John Merton

John Merton (born Myrtland F. LaVarre; February 18, 1901 – September 19, 1959) was an American film actor.[1][2] He appeared in more than 250 films between 1927 and 1959, mostly as a villain. He was the brother of filmmaker André de la Varre and William LaVarre and the grandfather of actress Diane Delano.

John Merton
Merton in Zorro's Fighting Legion, 1939
Born
Myrtland F. LaVarre

(1901-02-18)February 18, 1901
Seattle, Washington, United States
DiedSeptember 19, 1959(1959-09-19) (aged 58)
Los Angeles, California, United States
OccupationActor
Years active1927–1959
SpouseEsther (divorced)
Children6

Biography

Born and raised in Seattle with three other brothers, Franklin, Claude, and William LaVarre,[3] he enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War I.[4]

He joined the New York Theatre Guild in 1919 and appeared in a variety of shows, including playing the robot Marius in R.U.R. (1922).[5] He made his film debut as a police officer in Running Wild (1927) filmed in Long Island's Astoria Studios. He travelled to Hollywood in 1932 and began a long career of small parts in major films and villain roles in B-movies and film serials. He met Cecil B. DeMille who cast him as a Roman guard in Cleopatra (1934) that led to him appearing in all of DeMille's films up to and including The Ten Commandments (1956). It was DeMille who suggested he change his name to a more masculine John Merton.[6]

Merton's wife, Esther, sued him for divorce in 1940. They had six children.[7]

Selected filmography

References
  1. Magers, Donna. "John Merton". www.westernclippings.com. Retrieved December 22, 2017.
  2. "John Merton". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2014. Archived from the original on December 13, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2014.
  3. "LaVarre (William) papers". oac.cdlib.org.
  4. "John Merton".
  5. Čapek, Karel (1923). "The cast of the Theatre Guild Production" . R. U. R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) . Translated by Selver, Paul. Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company. p. v – via Wikisource.
  6. p. 206 Mayer, Geoff Encyclopedia of American Film Serials McFarland, 9 Feb 2017
  7. "Wife Sues Actor". The Salt Lake Telegram. Utah, Salt Lake City. United Press. October 23, 1940. p. 16. Retrieved December 21, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. open access
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