Jon Shepodd
| Jon Shepodd | |
|---|---|
 Shepodd (right) as Paul Martin in Lassie, circa 1957 | |
| Born |
December 19, 1925 Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
Jon Shepodd (born December 19, 1925) is an American actor.
On television, he was the first actor to play the role of Paul Martin in the long-running series Lassie,[1] making his debut mid-fourth season (1957) opposite Cloris Leachman as his wife Ruth Martin.
The two performers appeared for the remainder of the fourth season (27 episodes) but were released upon completion of filming in March 1958 after ratings plunged and letters to the producers indicated strong disapproval of the icy Leachman.
Though no fan complaints had been registered against Shepodd, it was felt he needed to be released with Leachman as a "new wife" for him would be difficult to explain to an audience composed mainly of children. Paul and Ruth Martin were thereafter played by Hugh Reilly and June Lockhart until the characters were dropped in the eleventh season (1964).[2]
In the film Attack (1956), he plays Cpl. John Jackson, the orderly to the unpopular Captain Cooney (Eddie Albert).[3] During an opening sequence, Jackson irritates the other men in the unit who are queuing up for coffee, when he jumps the queue.[4] He also appeared as Jesus Christ in The Power of the Resurrection (1958), in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), and as Alredi in The Garment Jungle (1957).[3]
References
- ↑ Jenkins, Henry. "Lassie". Museum of Broadcast Communications
- ↑ Collins, Ace. Lassie: A Dog's Life. Penguin Books, 1993.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Jon Shepodd filmography, The New York Times.
- ↑ Body and Soul: The Cinematic Vision of Robert Aldrich by Tony Williams
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