John Payne
Payne in 1949
Born	John Howard Payne (1912-05-23)May 23, 1912 Roanoke, Virginia, U.S.
Died	December 6, 1989(1989-12-06) (aged 77) Malibu, California, U.S.
Education	Mercersburg Academy
Alma mater	Roanoke College Columbia University Juilliard School
Occupations	Actor singer
Years active	1934–1975
Known for	Miracle on 34th Street The Restless Gun Tin Pan Alley The Dolly Sisters
Spouses	Anne Shirley ​ ​ (m. 1937; div. 1943)​ Gloria DeHaven ​ ​ (m. 1944; div. 1950)​ Alexandra Crowell Curtis ​ ​ (m. 1953)​
Children	3, includingJulie Payne

John Howard Payne^[1] (May 23, 1912 – December 6, 1989) was an American film actor who is mainly remembered fromfilm noir crime stories and20th Century Foxmusical films, and for his leading roles inMiracle on 34th Street and theNBCWesterntelevision seriesThe Restless Gun.

Payne was born inRoanoke, Virginia on May 23, 1912.^[2][3] His mother, Ida Hope (née Schaeffer), a singer, graduated from theVirginia Seminary in Roanoke and married George Washington Payne, a developer in Roanoke. They lived at Fort Lewis, anantebellum mansion that became a state historic property, but was destroyed by fire in the late 1940s.

Payne attended prep schools atMercersburg Academy inMercersburg, Pennsylvania andEpiscopal High School inAlexandria, Virginia,^[4] and afterwards went toRoanoke College inSalem, Virginia. He then transferred toColumbia University in New York City in the fall of 1930. He studied drama at Columbia and voice at theJuilliard School. To support himself, he took on a variety of odd jobs, including wrestling as "Alexei Petroff, the Savage of the Steppes" and boxing as "Tiger Jack Payne".^[5]

He returned frequently to visit his family inRoanoke, Virginia.^[6]

In 1934, a talent scout for theShubert theaters spotted Payne and gave him a job as a stock player. He appeared in road company productions ofRose-Marie andThe Student Prince at $40 a week.^[7]

Payne toured with severalShubert Brothers shows, and frequently sang on New York City-based radio programs. On Broadway he appeared in the revueAt Home Abroad (1935–36) alongsideEthel Waters,Eleanor Powell andBeatrice Lillie.^[8] He understudied forReginald Gardiner and took over one night. He was seen by Fred Kohlmar ofSam Goldwyn's company and was offered a movie contract.^[9]

In 1936, he left New York for Hollywood. His first role was in Goldwyn'sDodsworth^[10], playing Harry McKee, the son-in-law ofWalter Huston's titular character.

He had the male lead as Jimmy Maxwell inHats Off (1936), an independent film.

Payne was third billed inFair Warning (1937), at Fox, and was the lead inLove on Toast (1937). He had a small role in Paramount'sCollege Swing (1938).

Payne signed a contract withWarner Bros. and played Don Vincent inGarden of the Moon (1938). He was inKid Nightingale (1939) andWings of the Navy (1939).^[11] Payne supportedAnn Sheridan inIndianapolis Speedway (1939).

During this time he returned to Broadway to appear inAbe Lincoln in Illinois (1938–39).^[12] Payne was unhappy with his Warner Bros. roles, and asked for a release.

Payne went to20th Century Fox where he appeared inStar Dust (1940). During filming,Darryl F. Zanuck offered him a long-term contract.

He had supporting roles inMaryland (1940) andThe Great Profile (1940).

Payne had roles in the comedyThe Great American Broadcast (1940), and was in the musicalsTin Pan Alley (1940),Week-End in Havana (1941) andSun Valley Serenade (1941).

Fox gave him the chance to do drama inRemember the Day (1941) andTo the Shores of Tripoli (1942).

After serving in the military duringWorld War II Payne returned to Fox, and was inThe Dolly Sisters (1945), playingHarry Fox. It was one of Payne's most successful films.

Payne starred with Maureen O'Hara inSentimental Journey (1946), and was inThe Razor's Edge (1946).

Payne's most familiar role may be his final film for Fox, that of attorney Fred Gailey in the classic holiday favoriteMiracle on 34th Street (1947) withNatalie Wood,Maureen O'Hara andEdmund Gwenn. Payne admitted that prior to the film, he had been on suspension for refusing an assignment by the Fox studio, but he had asked directors around the lot and was told aboutMiracle on 34th Street.^[13][14]Miracle on 34th Street was another box office success. He was meant to make another film with O'Hara,Sitting Pretty (1948),^[15] however, in October 1947 he got his release from the studio, despite the contract having another four years to run, which would have brought him $670,000. Payne claimed he was dissatisfied with the roles being offered him.^[16]

Payne later said he had asked for his release every week for eight months before he got it.^[7] Film historian Jeanine Basinger later wrote that "Fox thought of [Payne] as a secondaryTyrone Power. They didn't know how to use him."^[17]

After leaving Fox, Payne attempted to change his image and began playing tough-guy roles in Hollywoodfilms noir.

He did two noirs at Universal,Larceny (1948), where he played the lead role, and was inThe Saxon Charm (1948). He had the lead inThe Crooked Way (1949) for United Artists.

Payne received an offer to star in a Western forPine-Thomas Productions, a unit that operated out of Paramount Studios. His first film for the company wasEl Paso (1949). Other roles were inCaptain China (1950), an adventure film;Tripoli (1950) set during theBarbary War; andThe Eagle and the Hawk (1950), a Western.

He signed a contract to make three more films for Pine-Thomas^[18] and was inPassage West (1951), another Western; andCrosswinds (1951), an adventure film;Caribbean Gold (1952), a pirate film;The Blazing Forest (1952), an adventure story;The Vanquished (1952), a Western.

Payne insisted that the films he appeared in be filmed in color and that the rights to the films revert to him after several years, making him wealthy when he rented them to television.^[19]

In 1952 he said he got four times the fan mail he did at Fox. "I make fewer pictures now but I make the kind I want to make."^[7]

Payne starred inKansas City Confidential (1952), a noir directed byPhil Karlson, and owned 25% of the film.^[20] He later worked with onRaiders of the Seven Seas (1953), a pirate movie; and99 River Street (1953), a noir also directed by Karlson.

Payne did a series of Westerns:Silver Lode (1954), forBenedict Bogeaus;Rails Into Laramie (1955), for Universal;Santa Fe Passage (1955) andThe Road to Denver (1955) at Republic, andTennessee's Partner (1955) for Bogeaus.

In 1955, he paid a $1,000-a-month option for nine months on theIan FlemingJames Bond novelMoonraker (he eventually gave up the option when he learned he could not retain the rights for the entire book series).

He returned to Pine-Thomas for a noir,Hell's Island (1956), then didSlightly Scarlet (1956) for Bogeaus. He madeHold Back the Night (1956) for Allied Artists andThe Boss (1956) for United Artists, co-producing the latter.^[21] He did another noir, Hidden Fear, shot in Denmark.

Payne made one more Pine-Thomas film,Bailout at 43,000 (1957), playing Major Paul Peterson.

Payne starred as Vint Bonner inThe Restless Gun, a half-hour Western which aired onNBC Monday evenings from September 23, 1957 to September 14, 1959. He played a gunfighter who preferred not to fight if other options were available.^[22] The series was originally based on an earlier radio series starringJames Stewart titledThe Six Shooter. On October 31, 1957 Payne guest-starred onThe Ford Show hosted byTennessee Ernie Ford.

Payne directed one of his last films,They Ran for Their Lives (1968), and starred with Alice Faye in a 1974 revival of the musicalGood News. He also starred in theGunsmoke episode of "Gentry's Law" in 1970.

His final role was in 1975, when he co-starred withPeter Falk andJanet Leigh in theColumbo episode "Forgotten Lady". Later in life Payne became wealthy through real estate investments in southern California.

During World War II Payne served as a flight instructor in theUnited States Army Air Corps.

Payne was married to actressAnne Shirley from 1937 to 1942;^[23] they had a daughter,Julie Anne Payne.^{[citation needed]}

He married actressGloria DeHaven in 1944;^[24][25] the couple had two children, Kathleen and Thomas,^[26] before divorcing in 1950.^[27] The couple remained on good terms, and on June 27, 1961, columnist Earl Wilson wrote that DeHaven was still concerned over Payne's March 1961 accident, and called him once a week.^[28]

During the filming ofKansas City Confidential (1952) Payne had a romance with co-starColeen Gray that continued well past filming. They later appeared together inTennessee's Partner, alongside future U.S. PresidentRonald Reagan.

Payne then married Alexandra Beryl "Sandy" Crowell Curtis in 1953,^[29] and remained with her until his death.

His oldest daughter, Julie, was married to writer-directorRobert Towne from 1977 to 1982.

Payne was aRepublican, and in October 1960 he was one of many conservative notables who drove in the Nixon-Lodge Bumper Sticker Motorcade in Los Angeles.^[30] Payne also supportedBarry Goldwater in the1964 United States presidential election.^[31]

On the evening of March 1, 1961, when Payne was 48, he suffered extensive, life-threatening injuries when struck by a car when he was crossing Madison Avenue in New York City.^[32] It had been raining, and the driver claimed he had not seen Payne.^[33] Payne was tossed into the air, and came down facefirst into the car's windshield, which then shattered, causing extensive facial lacerations, including damaging both his eyes. His left leg was broken in five places, and he suffered a skull fracture.^[32]

Payne was taken to Roosevelt Hospital (now namedMount Sinai West), where he had facial surgery. He was in a hip cast for five-and-a-half months. He claimed his full recovery was due to doctors telling him that a patient's attitude is important, and he always remained optimistic.^[32]

One of Payne's first public appearances during this period was as a guest panelist on the popularCBS Sunday night game showWhat's My Line? In the December 3, 1961, episode, regular panelistDorothy Kilgallen introduced Payne by saying, "He's been in the hospital after a very bad accident. So it's good to see him fit as a fiddle and all in one piece." Regular panelistBennett Cerf remarked, "Good to see you here, John. Glad to see you beat that car on Madison Avenue that bumped into you."^[34]

Payne died inMalibu, California, ofcongestive heart failure on December 6, 1989, aged 77.^[2] His ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean.

He has two stars on theHollywood Walk of Fame, in motion pictures and television.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toJohn Payne (actor).

• John Payne atIMDb
• John Payne at theInternet Broadway Database
• John Payne atTV Guide
• John Payne at theAmerican Film Institute Catalog
• John Payne at theBritish Film Institute^{[better source needed]}
• John Payne at Virtual History
• John Payne in Lux Radio Theater:Miracle on 34th Street (1948) – downloadable mp3 and streaming audio

• 1912 births
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