- Born
- Died
- Birth nameRobert Errol Van Orden
- Nickname
- Smitty
- Height6′ 3″ (1.91 m)
- 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).- IMDb Mini Biography By: jojo-acapulco
- SpouseLuana Patten(June 4, 1960 - December 3, 1964) (divorced)
- The character of Slim Sherman in Laramie (1959).
- Deep smooth voice
- According to his obituary, Robert Van Orden changed his name to John Smith in order to be "the only one in the business". His parents were Errol and Margaret Van Orden. The family was of Dutch, German and Irish ancestry.
- Smith's former Laramie (1959) co-star and friend of four decades, Robert Fuller, paid tribute to him at the Festival of the West on 20 March 2010, in Scottsdale, Arizona, 15 years after Smith's death in 1995.
- Died just 1 week before Doug McClure; he was cremated and his ashes scattered at sea.
- After his last guest-starring role on Project UFO, Smith retired from acting at the age of 47.
- Before he became an actor, he worked at MGM as a mail boy and soon advanced to be the head of the mail room.
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