John Forsythe
American actor (1918–2010)
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Key Takeaways
- John Lincoln Forsythe ( né Freund ; January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, and drama teacher whose career spanned six decades.
- His acting career began in films in 1943.
- at age 25 as a minor contract player, but he starred in The Captive City (1952) and co-starred opposite Loretta Young in It Happens Every Thursday (1953), Edmund Gwenn and Shirley MacLaine in The Trouble with Harry (1955), and Olivia de Havilland in The Ambassador's Daughter (1956).
- Early life Forsythe was born John (or Jacob) Lincoln Freund, on January 29, 1918, in Penns Grove, New Jersey, the eldest of three children of Blanche Forsythe (née Blohm) and Samuel Jeremiah Freund, a stockbroker.
- Materson, who was born in Maryland to Jewish emigrants from Prussia.
John Lincoln Forsythe (né Freund; January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, and drama teacher whose career spanned six decades. He also appeared as a guest on several talk and variety shows and as a panelist on numerous game shows.
His acting career began in films in 1943. He signed up with Warner Bros. at age 25 as a minor contract player, but he starred in The Captive City (1952) and co-starred opposite Loretta Young in It Happens Every Thursday (1953), Edmund Gwenn and Shirley MacLaine in The Trouble with Harry (1955), and Olivia de Havilland in The Ambassador's Daughter (1956).
He also enjoyed a long successful television career, starring in three television series in three genres: as the single playboy father Bentley Gregg in the sitcom Bachelor Father (1957–1962); as the unseen millionaire Charles Townsend in the crime drama Charlie's Angels (1976–1981)- a role he reprised in the 2000 and 2003 film adaptations; and as patriarch Blake Carrington in the prime time soap opera Dynasty (1981–1989). He hosted the series World of Survival (1971–1977), and was the host of the 38th Miss Universe Pageant, broadcast on CBS in 1989.
Early life
Forsythe was born John (or Jacob) Lincoln Freund, on January 29, 1918, in Penns Grove, New Jersey, the eldest of three children of Blanche Forsythe (née Blohm) and Samuel Jeremiah Freund, a stockbroker. Blanche was born in Georgia to David Hyat Blohm, a Russian Jewish immigrant, and Mary S. Materson, who was born in Maryland to Jewish emigrants from Prussia. Forysthe's father was born in New York to Polish Jewish immigrants. Forsythe was raised in the Jewish faith.
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