John Ireland

Actor

About

Also Known As

John Benjamin Ireland

Birth Place

Vancouver, British Columbia, CA

Born

January 30, 1914

Died

March 21, 1992

Cause of Death

Leukemia

Biography

Tall, lean former professional swimmer who appeared on Broadway and toured in Shakespeare in the late 1930s and early 40s before entering film in the mid-40s. A supporting actor in several notable Westerns including "My Darling Clementine" (1946) and "Red River" (1948) and a lead in small noirs likes "Railroaded" (1947), Ireland was nominated for an Oscar for his forceful performance as ...

Filmography

The Fast and the Furious (1954)

Director

Hannah Lee (1953)

Director

Waxwork II: Lost in Time (1992)

In Vino Veritas (1990)

Graveyard Story (1990)

Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat (1989)

Photos & Videos

View All

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) -- (Movie Clip) Did You Ever Catch My Act?

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) -- (Movie Clip) To Hell With Polite Drinking

Family & Companions

Elaine Sheldon

Wife

Actor. Married 1940, divorced 1949; two sons together.

Joanne Dru

Wife

Actor. Second wife; married 1949 divorced 1956.

Daphne Myrick

Wife

Married 1962.

Notes

"Ugliest of heroes, most attractively-voiced of villains, Ireland had a photogenic physical ambivalence which gave tension to his performances at any point on the moral spectrum."--Tom Rutherford (FILM DOPE, Number 27, July 1983)

Wrote the lyrics to the song "No Head on My Pillow"

Biography

A prolific performer in films and early TV, Ireland had made the transition to supporting roles by the mid-50s, playing cynical villains in films like "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" (1956), "Spartacus" (1960) and "55 Days at Peking" (1962). By the late 60s he was turning up as the star of B-films and second-rate Italian productions like "The House of the Seven Corpses" (1974), "Salon Kitty" (1976) and "Satan's Cheerleaders" (1977), as well as appearing in big-budget fare such as "The Adventurers" (1970). Ireland regularly returned to the stage throughout his career and co-directed two features in the 1950s: "Outlaw Territory/Hannah Lee" (1953) and "The Fast and the Furious" (1954). He was married to actresses Elaine Sheldon (1940-49), Joanne Dru (1949-56) and Daphne Myrick Cameron (from 1962).

Filmography

Life Events

1935

Performed underwater stunts and worked as a barker at the Aqua Carnival

1939

Apprenticed at Robin Hood, Arden, Delaware

1940

Toured with the Shakespearean Repertory Company

1941

Broadway stage debut as the First Murderer in "Macbeth"; production starred Maurice Evans and Judith Anderson

1943

Appeared on Broadway in "Counter Attack", "Doctors Disagree" and "A New Life"

1944

Signed by Fox, briefly under personal contract to Howard Hawks

1945

Film debut in "A Walk in the Sun"

1951

Co-founded Primrose Productions

1951

TV debut in "Confession" on Philco Playhouse

1953

First film as co-director and co-producer (with Lee Garmes), "Outlaw Territory/Hannah Lee"

1960

Formed Gamin Productions

1961

First TV series as regular, "The Cheaters"

1965

Played Jed Colby on TV series, "Rawhide"

1975

Opened Ireland's Restaurant in Santa Barbara CA

1982

Played Lyman "Shack" Shackelford on "Cassie & Company"

1987

Paid $2,000 for an ad in "Variety" that read, "I'm an actor. PLEASE let me work"; ad netted him a role as Jonathan Cartwright, the younger brother of Ben Cartwright in TV movie, "Bonanza: The Next Generation" (1988)

Photo Collections

Queen Bee - Movie Posters

Videos

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) -- (Movie Clip) Did You Ever Catch My Act? Beginning the two-scene performance that won Sylvia Miles her second Academy Award nomination, as Raymond Chandler’s boozy former showgirl Jessie Florian, visited by Robert Mitchum as an older, wearier Philip Marlowe, in 1941 L-A, in director Dick Richards’ film from David Zelag Goodman’s screenplay, Farewell, My Lovely, 1975.

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) -- (Movie Clip) To Hell With Polite Drinking More than 40-minutes into the picture, shooting at the since-burned Max Busch house in Pasadena, Robert Mitchum narrates as Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe, on a case that is, for now, unrelated to the initial investigation, introducing second-billed Charlotte Rampling as Mrs. Grayle, and the now-revered writer Jim Thompson in his only movie role as her power-broker husband, in Farewell, My Lovely, 1975.

Spartacus (1960) -- (Movie Clip) Have We Learned Nothing? Producer and title character Kirk Douglas is disgusted with his fellow slave gladiators, making their former masters fight after their rebellion, confronting colleague Crixus (John Ireland), looking to inspire action against Rome, planning to find some ships, in Stanley Kubrick’s Spartacus, 1960.

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) -- (Movie Clip) Open, Tired And Growing Old Striking an odd balance here, Robert Mitchum, who could have played Philip Marlowe in the 1940’s, instead plays him in 1975, though much older than Raymond Chandler ever wrote him, in a period story set in 1941, through David Zelag Goodman’s adaptation and Dick Richards’ direction, opening Farewell, My Lovely, John Ireland and Harry Dean Stanton his cop buddies.

Farewell, My Lovely (1975) -- (Movie Clip) Ten Dollars For Elephants On a routine case collecting a straying teen (Noelle North, Lola Mason and Wally Berns her parents) in 1941 L-A, Robert Mitchum as private eye Philip Marlowe narrates and cracks wise, introducing ex-boxer Jack O’Halloran as Moose Malloy, Dick Richards directing from David Zelag Goodman’s adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s novel, in Farewell, My Lovely, 1975.

I Shot Jesse James (1949) -- (Movie Clip) Bob Ford A Free Man Following a display of kindness from Jesse (Reed Hadley) and Zee (Barbara Woodell), Bob Ford (John Ireland) finally pulls the trigger and ex-newsman writer-director Sam Fuller turns to headlines, in I Shot Jesse James, 1949.

I Shot Jesse James (1949) -- (Movie Clip) The Tragic Corner First-time writer-director Sam Fuller is efficient introducing actress Cynthy (Barbara Britton), manager Harry (J. Edward Bromberg), prospector Kelley (Preston Foster) and their relations with Ford (John Ireland) in I Shot Jesse James, 1949.

I Shot Jesse James (1949) -- (Movie Clip) Open, James Gang Foiled Newsy credits and the first-ever bank alarm-bell as Jesse (Reed Hadley) and Bob Ford (John Ireland) do their business in the opening scene from writer-director and former journalist Samuel Fuller's first film, I Shot Jesee James, 1949.

I Shot Jesse James (1949) -- (Movie Clip) There's My Back Terrific tension in an improbably intimate scene as the bathing Jesse (Reed Hadley) gives a gift to Bob Ford (John Ireland), who considers murder for bounty, twice, in writer-director Sam Fuller's I Shot Jesse James, 1949.

Party Girl (1958) -- (Movie Clip) Would You Like To Take Me Home? Paid with girlfriends from the night club to attend a party thrown by Chicago gang boss Rico (Lee J. Cobb), who’s distraught over the marriage of movie star Jean Harlow, savvy dancer Vicki (Cyd Charisse) meets thug Louis (John Ireland) and lawyer Farrell (Robert Taylor, his first scene), in director Nicholas Ray’s crime-musical hybrid Party Girl, 1958.

Party Girl (1958) -- (Movie Clip) Happy New Year Gangster Canetto (John Ireland) is transfixed by Vicki (Cyd Charisse) and her New Year's night club dance and can't resist a visit backstage, in Nicholas Ray's Party Girl, 1958.

Fast And The Furious, The (1955) -- (Movie Clip) Please Untie Me! Escaped convict Webster (John Ireland, also the credited co-director) pulls over with his hostage, Jaguar enthusiast Connie (Dorothy Malone) in her car, hiding out for the night, in the early-Roger Corman feature The Fast and the Furious, 1955.

Red River - (Re-issue Trailer) A young cowhand rebels against his rancher stepfather during a perilous cattle drive in Red River (1948), directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Wayne, Montgomery Clift and Joanne Dru.

49th Man, The - (Original Trailer) Federal agent John Williams (John Ireland) must find a man with a suitcase A-bomb before San Francisco is destroyed in The 49th Man (1953).

All The King's Men (1949) - (Re-issue Trailer) Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor went to All The King's Men (1949) based on the novel by Robert Penn Warren.

Vengeance Valley - (Original Trailer) An honest rancher tries to block his evil brother's plots while keeping them from their father in Vengeance Valley 1951), starring Burt Lancaster and Robert Walker.

Southern Yankee, A - (Original Trailer) Red Skelton masquerades as a spy and lands behind enemy lines during the Civil War in A Southern Yankee (1948) with gags written by Buster Keaton.

Spartacus - (Re-issue Trailer) A heroic slave (Kirk Douglas) leads a revolt against the corrupt Roman Empire in Spartacus (1960), a historical epic directed by Stanley Kubrick and winner of four Oscars including Best Cinematography.

Family

John Ireland

Father

Rancher.

Katherine Ireland

Mother

Educator.

Tommy Noonan

Half-Brother

Actor, comedian. Born 1922, died 1968.

Katherine Noonan

Half-Sister

Michael Noonan

Half-Brother

John Ireland Jr

Son

Actor, screenwriter, producer. Born 1942; mother Elaine Sheldon; appeared as an actor in "C'mon, Let's Live a Little" (1967); produced "Slumber Party '57" (1976).

Peter Ireland

Son

Actor. Born 1945; mother Elaine Sheldon.

Cameron Cameron

Son

Mother Daphne Myrick.

Daphne Ireland

Daughter

Companions

Elaine Sheldon

Wife

Actor. Married 1940, divorced 1949; two sons together.

Joanne Dru

Wife

Actor. Second wife; married 1949 divorced 1956.

Daphne Myrick

Wife

Married 1962.

Bibliography

Notes

Wrote the lyrics to the song "No Head on My Pillow"

About

Biography

Filmography

Photos & Videos

Family & Companions

Notes

Biography

Filmography

Director (Feature Film)

Cast (Feature Film)

Producer (Feature Film)

Cast (Special)

Cast (TV Mini-Series)

Life Events

1935

1939

1940

1941

1943

1944

1945

1951

1951

1953

1960

1961

1965

1975

1982

1987

Photo Collections

Videos

Movie Clip

Trailer

Family

Companions

Bibliography

Notes

TCM Emails