John Beal (actor)

John Beal
Beal in 1960
Born
James Alexander Bliedung

(1909-08-13)August 13, 1909
DiedApril 26, 1997(1997-04-26) (aged 87)
Occupation(s)Film, stage and television actor
Years active1931–1993
Spouse
(m. 1934; died 1986)
Children2

John Beal (born James Alexander Bliedung, August 13, 1909 – April 26, 1997) was an American actor.

Early life

Beal was born James Alexander Bliedung in Joplin, Missouri. His father had a department store and Beal went to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania "mapped for a commercial career." While at Wharton, Beal (who enrolled under his real name, James Alexander Bliedung) spent time drawing cartoons for the school's humor magazine and singing in productions of the Mask and Wig club.

Stage

Soon after graduating from college in 1930, Beal began acting with the Hedgerow Theatre. Beal originally went to New York to study at the Art Students League of New York. A chance to understudy in a play made him change his mind. He went on to appear in Russet Mantle and She Loves Me. Beal's Broadway credits include Three Men on a Horse (1993), The Seagull (1992), The Master Builder (1992), A Little Hotel on the Side (1992), The Crucible (1991), The Changing Room (1973), The Candyapple (1970), Our Town (1969), In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer (1969), Billy (1969), Calculated Risk (1962), The Teahouse of the August Moon (1953), Leonard Sillman's New Faces of 1952 (1952), The Voice of the Turtle (1943), Liberty Jones (1941), I Know What I Like (1939), Miss Swan Expects (1939), Soliloquy (1938), Russet Mantle (1936), She Loves Me Not (1933), Another Language (1933), Another Language (1932), Wild Waves (1932), and No More Frontier (1931).

Film

John Beal and Anne Shirley in 1936.

Beal began acting in films with Another Language (1933), in which he re-created his stage role. He appeared opposite Katharine Hepburn (in the 1934 RKO film The Little Minister), among others; one of his notable screen appearances was as Marius Pontmercy in Les Misérables (1935). He continued appearing in films during the war years while serving in Special Services and the First Motion Picture Unit as actor and director of Army Air Forces camp shows and training films.

Beal had starring roles in the film dramas Alimony (1949) and My Six Convicts (1952).

Radio and television

Douglass Montgomery, Bob Hope, Paulette Goddard and Beal in The Cat and the Canary (1939)

During the summer of 1948, Beal acted in The Amazing Mr. Tutt on CBS radio.

Beal was host of Freedom Rings, a game show on CBS-TV in 1953.: 366  In the 1950s, Beal also began appearing in various television shows, including the title role of mining engineer Philip Deidesheimer in a 1959 episode of Bonanza, "The Deidesheimer Story". Beal starred as Dr. Lewis on the ABC serial Road to Reality in 1960-1961.: 898  He portrayed Dr. Henden on the primetime medical drama The Nurses in the early 1960s and appeared on an afternoon version of the program in the latter half of the 1960s.: 776 

He was hired to play the role of Jim Matthews in the television soap opera Another World when the show went on the air in 1964, but was fired by creator and headwriter Irna Phillips after only one episode.

He appeared in The Waltons, season 3, episode 13, "The Visitor", first aired in December, 1974. His character was a former neighbor, Mason Beardsley, an elderly man who returned to Waltons Mountain to live with his wife who he was expecting in a few days. The Walton family were excited for him and helped to fix up his home, only to learn that his wife had died a year earlier and, unable to accept this fact, he continued to look for her.

In 1976, Beal portrayed Charles Adams II in the PBS dramatic series The Adams Chronicles. He continued to work in films and television, notably as Judge Vail in the supernatural soap opera Dark Shadows (for 9 episodes), and also the theater up until the 1980s. Beal died at age 87 in Santa Cruz, California, two years after suffering a stroke.

Personal life

Beal was married to actress Helen Craig for 52 years until her death in 1986. They had two daughters, Theodora Emily and Tandy Johanna.

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1933 Another Language Jerry Hallam
1934 Hat, Coat and Glove Jerry Hutchins
1934 The Little Minister Gavin
1935 Laddie Laddie Stanton
1935 Les Misérables Marius directed by Richard Boleslavsky
1935 Break of Hearts Johnny Lawrence
1936 M'Liss Stephen Thorne
1937 We Who Are About to Die John E. 'Johnny' Thompson
1937 The Man Who Found Himself Dr. James Stanton Jr.
1937 Border Cafe Keith Whitney
1937 Madame X Raymond Fleuriot
1937 Double Wedding Waldo Beaver
1937 Danger Patrol Dan Loring
1937 Beg, Borrow or Steal Count Bill Cherau
1938 Port of Seven Seas Marius
1938 I Am the Law Paul Ferguson
1938 The Arkansas Traveler John 'Johnnie' Daniels
1939 The Great Commandment Joel
1939 The Cat and the Canary Fred Blythe
1941 Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime Walter Matthews
1941 Doctors Don't Tell Dr. Ralph Sawyer
1942 One Thrilling Night Horace Jason
1942 Atlantic Convoy Carl Hansen
1942 Stand By All Networks Ben Fallon
1943 Let's Have Fun Richard Gilbert
1943 Edge of Darkness Johann Stensgard
1947 Key Witness Milton Higby
1947 Messenger of Peace Pastor Armin Ritter
1948 So Dear to My Heart Jeremiah as an Adult - Narrator Voice
1949 Alimony Dan Barker
1949 Song of Surrender Dubois
1949 Chicago Deadline Paul Jean d'Ur
1952 My Six Convicts Dr. Wilson aka Doc
1953 Remains to Be Seen Dr. Glenson
1954 New Faces director of sketches
1957 The Vampire Dr. Paul Beecher
1957 That Night! Commuter Christopher J. Bowden
1959 The Sound and the Fury Howard Compson
1959 Bonanza Philip Diedesheimer Episode: "The Phillip Diedesheimer Story"
1960 Ten Who Dared Maj. John Wesley Powell
1973 The Bride Father
1975 The Legend of Lizzie Borden Dr. Bowen TV movie
1976 The Adams Chronicles Charles Francis Adams 3 episodes
1983 Amityville 3-D Harold Caswell
1993 The Firm Nathan Locke

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