John Abbott
Born	John Kefford 5 June 1905(1905-06-05) London, England
Died	24 May 1996 (aged 90) Los Angeles, California
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1936–1984

John Kefford (5 June 1905, London, England – 24 May 1996, Los Angeles, California) was an English character actor professionally known as John Abbott. His memorable roles include the invalid Frederick Fairlie in the 1948 movie The Woman in White and the pacifist Ayelborne in the Star Trek episode "Errand of Mercy".

[edit] Career

Abbott performed with some of England's most famous actors and was well-known as a Shakespearean actor. He never auditioned for a part^{[citation needed]}, but was always asked to play a role.

In the early days of World War II, Abbott worked at the British consulate in Moscow. When the time came to leave, he had to go by way of the United States. While in the US, he was offered a part in Hollywood in 1941^[1] and ended up living there for the rest of his life.

He continued to find work, although he was blacklisted during the Red Scare of the 1950s. Eventually, a producer, wanting to hire him, was able to get his listing removed.^[2]

In his final years, Abbott taught acting students for free and inspired some of Hollywood's most famous young actors of that time.

[edit] Selected filmography

• Mademoiselle Docteur (1938) - film debut
• The Saint in London (1940)
• The Shanghai Gesture (1941)
• Mrs. Miniver (1942)
• Jane Eyre (1944)
• The Vampire's Ghost (1945)
• The Web (1947)
• Madame Bovary (1949)
• The Merry Widow (1952)
• Gigi (1958)
• The Jungle Book (1967 film) (1967)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• John Abbott at the Internet Movie Database
• John Abbott at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• John Abbott at TV.com

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