that of General Bullmoose in the hit musical ''

''. As Bullmoose he introduced the song "Progress is the Root of All Evil." His final Broadway role came in 1968's ''Tiger at the Gates''.

Film

St. John began film work in the early 1930s and made an impression in

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

's '' Strangers on a Train'' in 1951. He continued in stuffy, rigid or authoritarian roles for most of his career, including memorable ones in '' The Tender Trap'' and '' Born Yesterday''. He also re-created his stage role in the film version of ''

''. St. John had the title role in the film '' David Harding, Counterspy'' and continued in the role in the sequel ''

Counterspy Meets Scotland Yard ''Counterspy Meets Scotland Yard'' is a 1950 American film noir B movie directed by Seymour Friedman and starring Howard St. John, Ron Randell and Amanda Blake. Plot When enemy agents obtain leaked secrets about a guided missile system, an Ameri ...

'' (1950).

Television

St. John portrayed Lloyd Prior on the NBC crime drama ''The Investigator'' (1958).

Death

St. John died of a heart attack in New York City at age 68 in 1974.

Partial filmography

*''

Shockproof ''Shockproof'' is a 1949 American crime film noir directed by Douglas Sirk and starring Patricia Knight and Cornel Wilde. Wilde and Knight were husband and wife during filming. They divorced in 1951. Plot Griff Marat (Cornel Wilde), is a parol ...

'' (1949) - Sam Brooks *''

The Undercover Man ''The Undercover Man'' is a 1949 American crime film noir directed by Joseph H. Lewis and starring Glenn Ford. Plot Frank Warren is a treasury agent assigned to put an end to the activities of a powerful mob crime boss. The agent struggles to pu ...

'' (1949) - Joseph S. Horan *''

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 ...

'' (1950) - Charles Johnson *''

711 Ocean Drive ''711 Ocean Drive'' is a 1950 American crime film noir directed by Joseph M. Newman and starring Edmond O'Brien, Joanne Dru and Otto Kruger. Plot Telephone technician Mal Granger, with knowledge of telephones and electronics, is hired by gangster ...

'' (1950) - Lt. Pete Wright *'' David Harding, Counterspy'' (1950) - David Harding *'' The Men'' (1950) - Ellen's Father *''

Mister 880 ''Mister 880'' is a 1950 American light-hearted romantic drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Burt Lancaster, Dorothy McGuire and Edmund Gwenn, about an amateurish counterfeiter who counterfeits only one dollar bills, and manages ...

'' (1950) - Chief *'' The Sun Sets at Dawn'' (1950) - The Warden *''

'' (1950) - Counterspy David Harding *'' Born Yesterday'' (1950) - Jim Devery *''

Goodbye, My Fancy ''Goodbye, My Fancy'' is a 1948 play by Fay Kanin. A comedy in 3 Acts and 4 scenes, the work premiered at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario on October 21, 1948 for tryout performances before the production moved to Broadway in New York City. ...

'' (1951) - Claude Griswold *'' Strangers on a Train'' (1951) - Police Capt. Turley *''

Saturday's Hero ''Saturday's Hero'' is a 1951 American film noir drama sports film directed by David Miller. It is also known as ''Idols in the Dust'', and stars John Derek and Donna Reed. ''Saturday's Hero'' was the first film for Aldo Ray, who was still goin ...

'' (1951) - Belfrage *''

Close to My Heart ''Close to My Heart'' is a 1951 American drama (film and television), drama film directed by William Keighley, written by James R. Webb (based on his novel ''A Baby for Midge''), and starring Ray Milland and Gene Tierney. Plot Brad Sheridan (Mill ...

'' (1951) - I.O. Frost *'' The Big Night'' (1951) - Al Judge *''

Starlift ''Starlift'' (a.k.a. ''Operation Starlift'') is a 1951 American musical film released by Warner Bros. in directed by Roy Del Ruth and written by Karl Lamb and John D. Klorer. The film stars Janice Rule, Dick Wesson, Ron Hagerthy and Ruth Ro ...

'' (1951) - Steve Rogers *''

Stop, You're Killing Me :''There was also a Two Ronnies mini-series of this name.'' ''Stop, You're Killing Me'' is a 1952 black comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring Broderick Crawford and Claire Trevor. Premise The surprise appearance of four corpses interf ...

'' (1952) - Commissioner Mahoney *'' Three Coins in the Fountain'' (1954) - Burgoyne *'' Illegal'' (1955) - E.A. Smith *'' The Tender Trap'' (1955) - Mr. Sayers *''

I Died a Thousand Times ''I Died a Thousand Times'' is a 1955 American CinemaScope Warnercolor film noir directed by Stuart Heisler. The drama features Jack Palance as paroled bank robber Roy Earle, with Shelley Winters, Lee Marvin, Earl Holliman, Perry Lopez, Pedro Gonz ...

'' (1955) - Doc Banton *''

World in My Corner ''World in My Corner'' is a 1956 American film noir drama sport film directed by Jesse Hibbs and starring Audie Murphy and Barbara Rush. It was one of the few non-Westerns Murphy made in his career. Plot Tommy Shea (Audie Murphy), a boxer from Je ...

'' (1956) - Harry Cram *''

'' (1959) - General Bullmoose *''

Cry for Happy ''Cry for Happy'' is a 1961 American CinemaScope comedy film directed by George Marshall and starring Glenn Ford and Donald O'Connor. It is a service comedy set in Japan and largely filmed there. The title song is sung during the opening credits ...

'' (1961) - Vice Adm. Junius B. Bennett *''

Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

'' (1961) - Governor Drake *''

Madison Avenue Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Str ...

'' (1961) - J.D. Jocelyn *''

'' (1961) - Wendell P. Hazeltine *'' Lover Come Back'' (1961) - Mr. John Brackett *'' La Fayette'' (1961) - George Washington *''

'' (1962) - J.D. Jocelyn *''

Strait-Jacket ''Strait-Jacket'' is a 1964 American psychological thriller film directed and produced by William Castle, written by Robert Bloch and starring Joan Crawford. Its plot follows a woman who, having murdered her husband and his lover decades prior, ...

'' (1964) - Raymond Fields *''

Fate Is the Hunter Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although ofte ...

'' (1964) - Mark Hutchins *'' Quick, Before It Melts'' (1964) - Harvey T. Sweigert *''

Sex and the Single Girl ''Sex and the Single Girl'' is a 1962 non-fiction book by American writer Helen Gurley Brown, written as an advice book that encouraged women to become financially independent and experience sexual relationships before or without marriage. The ...

'' (1964) - Randall *'' Strange Bedfellows'' (1965) - Julius L. Stevens *'' Banning'' (1967) - J. Pallister Young *''

Matchless Matchless is one of the oldest marques of British motorcycles, manufactured in Plumstead, London, between 1899 and 1966. A wide range of models were produced under the Matchless name, ranging from small two-strokes to 750 cc four-stroke tw ...

'' (1967) - General Shapiro *'' Don't Drink the Water'' (1969) - Ambassador Magee

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:St. John, Howard Male actors from Chicago 1905 births 1974 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male film actors American male television actors American male musical theatre actors 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers