John Donovan Cannon (April 24, 1922 – May 20, 2005) was an American actor. An alumnus of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City, he is best known for his co-starring role of Chief of Detectives Peter B. Clifford in the television series McCloud with Dennis Weaver from 1970 until 1977, and for his part as the witness Lloyd Chandler who cleared Dr. Richard Kimble (David Janssen) in "The Judgment", the series finale of The Fugitive.
J. D. Cannon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | John Donovan Cannon April 24, 1922 Salmon, Idaho, U.S. |
| Died | May 20, 2005 (aged 83) Hudson, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | American Academy of Dramatic Arts |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1960–1991 |
| Spouse | Alice McCamley (19??–2005, his death) |
Life and career
editFilms and television
editThis section needs additional citations for verification. (March 2016) |
Cannon served in the United States Army during World War II. Cannon first appeared on television as Master Sergeant Sherman in the sitcom The Phil Silvers Show, also known as You'll Never Get Rich.
He appeared in a 1963 episode of Combat!, titled "The Quiet Warrior", as a member of the American Intelligence.
In 1964, he appeared in the TV Western Gunsmoke, as the evil killer “Pike Beecham” in the episode “Big Man, Big Target” (S10E10).
In 1965, he appeared in an episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour. The episode, titled “Completely Foolproof”, originally aired March 29, 1965.
In 1970 Cannon appeared as Roy Harkness on The Men from Shiloh, the retitled name for the final season of TV western The Virginian in the episode titled "Hannah". He played a recurring character – a lawman named Harry Briscoe working for the Bannerman Detective Agency - in the 1971 to 1973 series Alias Smith and Jones. He guest-starred in many series over the years, including Wagon Train, The Defenders,[1] Gunsmoke, Rawhide, Lancer, The Fugitive, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Untouchables, The Wild Wild West, East Side/West Side, The Invaders, Combat!, Stoney Burke, and the miniseries Testimony of Two Men (1977) and Top of the Hill (1980). He was cast in several episodes of Murder, She Wrote. His last television acting appearance was on an episode of Law & Order in 1991.
He wore a toupee in most of his later roles. The exception was the Remington Steele episode "Steele in the News" (4 March 1983), in which Cannon played a TV news anchor who only wore his toupee while broadcasting. He also appeared (with his toupee), that same season (#2), of Remington Steele in episode 21 "Hounded Steele". In the second season of Twelve O'Clock High (1965–1966), he played Brig. Gen. Dave Creighton in the 34th episode of the series "RX for a Sick Bird".
Cannon appeared in film roles, often as a cold-eyed villain. His film credits included An American Dream (1966), Cool Hand Luke (1967), Krakatoa, East of Java (1969), The Thousand Plane Raid (1969), Heaven with a Gun (1969), Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970), Lawman (1971), Scorpio (1973), Raise the Titanic (1980), Death Wish II (1982) and Beyond Witch Mountain (1982).
Stage
editCannon was a founding member of Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival, starring in their productions of The Taming of the Shrew (1956) and Much Ado About Nothing (1961).[2]
He starred with James Earl Jones in the original off-Broadway production of Athol Fugard's Blood Knot (1964).
Other Appearances
editIn 1979, Cannon was the presenter in an instructional video demonstrating an MCA DiscoVision video disc player.[3]
In 2019, Anders Enger Jenson sampled the original instruction video and into his music track.[4]
Personal life
editCannon married Alice McCamley, an actress and writer who appeared in Broadway productions including Company and Johnny Johnson. In 1962, he and Colleen Dewhurst starred in his wife's play Great Day in the Morning, based on her childhood in St. Louis.[5]
Cannon died at his home in Hudson, New York, on May 20, 2005, at the age of 83.[6] Alice suffered a debilitating stroke in 2014 and died in 2017.
Filmography
edit| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1966 | An American Dream | Sergeant Walt Leznicki | |
| 1967 | Cool Hand Luke | Society Red | |
| 1969 | Krakatoa, East of Java | Danzig | |
| 1969 | The Thousand Plane Raid | General Cotten Palmer | |
| 1969 | Heaven with a Gun | Mace | |
| 1970 | Cotton Comes to Harlem | Calhoun | |
| 1971 | Lawman | Hurd Price | |
| 1973 | Scorpio | Filchock | |
| 1979 | The Concorde ... Airport '79 | Lieutenant John Ratcliff | TV version, uncredited |
| 1980 | Raise the Titanic | Captain Joe Burke | |
| 1982 | Death Wish II | New York District Attorney | |
| 1982 | Beyond Witch Mountain | Deranian | |
| 1987 | Street Justice | Dante | |
| Television | |||
| 1961 | The Defenders | District Attorney | episode: "The Attack" |
| 1962 | The Defenders | District Attorney Manetto | episode: "The Locked Room" |
| 1962 | The Defenders | District Attorney Al Ashley | episode: "The Last Six Months" |
| 1962 | The Defenders | District Attorney | episode: "The Voices of Death" |
| 1963 | Wagon Train | Abel Weatherly | episode: “The Abel Weatherly Story” |
| 1963 | Combat! | Ted Slocum | episode: "The Quiet Warrior" |
| 1963 | The Defenders | District Attorney | episode: "Man Against Himself" |
| 1964 | The Defenders | District Attorney | episode: "Drink Like a Lady" |
| 1964 | The Defenders | District Attorney | episode: "Hero of the People" |
| 1965 | The Defenders | Assistant District Attorney Ashley | episode: "The Unwritten Law" |
| 1965 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Joe Brisson | episode: "Completely Foolproof" |
| 1965 | The Wild Wild West | Flory | episode: "The Night of the Deadly Bed" |
| 1967 | The Invaders | Ben Holman | Beachhead |
| 1967 | The F.B.I. (TV series) | Robert Dewey | episode: "Flight Plan" |
| 1968 | Lancer | Morgan Price | episode: "Blood Rock" |
| 1968 | The Invaders | Peter Kalter | The Organization |
| 1969 | Bonanza | Colonel Hudson | episode: "The Fence" |
| 1969 | Gunsmoke | Jake MacGraw | episode: "MacGraw" |
| 1970-1977 | McCloud | Chief Peter B. Clifford | 45 episodes |
| 1971-1973 | Alias Smith & Jones | Harry Briscoe / Bannerman / Chief Detective | |
| 1983-1984 | Remington Steele | Elliot Walsh/Kevin Masters | 2 episodes |
| 1986 | Blacke's Magic | General Ellis Wersching | episode: "Address Unknown" |
| 1989 | The Return of Sam McCloud | Commissioner Peter B. Clifford | Television film |
| 1991 | Law & Order | Chet Burton | The Secret Sharers |
References
edit- ^ The Defenders (Crime, Drama), Plautus Productions, Defender Productions, CBS Television Network, September 16, 1961, retrieved January 8, 2022
- ^ Tallmer, Jerry. "Theatre: Much Ado About Nothing". The Village Voice. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- ^ Operating Instructions for the MCA DiscoVision PR-7820 System, MCA DiscoVision, Inc., 1979, retrieved September 10, 2022
- ^ Anders Enger Jenson - Discovision, 2019
- ^ "Great Day in the Morning", Internet Broadway Database; accessed August 28, 2016.
- ^ "J.D. Cannon, 83, Dies; Actor on McCloud", nytimes.com; accessed March 13, 2016.
External links
edit- J. D. Cannon at IMDb
- J. D. Cannon at the Internet Broadway Database
- J. D. Cannon at Playbill Vault
- J. D. Cannon at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Jack Cannon at the Internet Broadway Database
- Jack Cannon at Playbill Vault
- Jack Cannon at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- J. D. Cannon at Find a Grave
