John Bowman Duncan (December 7, 1923 – February 8, 2016) was an American actor. In addition to managing several business ventures, he made appearances at comic book conventions and collectors' shows worldwide.
Biography
Career
Johnny Duncan learned to dance
Jitterbug as a teen and by the age of 19 had his first major appearance in a dance role in the "King of Swing"
Benny Goodman
Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing".
From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His conce ...
camp classic musical ''
The Gang's All Here''. This kicked off Duncan's career as a movie swing dancer and actor and led to numerous appearances in other films, and a contract with
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film studio, film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm o ...
, where he appeared in productions with
Shirley Temple and
Jane Withers. Notable roles include parts in ''
The East Side Kids'', ''
The Bowery Boys'', ''
Mystery of the 13th Guest'' and the 1949 serial ''
Batman and Robin Batman and Robin are a superhero duo appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
Batman and Robin may also refer to:
Comics and literature
* ''Batman and Robin'' (comic strip), a newspaper comic strip, started in 1943
*''All Star Ba ...
'' as
Dick Grayson
Richard John "Dick" Grayson is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman and Teen Titans. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist Bob Kane, he first appeared in ''Detective Com ...
/
Robin
Robin may refer to:
Animals
* Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae
* Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including:
**European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'')
**Bush-robin
**Forest rob ...
, the Boy Wonder. He was so young looking that he was twenty-five years old when he was hired to play the Boy Wonder.
He later appeared in bit parts in a number of films including ''
Plan 9 from Outer Space''. He was a member of The Black Rebels Motorcycle Club in the classic Marlon Brando film ''
The Wild One
''The Wild One'' is a 1953 American crime film directed by László Benedek and produced by Stanley Kramer. The picture is most noted for the character of Johnny Strabler, portrayed by Marlon Brando, whose persona became a cultural icon of the ...
'' in 1952. His final film appearance was in the 1960 film ''
Spartacus''.
Personal life
Duncan made occasional appearances at movie conventions, often signing photos from ''The East Side Kids'' and ''Batman and Robin'' until his death in February 2016 at the age of 92.
Filmography
Film
Television
References
External links
*
Interview with Johnny DuncanWebsite for Johnny Duncan
(Now defunct after his passing)
NPR profile of Johnny Duncan
1923 births
2016 deaths
American male film actors
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