John Doucette (January 21, 1921, Brockton, Massachusetts – August 16, 1994, Banning, California) was a film character actor. He was a balding, husky man remembered for playing mob muscle and western bad guys in movies. According to IMDB, between 1943 and 1987 he appeared in some 260 movies and television programs, with about 60 early appearances being uncredited.
Doucette progressed to dramatic roles including a small part as an architect in The Fountainhead in (1949) and the 1970 epic Patton when he played 3rd Infantry Division Commander Maj. Gen. Lucian K. Truscott. His other notable performances included bit parts in High Noon, The Robe, and the mega-budget Cleopatra. More familiarly, Doucette appeared in the John Wayne films True Grit, The Sons of Katie Elder, and Big Jake.
Many baby boomers first saw John Doucette as the bad guy in several episodes of The Lone Ranger, a natural role considering his rough looks, commanding presence, and skill with a gun. He was considered by many to be the fastest draw in Hollywood. His roles, however, went well beyond that stereotype. He appeared on a variety of television shows, including The Adventures of Kit Carson, The Cisco Kid, City Detective, The Joseph Cotten Show, My Friend Flicka, Behind Closed Doors, Sheriff of Cochise, Lawman, Bonanza, The Wild, Wild West, The Virginian, Have Gun - Will Travel, Kung Fu, The Rat Patrol, Hogan's Heroes, Lock-Up, Superman, Science Fiction Theater and Disneyland.
Twice Doucette played the Apache Chief Geronimo: (1) the 1958 episode "Geronimo" of the Pat Conway western series Tombstone Territory, and (2) in the 1961 episode "Gamble with Death" of the western anthology, Death Valley Days. In both programs, his co-star was the character actor Tom Greenway.