| Mostly Credited As: | John Russell |
| Birth Name: | John Lawrence Russell |
| Date Of Birth: | January 03, 1921 |
| Country Of Birth: |  USA |
| Birth Place: | Los Angeles, California |
| Date Of Death: | January 19, 1991 |
| Cause Of Death: | Emphysema (Los Angeles, California) |
| Height: | 6' 3" (1.9 m) |
John Russell was born January 3, 1921 in Los Angeles, California. He attended the University of California as a drama student and a student athlete. In 1942, he joined the United States Marine Corps and was decorated for valor at Guadalcanal. In 1943, he married for the first time. He was honorably discharged from the Corps in 1944. In 1945, he was "discovered" and cast in a number of B-movies as villains or secondary leads.
In 1955-1956, Russell starred as handsome Tim Kelly, adventurer for hire, in the syndicated half-hour TV series
Soldiers of Fortune. When the series ended, Russell performed in other movies and made guest appearances in
Maverick, Cheyenne, and
Sugarfoot before starring in
Lawman as the taciturn, morally upright, unbending Marshal Dan Troop.
During the 4 year run of
Lawman Russell starred in two feature films
Yellowstone Kelly with Clint Walker and
Rio Bravo with John Wayne. He later appeared with Clint Eastwood in
Pale Rider. He made guest appearances in a variety of television series over the years.
Russell's marriage fell apart after
Lawman was canceled. He made another stab at marriage around 1970 but the marriage lasted less than a year. He died of emphysema on January 19, 1991 and received a military funeral. He was buried at a military cemetery in Westwood California.
