Personal Info
Birth date
1931-03-06 (94 Years)
Day of death
1995-01-25
Gender
Male
Known for
Acting
Place of birth
Los Angeles, California, USA
Also known as
Robert Errol Van Orden
John Smith
Biography
Actor John Smith was born Robert Errol Van Orden in Los Angeles. He began his career singing with The Robert Mitchell Boy Choir, a group which appeared in two Bing Crosby films, Going My Way (1944) and The Bells of St. Mary's (1945). His agent Henry Willson, who also gave Tab Hunter and Rock Hudson their names, changed Van Orden's name to "John Smith". Robert Hofler, author of "The Man Who Invented Rock Hudson", reports that an actress identified as Pocahontas Crowfoot was in the courtroom when the name change was granted. In We're No Angels (1955), Smith had a small role as "Arnaud", the ship's doctor. Aldo Ray, observing the doctor in full dress whites, says "he looks like a glass of milk". John Smith's other film credits include Circus World (1964) and Justin Morgan Had a Horse (1972). Smith also appeared in the television westerns Cimarron City (1958) and Laramie (1959).
Filmography
Marcus Welby, M.D.
6.5
Overview:
Marcus Welby, M.D. is an American medical drama television program that aired on ABC from September 23, 1969, to July 29, 1976. It starred Robert Young as a family practitioner with a kind bedside manner and James Brolin as the younger doctor he often worked with, and was produced by David Victor and David J. O'Connell. The pilot, A Matter of Humanities, had aired as an ABC Movie of the Week on March 26, 1969.Police Woman
6.2
Overview:
Sergeant “Pepper"” Anderson, an undercover cop for the Criminal Conspiracy Unit of the Los Angeles Police Department, poses undercover from mob girl to prostitute.The Ford Television Theatre
7.333
Overview:
This show started in New York City, with Broadway actors and actresses. It then moved to Hollywood, California, where Hollywood actors and actresses headed the cast.The Virginian
6.5
Overview:
The Shiloh Ranch in Wyoming Territory of the 1890s is owned in sequence by Judge Henry Garth, the Grainger brothers, and Colonel Alan MacKenzie. It is the setting for a variety of stories, many more based on character and relationships than the usual western.The Millionaire
5
Overview:
An anthology series that explored the ways sudden and unexpected wealth changed life for better or for worse. It told the stories of people who were given one million dollars from a benefactor who insisted they never know him, with one exception.Laramie
6.4
Overview:
Laramie is an American Western television series that aired on NBC from 1959 to 1963. A Revue Studios production, the program originally starred John Smith as Slim Sherman, Robert Fuller as Jess Harper, Hoagy Carmichael as Jonesy and Robert L. Crawford, Jr., as Andy Sherman.Emergency!
7.8
Overview:
The crew of Los Angeles County Fire Department Station 51, particularly the paramedic team, and Rampart Hospital respond to emergencies in their operating area.Telephone Time
6.3
Overview:
Telephone Time is an American anthology drama series that aired on CBS in 1956, and on ABC from 1957 to 1958. The series features plays by John Nesbitt who hosted the first season. Frank C. Baxter hosted the 1957 and 1958 seasons. The program was directed by Arthur Hiller.Adam-12
7
Overview:
Adam-12 is a television police drama that followed two police officers of the Los Angeles Police Department, Pete Malloy and Jim Reed, as they patrolled the streets of Los Angeles in their patrol unit, 1-Adam-12.Alfred Hitchcock Presents
7.731
Overview:
A television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock featuring dramas, thrillers, and mysteries.The Wonderful World of Disney
7.774
Overview:
Walt Disney Productions has produced an anthology television series under several different titles since 1954. The original version of the series premiered on ABC, Wednesday night, October 27, 1954. The show, which was hosted by Walt Disney until his death and then from 1996 to 2002 by then-CEO Michael Eisner (with one-off hosts or no hosts during other periods) has since aired continually as either a weekly program or an irregular series of specials on several networks and streaming services, most recently on ABC and Disney+. The show is the second longest showing prime-time program on American television, behind its rival, Hallmark Hall of Fame. However, Hallmark Hall of Fame was a weekly program only during its first five seasons, while Disney remained a weekly program for more than forty years.Gunsmoke
6.6
Overview:
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West. The central character is lawman Marshal Matt Dillon, played by William Conrad on radio and James Arness on television.Wire Service
NYR
Overview:
Wire Service is an American drama series that aired on ABC as part of its 1956-57 season lineup.Frontier
5
Overview:
Frontier is an American Western anthology series that aired on NBC from September 1955, to September 1956. The series de-emphasizes gunplay and focuses on the hazards of the settlement of the American West. It was only the second anthology Western series in television history, having been preceded by Death Valley Days. Frontier aired premiered on September 25, 1955, and ran sporadically in its last five months. Walter Coy narrated the series and starred in occasional episodes, which are dramatizations based on actual events. The program was produced by Worthington Miner.Cimarron City
5
Overview:
Cimarron City is an American Western television series, starring George Montgomery as Matt Rockford and John Smith as Lane Temple, that aired on NBC from October 11, 1958 until April 4, 1959. The name "Cimarron City" refers to a boom town in Logan County north of Oklahoma City. Rich in oil and gold, Cimarron City aspires to become the capital of the future state of Oklahoma, created in 1907.Letter to Loretta
6.5
Overview:
Letter to Loretta is an American anthology drama series telecast on NBC from September 1953 to June 1961 for a total of 165 episodes. The filmed show was hosted by Loretta Young who also played the lead in various episodes. Letter to Loretta was sponsored by Procter & Gamble from 1953 through 1960. The final season's sponsor was Warner-Lambert's Listerine.Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
7.25
Overview:
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars is an anthology series that was telecast from 1951 until 1959 on CBS. Offering both comedies and drama, the series was sponsored by the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. The title was shortened to Schlitz Playhouse, beginning with the fall 1957 season.Hondo
6.5
Overview:
Hondo is a 17-episode Western television series starring Ralph Taeger that aired in the United States on ABC during the 1967 fall season. The series was produced by Batjac Productions, Inc., Fenady Associates, Inc., and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television.Friendly Persuasion
6.623
Overview:
The story of a family of Quakers in Indiana in 1862. Their religious sect is strongly opposed to violence and war. It's not easy for them to meet the rules of their religion in everyday life but when Southern troops pass the area they are in real trouble. Should they fight, despite their peaceful attitude?Hot Rod Girl
4.2
Overview:
After his kid brother is killed in a street race, a champion drag-racer quits racing. However, a new kid comes to town determined to force him back into racing so he can take his title--and he's already taken his girlfriend.When his younger brother, Steve, is killed racing a hot-rod, Jeff Northup blames himself for the accident since he had built the car for his brother and had encouraged him to race it, with other boys on a special course provided by police detective Ben Merrill, who is working to reduce the city's hot-rod fatalities by providing supervision for the dangerous hobby. Jeff withdraws from participating in races on Merrill's course and, without his leadership, reverts to racing on the streets. "Bronc" Talbott, a newcomer, makes a play for Jeff's girlfriend, Lisa Vernon. Eventually, the taunting-Talbott forces Jeff into a race which results in the death of a bicycling child, and evidence seems to indicate Jeff was at fault.Going My Way
6.715
Overview:
Youthful Father Chuck O'Malley led a colorful life of sports, song, and romance before joining the Roman Catholic clergy. After being appointed to a run-down New York parish, O'Malley's worldly knowledge helps him connect with a gang of boys looking for direction, eventually winning over the aging, conventional Parish priest.We're No Angels
7.2
Overview:
Three convicts escape from prison on Devil's Island just before Christmas and arrive at a nearby French colonial town. They go to the store of the Ducotels, the only store that gives supplies on credit. They initially intend to take advantage of them but have a change of heart after they find the family is in financial troubles.The High and the Mighty
5.9
Overview:
Dan Roman is a veteran pilot haunted by a tragic past. Now relegated to second-in-command cockpit assignments he finds himself on a routine Honolulu-to-San Francisco flight - one that takes a terrifying suspense-building turn when disaster strikes high above the Pacific Ocean at the point of no return.Island of Lost Women
4.3
Overview:
A plane crash-lands on a jungle island inhabited by a scientist and his nubile young daughters. Complications ensue.The Bells of St. Mary's
6.78
Overview:
Father O'Malley is sent to St. Mary's, a run-down parochial school on the verge of condemnation. He and Sister Benedict work together in an attempt to save the school, though their differing methods often lead to good-natured disagreements.Wichita
6.292
Overview:
Former buffalo hunter and entrepreneur Wyatt Earp arrives in the lawless cattle town of Wichita Kansas. His skill as a gun-fighter makes him a perfect candidate for Marshal, but he refuses the job until he feels morally obligated to bring law and order to this wild town.Circus World
6.135
Overview:
Circus owner Matt Masters is beset by disasters as he attempts a European tour of his circus. At the same time, he is caught in an emotional bind between his adopted daughter and her mother.Acting
2011Meteor as Narrator
1974Police Woman (1 Episode) as Unknown
1972Justin Morgan Had a Horse as Mr. Ames
1972Emergency! (2 Episodes) as Capt. Hammer
1971Blood Legacy as Dr. Carl Isenburg
1969Marcus Welby, M.D. (1 Episode) as Doc Hunter
1968Adam-12 (1 Episode) as Ron McKee
1967Hondo and the Apaches as Ed Dow
1967Hondo (3 Episodes) as Unknown
1966Waco as Joe Gore
1964Circus World as Steve McCabe
1962The Virginian (1 Episode) as Dee Garvey
1959Laramie (124 Episodes) as Slim Sherman
1959Island of Lost Women as Joe Walker
1958Cimarron City (26 Episodes) as Deputy Sheriff Lane Temple
1958Handle with Care as Bill Reeves
1957The Crooked Circle as Tommy Kelly
1957The Lawless Eighties as William Wesley Van Orsdel
1957The Kettles on Old MacDonald's Farm as Brad Johnson
1957Fury at Showdown as Miley Sutton
1957Tomahawk Trail as Pvt. Reynolds
1956The Women of Pitcairn Island as Thursday October Christian
1956Friendly Persuasion as Caleb Cope
1956Wire Service (1 Episode) as Howie
1956Rebel in Town as Wesley Mason
1956Hot Rod Girl as Jeff Northrup
1956Quincannon, Frontier Scout as Lt. Phil Hostedder
1956Telephone Time (1 Episode) as Unknown
1956Ghost Town as Duff Dailey
1956The Bold and the Brave as Smith
1955Desert Sands as Pvt. Rex Tyle
1955Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1 Episode) as Irving Randall
1955Frontier (1 Episode) as Willie Magill - aka The Colfax Kid
1955Gunsmoke (1 Episode) as David
1955We're No Angels as Medical Officer Arnaud
1955Wichita as Jim Earp
1955Seven Angry Men as Frederick Brown
1955The Millionaire (1 Episode) as Charles 'Lucky' Swanson
1954The Wonderful World of Disney (2, 1 Episode) as Rep Aeronaut, Mr. Ames
1954A Star Is Born World Premiere as Self
1954The High and the Mighty as Milo Buck
1953Letter to Loretta (1 Episode) as Art
1952The Ford Television Theatre (1 Episode) as Unknown
1951Schlitz Playhouse of Stars (1 Episode) as Unknown
1945The Bells of St. Mary's as Choir Member (uncredited)
1944Going My Way as Choir Member (uncredited)