John Saxon (1935) passed away on Saturday 25 July 2020. He worked on over 200 film and TV projects during the span of seven decades. His portrayal of a brutal Mexican bandit opposite Marlon Brando in The Appaloosa (1966) earned him a Golden Globe. The Italian-American actor played in many Italian films, mainly in Spaghetti Westerns. The rugged star also kicked around with Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon and appeared in three Nightmare on Elm Street films for director Wes Craven. John Saxon was 83.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. 3056.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. 3164.
Yugoslavian postcard by Izrada Nas Glas, Smederevo, no. 163.
Yugoslavian postcard by IZK, no. 2181.
John Saxon was born Carmine Orrico in Brooklyn, New York, in 1935. He was the eldest of three children of immigrants from Calabria, Italy. His father was a house painter.
Walking out of a cinema after skipping class at New Utrecht High School, he was spotted by a male modeling agent and then appeared in magazines like 'True Romances'.
Wikipedia: "According to Robert Hofler's 2005 biography, The Man Who Invented Rock Hudson: The Pretty Boys and Dirty Deals of Henry Willson, agent Willson saw Saxon's picture on the cover of a detective magazine and immediately contacted the boy's family in Brooklyn. He brought the 18-year-old Orrico to Hollywood and renamed him, Saxon."
After a few uncredited bit parts, including one as an usher in A Star Is Born (George Cukor, 1954), John Saxon started his Hollywood career as a juvenile delinquent in Running Wild (Abner Biberman, 1955) starring Mamie van Doren.
Thanks to 'hunk' assignments in films like Summer Love (Charles F. Haas, 1958), The Restless Years (Helmut Käutner 1958), and The Reluctant Debutante (Vincente Minnelli, 1958), Saxon was briefly the object of many a teenage crush.
Although he worked in these years with many notable directors including Blake Edwards, John Huston, Frank Borzage, and Otto Preminger, he never developed into a major star.
Austrian postcard by Bild und Ton, Wien, no. 503.
Dutch postcard by Int. Filmpers, Amsterdam, no. 1121.
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 1348. Photo: Universal International.
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 1428. Photo: Universal International.
John Saxon is now best known for his work in Westerns like Joe Kidd (John Sturges, 1972) starring Clint Eastwood, and horror films, such as the Italian Giallo La ragazza che sapeva troppo/The Girl Who Knew Too Much (Mario Bava, 1963) with Leticia Roman, and Queen of Blood (Curtis Harrington, 1966) with Basil Rathbone and Dennis Hopper.
Saxon appeared in many Italian films, mainly in Spaghetti Westerns like I tre che sconvolsero il West (Vado, vedo e sparo)/One Dollar Too Many (Enzo G. Castellari, 1968) and such police thrillers as Napoli violenta/Violent Naples (Umberto Lenzi, 1976).
His portrayal of a brutal Mexican bandit opposite Marlon Brando in The Appaloosa (Sidney J. Furie, 1966) earned him a Golden Globe. He also co-starred with Bruce Lee and Jim Kelly in the classic Hong Kong martial arts action film Enter the Dragon (Robert Clouse, 1973). Saxon portrayed Roper, a degenerate gambler who participates in a martial arts tournament.
Another classic genre film is Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) in which he played the father of the heroine, Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp). Saxon played the father, cop Donald Thompson, also in the third film in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (Chuck Russell, 1987), where he's eventually killed by Freddy Krueger's skeleton. He later returned to play a version of himself in Wes Craven's New Nightmare (Wes Craven, 1994).
Hal Erickson at AllMovie: "Fans could watch Saxon's expertise as an actor increase (and his hairline recede) during his three-year (1969-1972) stint as Dr. Ted Stuart on the NBC television series The Bold Ones." He later had a recurring role on Dynasty (1982-1984) as Rashid Ahmed, a powerful Middle East tycoon who romanced Alexis Colby (Joan Collins). In 1988, John Saxon made his directorial debut with the low-budget feature Death House.
His most recent film was The Extra (Mike Donahue, 2015), but at the time of his death, he was filming the Sci-Fi-film After the Thunderstorm (Gary Wasniewski, 2021).
John Saxon died of pneumonia on 25 July 2020 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA, at the age of 84. He was married three times, to screenwriter Mary Ann Murphy, airline attendant turned actress Elizabeth Saxon and, since 2008, cosmetician Gloria Martel. He had one son, Antonio Saxon, with his first wife Mary Ann.
Spanish postcard by Archivo Bermejo, no. 6348. Photo: Universal International. John Saxon in The Unguarded Moment (Harry Keller, 1956).
Spanish postcard by Sobernas, no. 417. Sent by mail in 1960.
Belgian card postcard by Merbotex, Bruxelles. Photo: Universal.
Italian trailer I tre che sconvolsero il West (Vado, vedo e sparo)/One Dollar Too Many (1968). Source: neverlando74 (YouTube).
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Jon C. Hopwood (IMDb), Mike Barnes (The Hollywood Reporter), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. 3056.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. 3164.
Yugoslavian postcard by Izrada Nas Glas, Smederevo, no. 163.
Yugoslavian postcard by IZK, no. 2181.
Running Wild
John Saxon was born Carmine Orrico in Brooklyn, New York, in 1935. He was the eldest of three children of immigrants from Calabria, Italy. His father was a house painter.
Walking out of a cinema after skipping class at New Utrecht High School, he was spotted by a male modeling agent and then appeared in magazines like 'True Romances'.
Wikipedia: "According to Robert Hofler's 2005 biography, The Man Who Invented Rock Hudson: The Pretty Boys and Dirty Deals of Henry Willson, agent Willson saw Saxon's picture on the cover of a detective magazine and immediately contacted the boy's family in Brooklyn. He brought the 18-year-old Orrico to Hollywood and renamed him, Saxon."
After a few uncredited bit parts, including one as an usher in A Star Is Born (George Cukor, 1954), John Saxon started his Hollywood career as a juvenile delinquent in Running Wild (Abner Biberman, 1955) starring Mamie van Doren.
Thanks to 'hunk' assignments in films like Summer Love (Charles F. Haas, 1958), The Restless Years (Helmut Käutner 1958), and The Reluctant Debutante (Vincente Minnelli, 1958), Saxon was briefly the object of many a teenage crush.
Although he worked in these years with many notable directors including Blake Edwards, John Huston, Frank Borzage, and Otto Preminger, he never developed into a major star.
Austrian postcard by Bild und Ton, Wien, no. 503.
Dutch postcard by Int. Filmpers, Amsterdam, no. 1121.
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 1348. Photo: Universal International.
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 1428. Photo: Universal International.
A Nightmare on Elm Street
John Saxon is now best known for his work in Westerns like Joe Kidd (John Sturges, 1972) starring Clint Eastwood, and horror films, such as the Italian Giallo La ragazza che sapeva troppo/The Girl Who Knew Too Much (Mario Bava, 1963) with Leticia Roman, and Queen of Blood (Curtis Harrington, 1966) with Basil Rathbone and Dennis Hopper.
Saxon appeared in many Italian films, mainly in Spaghetti Westerns like I tre che sconvolsero il West (Vado, vedo e sparo)/One Dollar Too Many (Enzo G. Castellari, 1968) and such police thrillers as Napoli violenta/Violent Naples (Umberto Lenzi, 1976).
His portrayal of a brutal Mexican bandit opposite Marlon Brando in The Appaloosa (Sidney J. Furie, 1966) earned him a Golden Globe. He also co-starred with Bruce Lee and Jim Kelly in the classic Hong Kong martial arts action film Enter the Dragon (Robert Clouse, 1973). Saxon portrayed Roper, a degenerate gambler who participates in a martial arts tournament.
Another classic genre film is Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) in which he played the father of the heroine, Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp). Saxon played the father, cop Donald Thompson, also in the third film in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (Chuck Russell, 1987), where he's eventually killed by Freddy Krueger's skeleton. He later returned to play a version of himself in Wes Craven's New Nightmare (Wes Craven, 1994).
Hal Erickson at AllMovie: "Fans could watch Saxon's expertise as an actor increase (and his hairline recede) during his three-year (1969-1972) stint as Dr. Ted Stuart on the NBC television series The Bold Ones." He later had a recurring role on Dynasty (1982-1984) as Rashid Ahmed, a powerful Middle East tycoon who romanced Alexis Colby (Joan Collins). In 1988, John Saxon made his directorial debut with the low-budget feature Death House.
His most recent film was The Extra (Mike Donahue, 2015), but at the time of his death, he was filming the Sci-Fi-film After the Thunderstorm (Gary Wasniewski, 2021).
John Saxon died of pneumonia on 25 July 2020 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA, at the age of 84. He was married three times, to screenwriter Mary Ann Murphy, airline attendant turned actress Elizabeth Saxon and, since 2008, cosmetician Gloria Martel. He had one son, Antonio Saxon, with his first wife Mary Ann.
Spanish postcard by Archivo Bermejo, no. 6348. Photo: Universal International. John Saxon in The Unguarded Moment (Harry Keller, 1956).
Spanish postcard by Sobernas, no. 417. Sent by mail in 1960.
Belgian card postcard by Merbotex, Bruxelles. Photo: Universal.
Italian trailer I tre che sconvolsero il West (Vado, vedo e sparo)/One Dollar Too Many (1968). Source: neverlando74 (YouTube).
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Jon C. Hopwood (IMDb), Mike Barnes (The Hollywood Reporter), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
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