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Post by snsurone on Sept 13, 2017 19:33:50 GMT
IMO, he was one of Hollywood's most underrated actors. Maybe it's because he may have been mistaken for the more flamboyant John Wayne. But Payne, a fairly low-key actor, acquitted himself well in both movies and TV. Most likely, his best performance was as Gray in THE RAZOR'S EDGE. Later, he starred in a TV Western called THE RESTLESS GUN. Later in his career he played character roles on shows like COLUMBO and GUNSMOKE.
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Post by manfromplanetx on Sept 13, 2017 20:16:28 GMT
My favourite John Payne, Silver Lode (1954) A notable western for its McCarthyism Connection... Marshall McCarty (Duryea) rides into town with his hired gunmen looking for revenge on the man who killed his brother Clearly inspired by High Noon, Payne gives an outstanding emotionally charged lead performance as the man accused...
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Post by bravomailer on Sept 13, 2017 21:06:58 GMT
Maybe it's because he may have been mistaken for the more flamboyant John Wayne. A library book on war films I once read mentioned John Payne's role in To the Shores of Tripoli. Someone crossed out the "P" in his name and penciled in a "W", probably in an attempt to fix a typo.
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Post by outrider127 on Sept 13, 2017 21:41:18 GMT
IMO, he was one of Hollywood's most underrated actors. Maybe it's because he may have been mistaken for the more flamboyant John Wayne. But Payne, a fairly low-key actor, acquitted himself well in both movies and TV. Most likely, his best performance was as Gray in THE RAZOR'S EDGE. Later, he starred in a TV Western called THE RESTLESS GUN. Later in his career he played character roles on shows like COLUMBO and GUNSMOKE. Always enjoyed John Payne,some fine films in the 30's and 40's(Miracle of 34th Street), and during the 1950's he did a lot of enjoyable films also,Westerns and the like
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Post by neurosturgeon on Sept 13, 2017 22:13:19 GMT
I can remember Merv Griffin having John Payne as a guest on his talk show and Merv told the story about Merv going to the home of Gloria DeHaven to pick her up for a date. When he knocked on the door, John Payne answered the door, leaving Merv a bit unnerved, until John explained he was there to babysit the kids while Gloria was out on the date with Merv. I always thought that was a great story of Dad wanting to spend time with the kids, cause I am sure they could have afforded a babysitter.
I always liked John Payne, from "The Razor's Edge" to him being in that great episode of "Columbo" with Janet Leigh. Good is drama, comedy or musicals.
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Post by teleadm on Sept 14, 2017 17:19:45 GMT
After he left Fox his movie persona changed to a more tougher open air adventure and western hero. He got a profitable deal with the Pine-Thomas unit at Paramount. A very serious 1961 accident, however, in which John was hit by a car in New York City, slowed him down considerably. It took well over two years for him to recover enough from his leg fractures and facial/scalp wounds to return to acting. He returned to his old Broadway roots in the musical "Here's Love" 1964.
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Post by vegalyra on Sept 14, 2017 17:35:45 GMT
Great actor, I actually just caught him in Shores of Tripoli the other day. I had forgotten about this one but then at the closing scene where he undresses from his civilian clothes and puts on his Marine uniform immediately reminded me that I saw this, but years ago (Randolph Scott is excellent in this one as well). I have to admit though, I'd much rather have Scott's "Dixie Smith" drill sergeant than R. Lee Ermey's "Hartman". Dixie Smith was a very tolerant NCO...
Back to Payne though, his roles in Miracle on 34th Street always sticks with me. He seems like he was a genuinely nice and pleasant man.
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Post by london777 on Sept 15, 2017 12:35:46 GMT
Strangely, the only three movies I could remember him in have not yet been mentioned:
Kansas City Confidential (1952), a wildly overrated noir already contaminated by the increasingly fashionable moralizing documentary approach, and Slightly Scarlet (1956), a late noir curiosity based on a John M Cain story, because of the odd role Payne has as protagonist and also because it was in Technicolor.
For some reason I also remember Tripoli (1950), a totally banal actioner which I saw once 67 years ago as a ten-year-old. No idea why that stuck in my mind when I have forgotten hundreds of better movies Payne was bland (as usual) but Howard da Silva spiced it up.
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Post by wmcclain on Sept 15, 2017 13:03:17 GMT
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Post by vegalyra on Sept 15, 2017 13:24:35 GMT
For some reason I also remember Tripoli (1950), a totally banal actioner which I saw once 67 years ago as a ten-year-old. No idea why that stuck in my mind when I have forgotten hundreds of better movies Payne was bland (as usual) but Howard da Silva spiced it up. I was curious about this one. I was looking at his filmography after commenting on this thread and came across Tripoli. Interesting that at the beginning of Shores of Tripoli Randolph Scott discusses the action of the US Marines against the Barbary Pirates, and then John Payne goes on to star in this exact engagement. Maureen O'Hara is in both films as well. Pretty interesting coincidence.
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Post by london777 on Sept 15, 2017 23:09:04 GMT
For some reason I also remember Tripoli (1950), a totally banal actioner which I saw once 67 years ago as a ten-year-old. No idea why that stuck in my mind when I have forgotten hundreds of better movies Payne was bland (as usual) but Howard da Silva spiced it up. I was curious about this one. I was looking at his filmography after commenting on this thread and came across Tripoli. Interesting that at the beginning of Shores of Tripoli Randolph Scott discusses the action of the US Marines against the Barbary Pirates, and then John Payne goes on to star in this exact engagement. Maureen O'Hara is in both films as well. Pretty interesting coincidence. Maybe not a coincidence. Payne was a pretty shrewd businessman and invested in his own movies when he thought they deserved it. He may have remembered it as a good theme for a movie (the mystic orient and harems combined with American flag-waving) and had a hand in its emergence.
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Post by petrolino on Sept 16, 2017 1:43:21 GMT
In addition to the many interesting roles already mentioned, I'd like to add John Payne's embittered performance in 'Santa Fe Passage' (1955) to the mix.
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