Payne, John, 1912-1989

John Payne was born May, 1912 in Roanoke, VA; graduated Roanoke College; studied drama at Columbia Univ. and voice at Juilliard School of Music; he became an understudy in a 1935 Bea Lillie revue, which lead to his screen debut in Dodsworth (1936); his film work in the 1940s included a number of lead roles in musicals such as Tin Pan Alley, The Great American Broadcast, Sun Valley Serenade, Hello, Frisco, Hello and The Dolly Sisters; he may be best known for his role in the film, Miracle on 34th Street (1947); in the 1950s he switched to Westerns and action films; starred in his own television series Restless gun (1957-59); directed one of his last films, They ran for their lives (1968); Payne died 1989.

From the description of Scripts 1957-1959. (University of California, Los Angeles). WorldCat record id: 320016687

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