There are people who do not die even after their death, and this is not only because of the way they work but also because of the way they have done it. One of those people is John Smith. He is an American actor who was famous from the 1940s until the 1970s. He has starred in many movies and television shows, including Cimarron City and Laramie, for which he became very famous. Here you can find out everything about him.
John Smith Biography
The actor was born on March 6, 1931, in Los Angeles, California as Robert Errol Van Orden and was brought up by his parents, Errol and Margaret Van Orden. He is of German and Dutch descent and is descended from the last Dutch general director of the colony New Netherlands, Peter Stuyvesant. For his education, John Smith attended Susan Miller Dorsey High School in his hometown before going to the University of California.
Growing up, he was quite a talented person who was interested in sports and music as well as acting. Nonetheless, he wanted to become an engineer before finally returning to what he had always loved: acting. Although he did not devote himself to music in his later life, he started as a singer at the age of 13 and later became part of the Robert Mitchell Boy Choir. As a member of the group, he was given several uncredited roles in a number of films, including The Bells of St. Mary’s.
As a blue-eyed, blond actor, John Smith first worked as a postman at MGM, before managing the department and eventually switching to what he knew best. He began acting professionally in 1943 and he starred in many films including Going My Way, one of his earliest works, Seven Angry Men, Frontier, Quincannon, Frontier Scout, and Hot Rod Girl.
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Although he died in 1995, he stopped acting professionally in the late 1970s and his most recent appearances have been in the television series Marcus Welby, M.D., Police Woman, Emergency! and Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. More than that, he acted in the movies Justin Morgan Had a Horse and Will to Die.
The actor, who was known for his very soft voice, was also known as Smitty in the acting circles.
In the years of his acting career, which spanned about 70 years, John Smith has appeared in over 60 films, television shows, and other productions.
John Smith Net Worth
Before his death, John Smith (Robert Errol Van Orden) had left Hollywood years earlier, although he still had a job as a voice actor. Due to his time away from the limelight, his actual fortune at the time of his death is still unknown.
Wife and Daughter
The actor got married to the American actress Luana Patten in 1960. Before the marriage, Luana Patten, who began as a child model and later as a child actress, was married to Ronny Huntley at the age of 15. The marriage with Huntley only lasted from 1954 to 1959 and only after this marriage she decided to settle down with John Smith.
Unfortunately, the marriage of the two did not last more than 4 years, as it ended in divorce in 1964. While Smith remained single and decided not to marry for the rest of his life, Luana Pattern remarried Jerry D. Mays in 1970. Just like her two previous marriages, the third did not last long as it ended in 1973.
The “So Dear to My Heart” actress died in 1996, just one year after her ex-husband died at the age of 57.
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Although the relationship between the two did not produce a child, there are a number of reports indicating that Smith had a daughter from another relationship, although there is no record of the daughter and her name is not publicly known.
Smith’s Death and Cause of Death
John Smith died in 1995 at the age of 63 years, the cause of death was given as cirrhosis of the liver and heart problems. He died at his home in Los Angeles and was cremated. The ashes of the talented actor from Cimarron City were scattered at sea.