Джон Дерек: Американдық актер және режиссердің өмірі мен мансабы

American actor and filmmaker (1926–1998)
people with a similar name

John Derek (born Derek Delevan Harris; August 12, 1926 – May 22, 1998) was an American actor, filmmaker and photographer. He appeared in such films as Knock on Any Door, All the King's Men (both 1949), Rogues of Sherwood Forest (1950), and The Ten Commandments (1956). He was also known for launching the career of his fourth wife, Bo Derek.

John Derek was born Derek Delevan Harris in Hollywood, California, on August 12, 1926. His parents were actor/director Lawson Harris and actress Dolores Johnson.

His good looks were soon noticed, and he was groomed for a movie career by both his agent Henry Willson (who gave him the temporary stage name of Dare Harris) and David O. Selznick with small roles in the Selznick pictures Since You Went Away (1944) and I'll Be Seeing You (1944). He was drafted in 1944 into the U. S. Army and saw service in the Philippines during the last days of World War II.

After the war, Derek had a small role in A Double Life (1947) when he was approached by Humphrey Bogart, who renamed him John Derek and cast him as Nick "Pretty Boy" Romano, an unrepentant killer, in Knock on Any Door (1949), a socially conscious melodrama directed by Nicholas Ray. Derek was recognized as a talented newcomer, "plainly an idol for the girls", as Bosley Crowther wrote in a review for The New York Times. The Los Angeles Times called him "a handsome hot eyed newcomer who makes the case for this product of the city's slums—'live fast, die young and have a good looking corpse'—all too fascinating for everybody's comfort." The film was made for Bogart's Santana company and released through Columbia Pictures, who signed Derek to a seven year contract in April 1948. Derek followed it with a supporting role as the son of Broderick Crawford in All the King's Men (1949), the Best Picture Oscar winner for its year. In September 1950, he had his name formally changed to John Derek. Columbia promoted him to lead roles, as the son of the deceased Robin Hood in Rogues of Sherwood Forest (1950) with Alan Hale Sr.; the Los Angeles Times called him a "slim and beautiful youth". He was meant to follow it with The Gainesville Circus, but it was never made. Instead, Columbia put him in another swashbuckler, Mask of the Avenger (1951), then gave him a good dramatic role in a prestige film, Saturday's Hero (1951), as a college football player. The novel was bought specifically as a vehicle for Derek. He was in a crime noir, The Family Secret (1951), then reunited with Crawford in Scandal Sheet (1952). Derek was borrowed by Republic Pictures for a war film, Thunderbirds (1952). He went back to Columbia for Prince of Pirates (1953), a swashbuckler for Sam Katzman; two Westerns, Ambush at Tomahawk Gap (1953), with John Hodiak and The Last Posse (1953) with Crawford. He was back with Hodiak for Mission Over Korea (1953), a Korean War film, then was again borrowed by Republic for Sea of Lost Ships (1953). He left Columbia in July 1953.

Derek made another film for Republic, The Outcast (1954), a Western. He had a showy role as John Wilkes Booth in Prince of Players (1955) at Fox, then was in the drama An Annapolis Story (1955) at Allied Artists.

In March 1954, Derek signed a long term contract with Paramount. His first films for the studio were Run for Cover (1955), a Western with James Cagney and Nicholas Ray; and The Leather Saint (1956), a boxing film. He also appeared as Joshua in The Ten Commandments (1956). He wanted to make a film about Joaquin Murrieta but it was never made. Derek travelled to Italy to appear in Pirate of the Half Moon (1957). He made a Western, Fury at Showdown (1957), and a movie in Britain, The Flesh Is Weak (1957). He supported Cornel Wilde in Omar Khayyam (1957), and starred in High Hell (1958). In Europe he was in Prisoner of the Volga (1959) and he played an Arab in Exodus (1960). He was in a TV series, Frontier Circus.

Derek disliked acting. He later said he "was never into it. If they'd given me the greatest role in the world it wouldn't have helped. I used to go to the directors of my films and say: 'I'm not an actor but I'll turn up on time and know my words.' In the 13 films I made I only ever did one take per scene. Directors never went for a second because they knew it'd be no different from the first. I never liked acting. Or my films. Maybe one, a cheap little Western called The Outcast. I liked that because I love horses. One of the troubles was I had a monotone voice which went even flatter when I tried to act. When I saw my first film Knock On Any Door in Italy I only liked it because my voice was dubbed by an Italian actor who had a lot of fire in his voice." Derek appeared with his second wife, Ursula Andress, in Nightmare in the Sun (1965), which he co produced. He turned to directing with a war film, Once Before I Die (1966), also with Andress. He eventually quit acting. "In this town people think you must be nuts to do something like that. They can't believe you just didn't enjoy it." The Dereks intended to follow it with Eve and That Damned Apple; but when Universal delayed financing, they decided to make Bolero (1984) for Cannon, which was an unhappy experience for the Dereks. John's last film as director was Ghosts Can't Do It (1990). An accomplished photographer, Derek photographed the last three of his four wives (at different times) for nude spreads in Playboy magazine. Derek directed the music videos for Shania Twain's "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?" and "Any Man of Mine".

John Derek died on May 22, 1998, of cardiovascular disease in Santa Maria, California at the age of 71. His remains were cremated.