John McGiver

John McGiver
John Irwin McGiver (November 5, 1913 – September 9, 1975) was an American character actor who made more than a hundred appearances in television and motion pictures over a two-decade span from 1955 to 1975.
The owl-faced, portly character actor with his mid-Atlantic accent and precise diction, was often cast as pompous Englishmen and other stuffy, aristocratic and bureaucratic types. He was known for his performances in such films as Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961); The Manchurian Candidate (1962), Who's Minding the Store? (1963) and Man's Favorite Sport? (1964). He appeared on many television shows and commercials during the 1960s and early 1970s, including the first of a long running popular series of commercials for the American Express charge card ("Do you know me?").
Early life
McGiver was born in Manhattan, New York City, the son of Irish immigrants. He graduated from the Jesuit-run Regis High School in Manhattan in 1932.
He earned a B.A. in English from Fordham University in 1938 and master's degrees from Columbia University and Catholic University. He became an English teacher and worked as an actor and director in New York's Irish Repertory Theater. He interrupted those activities and enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1942 and served as an officer in the U.S. Army's 7th Armored Division in Europe during World War II. Returning to civilian life, he continued to teach English and speech at Christopher Columbus High School in the Bronx and worked occasionally in off-Broadway plays until 1955, when he became a full-time actor.
Career
He appeared in the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes "Six People No Music" and "Fatal Figures", and the Twilight Zone episode "Sounds and Silences". In 1971 he guest-starred in Alias Smith and Jones (season 1, episode 8, 'A Fistful of Diamonds'). In 1964, he appeared in Man's Favorite Sport?. Between 1963 and 1964, McGiver appeared in five episodes of The Patty Duke Show as J.R. Castle, who was Martin Lane's boss at the fictional newspaper The Chronicle.
His most recognized film roles came in 1961-2 when he appeared in The Manchurian Candidate as the principled, incorruptible Senator Jordan, and as a wistful jewelry salesman in Breakfast at Tiffany's. McGiver later played the role of an unhinged religious fanatic, Mr. O'Daniel, in the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy and a small role in Lucille Ball's Mame. He was also in an episode of Gilligan's Island in 1966, "The Man With a Net". He also made one guest appearance on ABC's hit fantasy sitcom Bewitched.
Personal life
McGiver was married to Ruth Schmigelsky from 1947 until his death; they had ten children: Brigit, Maria, Terry, Basil, Clare, Oliver, Ian, Clemens, Boris, and Cornelia. Boris, the ninth child in the McGivers' large family, followed in his father's footsteps, working as a professional actor in films and on television since 1987.
Death
McGiver, at age 61, died of a heart attack on September 9, 1975, at his home in West Fulton, New York. His remains were cremated.
Selected filmography
The Man in the Raincoat (1957) - O'Brien
Love in the Afternoon (1957) (with Gary Cooper, Audrey Hepburn and Maurice Chevalier) - Monsieur X
I Married a Woman (1958) - Girard - Sutton's Lawyer
Once Upon a Horse... (1958) - Mr. Tharp
The Gazebo (1959) (with Glenn Ford and Debbie Reynolds) - Sam Thorpe
Love in a Goldfish Bowl (1961) - Dr. Frawley
Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) (with Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard) - Tiffany's Salesman
Bachelor in Paradise (1961) (with Bob Hope) - Austin Palfrey
Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962) (with James Stewart and Maureen O'Hara) - Martin Turner
The Manchurian Candidate (1962) (with Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey and Janet Leigh) - Senator Thomas Jordan
Period of Adjustment (1962) (with Jane Fonda and Jim Hutton) - Stewart P. McGill
Who's Got the Action? (1962) (with Dean Martin and Lana Turner) - Judge Fogel
Something's Got to Give (1962) (aborted Marilyn Monroe film) - The Judge
My Six Loves (1963) (with Debbie Reynolds) - Judge Harris
Johnny Cool (1963) (with Henry Silva and Elizabeth Montgomery) - Oscar B. 'Oby' Hinds
Take Her, She's Mine (1963) (with James Stewart and Sandra Dee) - Hector G. Ivor
Who's Minding the Store? (1963) (with Jerry Lewis) - Mr. John P. Tuttle
Man's Favorite Sport? (1964) (with Rock Hudson and Paula Prentiss) - William Cadwalader
A Global Affair (1964) (with Bob Hope) - Mr. Snifter
Marriage on the Rocks (1965) (with Frank Sinatra, Deborah Kerr and Dean Martin) - Shad Nathan
Made in Paris (1966) (Louis Jourdan) - Roger Barclay
The Glass Bottom Boat (1966) (with Doris Day and Rod Taylor) - Ralph Goodwin
The Spirit Is Willing (1967) (with Sid Caesar and Vera Miles) - Uncle George
Fitzwilly (1967) (with Dick Van Dyke) - Albert
Midnight Cowboy (1969) (with Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman) - Mr. O'Daniel
Lawman (1971) (with Burt Lancaster) - Sabbath Mayor Sam Bolden
Arnold (1973) (with Roddy McDowall) - Governor
Mame (1974) (with Lucille Ball) - Mr. Babcock
The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975) (with Don Knotts and Tim Conway) - Leonard Sharpe
Television
McGiver was a regular performer on:
McKeever & the Colonel, 1962–1963
Many Happy Returns, 1964–1965 (lead role)
Mr. Terrific, 1967
The Jimmy Stewart Show, 1971–1972
McGiver also appeared on:
Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1958) (Season 3 Episode 29: "Fatal Figures") as Harold George Goames
Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1959) (Season 4 Episode 13: "Six People, No Music") as Arthur Motherwell
The Tab Hunter Show (episode "My Brother, the Hero," 1960)
The Barbara Stanwyck Show ("The Golden Acres", 1961)
Bonanza ("Land Grab", 1961)
The Twilight Zone (two episodes: "The Bard", "Sounds and Silences")
The Lucy Show ("Lucy is Kangaroo for a Day", 1963)
The Patty Duke Show (5 episodes)
The Rogues (1965)
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (episode "The X Factor")
The Fugitive (episode "The End Game")
The Dick Van Dyke Show (“See Rob Write, Write Rob Write”, 1965)
The Beverly Hillbillies ("Granny Versus the Weather Bureau")
Gidget ("One More for the Road", 1966)
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ("The Birds and the Bees Affair", 1966)
I Dream of Jeannie ("Jeannie Breaks the Bank", 1966)
Gilligan's Island ("Man With a Net", 1966)
Honey West ("Mr Brillig", 1966)
The Wild Wild West ("The Night of the Turncoat," 1967)
The High Chaparral ("Ebenezer," 1968)
Bewitched ("Mother-in-Law of the Year", 1971)
Alias Smith and Jones ("A Fistful of Diamonds", 1971)
Twas the Night Before Christmas (as voice of The Mayor)
Ellery Queen ("The Adventure of Miss Aggie's Farewell Performance", 1975) - (final appearance)
Stage
Broadway theatre roles included:
A Thurber Carnival, 1960
The Front Page, 1969–1970
References
External links
1913 births
1975 deaths
20th-century American male actors
American male film actors
American male stage actors
American male television actors
American male voice actors
United States Army personnel of World War II
American people of Irish descent
Catholic University of America alumni
Columbia University alumni
Fordham University alumni
Male actors from Manhattan
People from Fulton, Schoharie County, New York
Regis High School (New York City) alumni
United States Army officers