J.P. McGowan
actor, director, writer
- Birth name:
- John Paterson McGowan
- Born:
- 1880-02-24, Terowie, South Australia, Australia
- Died:
- 1952-03-26, Hollywood, California, USA
- Professions:
- actor, director, writer
Biography
A railroad town in the South Australian outback delivered John Paterson McGowan on 24 February 1880, and the rails never let him go. Stunts on real moving trains became his trademark, first in front of the camera and then behind it, guiding silent-era thrill-rides like The Lost Express (1917), plunging into danger again for Hills of Missing Men (1922), and still gripping the throttle when sound arrived for The Hurricane Express (1932). Between action calls he married three times—first to fellow daredevil Helen Holmes, later to Leona (Lorna) Haviland and finally to Mrs. Kaye Swart Northrop—before the final fade-out in Hollywood, California on 26 March 1952.
