Uruguayan postcard by CF. Photo: Columbia Pictures.
British postcard in the Picturegoer Series, London, no. W. 306. Photo: Columbia. John Derek in Knock on Any Door (Nicholas Ray, 1949).
Italian postcard by Edizioni S.I.P.Ci, Milano. Photo: Columbia / SEIAD. John Derek in Mask of the Avenger (Phil Karlson, 1951). The Italian title was La Maschera del vendicatore.
A death-row juvenile delinquent
John Derek was born Derek Delevan Harris in Hollywood, California, in 1932. He was the son of writer/director Lawson Harris and bit-actress Dolores Johnson and was to follow his parents into the film business at an early age.
His good looks were soon noticed, and he was groomed for a movie career by his agent Henry Willson, who initially gave him the stage name Dare Harris. Signed by David O. Selznick in 1943, Derek made his film debut as an extra in Since You Went Away (John Cromwell, 1944), playing a soldier - which indeed he was at the time. He was drafted in 1944 into the U.S. Army and saw service in the Philippines during the last days of World War II.
After the war, Derek had a small role in A Double Life (George Cukor, 1947), starring Ronald Colman. His first starring role was as Nick Romano, a death-row juvenile delinquent in Columbia's socially conscious melodrama Knock on Any Door (Nicholas Ray, 1949), in which he was given more screen time than nominal star Humphrey Bogart. Derek was recognised as a talented newcomer, "plainly an idol for the girls", the famous critic Bosley Crowther wrote in a review for The New York Times.
Columbia Pictures signed Derek to a seven-year contract in April 1948. He played Broderick Crawford's son in the political drama All the King's Men (Robert Rossen, 1949). The film was the Best Picture Oscar winner for that year. In September 1950, he had his name formally changed to John Derek.
Derek played the son of the deceased Robin Hood in Rogues of Sherwood Forest (Gordon Douglas, 1950) with Alan Hale Sr. as Little John, but most of Derek's subsequent Columbia assignments were in workaday "B" costume pictures and Westerns. He enjoyed his best role in years, that of John Wilkes Booth, in Prince of Players (Philip Dunne, 1954), starring Richard Burton as his brother, the 19th-century American actor, Edwin Booth. The film was a financial failure.
Dutch postcard. Photo: Europa Columbia.
Yugoslavian postcard by Sedma Sila. Photo: IOM (Morava Film), Beograd (Belgrade).
Vintage card. Photo: Columbia.
Protege wives
In March 1954, John Derek signed a long-term contract with Paramount. His first film for the studio was Run for Cover (Nicholas Ray, 1955), a Western with James Cagney. His most memorable role at the studio was a supporting role as the stately Joshua in Cecil B. DeMille's epic film The Ten Commandments (1956). Another highlight was his supporting role as the brotherly friend of Paul Newman in Exodus (Otto Preminger, 1960).
By 1961, John Derek's film career was seriously flagging, obliging him to sign on as one of the stars of the 26-week TV series Frontier Circus (1961-1962) opposite Chill Wills. Unhappy with his progress as an actor, Derek turned director for the wartime film Once Before I Die (1966) with his second wife, Ursula Andress. The film includes Andress appearing in a nude scene. Stills from this were later sold to Playboy magazine. The film was not a financial success.
Derek first married Turkish-born prima ballerina Pati Behrs (1948-1957), second cousin of Leo Tolstoy and mother of his two children, Russell Andre Derek and Sean Catherine Derek. Derek abandoned his wife and family in the summer of 1955 after meeting 19-year-old aspiring Swiss actress Ursula Andress (1957-1966). His last two wives seemed almost identical in appearance, Linda Evans (1968-1974), and Bo Derek (1976-1998; his death). Derek took photos of all three for Playboy magazine. When not playing "Svengali" (an appellation he fully accepted with high good humour, as did his lovely "Trilbys"), he kept busy as a director and cinematographer.
Derek directed nine more films including such quasi-erotic films as Tarzan, The Ape Man (1981), Bolero (1984) and Ghosts Can't Do It (1990), with his last wife Bo Derek in the lead. For Ghosts Can't Do It (1990), he was awarded the Golden Raspberry for Worst Director. It was his final film as a director. He also directed two music videos for Shania Twain, Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under? and Any Man of Mine.
John Derek suffered from heart trouble for many years. In 1998, the 71-year-old director was found unconscious in his Santa Ynez Valley home. Despite the doctor's efforts, the damage to his heart muscle proved too great, and he passed away. His remains were cremated. Derek had one granddaughter, Alyce Derek (born 1969), from his son Russell's marriage to Lynette Berry. He became a great-grandfather in 1996.
Belgian postcard by Gevaert. Sent by mail in 1954.
British postcard in the Picturegoer Series, London, no. D61. Photo: Columbia.
Mexican postcard by Edicion Gamboa, no. 23.
Belgian postcard, no. 166. Photo: Paramount.
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Wikipedia (Dutch, German and English) and IMDb.
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