John Stone (born John Hailstone; 26 May 1924 – 2007) was a Welsh actor.
John Stone | |
|---|---|
 Stone in The Avengers 1964 | |
| Born | John Hailstone |
| Occupation | Actor |
Career edit
Born in Cardiff, Glamorgan, Wales, Stone was educated at Brighton College. He served in the R.A.F. and began his career as a journalist. Soon he switched to acting and only appeared on the stage until 1945 when he joined the B.B.C. Repertory Company. He made his first West End appearance in One Wild Oat by Vernon Sylvaine, 1948.[1] Subsequent appearances include the London premiere of Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge, Comedy Theatre, 1956;[2] And Suddenly it's Spring, Duke of York's Theatre, 1959;[3] Signpost to Murder, Cambridge Theatre, 1962; and the role of Crestwell, the laconic butler, in Noël Coward's Relative Values, Westminster Theatre, 1973.
Under contract to Rank, as one of the Sydney Box Company of Youth ("Charm School") in the late 1940s.[4] Film credits include The Weaker Sex (dir. Roy Baker), 1948; The Frightened City, 1961; Masque of the Red Death (dir. Roger Corman), 1964; Deadlier Than the Male (1967); and You Only Live Twice (1967).[5]
Stone was a familiar face on British television from the 1950s-1980s, and featured as Captain John Dillon in Quatermass II (1955). In 1957, he starred as special agent, Mike Anson, in an early ITV thriller series, Destination Downing Street (Associated Rediffusion),[6] which ran for 26 weeks. His 1964 appearance in the The Avengers was followed in 1967 when he appeared in the series' episode entitled "the Joker" as Major John Fancy. From 1971 to 1974 Stone played Dr Ian Moody in the Yorkshire Television series, Justice, opposite Margaret Lockwood, his offscreen partner of seventeen years.[7] Subsequently, he appeared in the BBC series, Flesh and Blood (1980–82) and Strike it Rich (1986/87).
Under his birth name of John Hailstone, he wrote A Present for the Past,[8] a play premiered at the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, as part of the Edinburgh International Festival of 1966.[9] It starred Wendy Hiller, Renee Asherson, and Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies, and was produced by Michael Codron.
Personal life edit
He married the actress Lian-Shin Yang in 1958. She died in 1970.
Filmography edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | Johnny Frenchman | Sam Harvey | |
| 1946 | Night Boat to Dublin | Young Newlywed | Uncredited |
| 1947 | The Upturned Glass | Male Student | Uncredited |
| 1947 | Holiday Camp | Detective #2 | |
| 1948 | My Brother's Keeper | Wainwright's Assistant | Uncredited |
| 1948 | Colonel Bogey | Wilfred Barriteau | |
| 1948 | The Weaker Sex | Sgt. Roddy McIntyre | |
| 1948 | The Blind Goddess | Sir John's Junior | |
| 1949 | The Bad Lord Byron | Lord Clark | |
| 1956 | Reach for the Sky | Limping Officer | Uncredited |
| 1956 | X the Unknown | Jerry | Uncredited |
| 1957 | Operation Murder | Inspector Price | |
| 1958 | Moment of Indiscretion | Eric | |
| 1961 | The Frightened City | Hood | |
| 1964 | Masque of the Red Death | Guard | Uncredited |
| 1967 | Deadlier Than the Male | Wyngarde | |
| 1967 | You Only Live Twice | Submarine Captain | |
| 1968 | A Testing Job ( Educational Short Film ) | Driving Instructor | Uncredited |
| 1969 | Doppelgänger | London Delegate | |
| 1971 | Assault | Fire Chief | |
| 1993 | Merlin | Mordred |
References edit
- ^ Cast list, One Wild Oat (Acting Edition), Samuel French Ltd., 1951
- ^ Review, The Stage, 18 October 1956
- ^ Review, The Stage, 12 November 1959
- ^ British Film Yearbook 1947-48 (Ed. Peter Noble), pg. 356
- ^ Entry ay IMDb
- ^ "FTVDB entry". Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2010.
- ^ "Once a Wicked Lady", Hilton Tims, 1989
- ^ Profile of John Hailstone Archived 12 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Review, The Times, 5 September 1966
External links edit
- John Stone at IMDb
- The John Stone Collection is held by the Victoria and Albert Museum Theatre and Performance Department.