John Davis Chandler
John Davis Chandler (1935–2010) was an American character actor renowned for his distinctive, intense onscreen presence and his prolific career playing villains, outlaws, and shady miscreants. Born in Hinton, West Virginia, and trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City, he broke into film in 1961 by landing the title role of real-life 1930s gangster Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll in the biopic Mad Dog Coll. That breakout performance cemented his niche as an exceptional on-screen heavy, enabling him to carve out a nearly 40-year career spanning more than a hundred film and television credits. Throughout his career, Chandler became a familiar face in classic Westerns and gritty crime dramas, notably collaborating multiple times with director Sam Peckinpah in films such as Ride the High Country, Major Dundee, Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, and The Outlaw Josey Wales. Mainstream audiences also recognize him for playing the sneering gang leader Bleak in the 1987 action-comedy Adventures in Babysitting, alongside feature work in Capone, Only the Lonely, and Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead. In addition to his extensive film resume, he was a ubiquitous television guest star, appearing on classic programs ranging from The Rifleman, Gunsmoke, Adam-12, and Columbo to Murder, She Wrote. Science fiction fans also remember him for his appearance as the Orion character Flith in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine sixth-season episode "Honor Among Thieves". He passed away on February 16, 2010, at the age of 75 in Toluca Lake, California, due to cancer.
Photos
Films (44)
They Came from the Swamp: The Films of William Grefé
2016 · Self
Sharon's Secret
1995 · Stan
Carnosaur 2
1995 · Zeb
Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead
1994 · Henry
Body of Evidence
1993 · Dr. Novaro
Inside Out 2
1992
Only the Lonely
1991 · Duane Earl Tyrone
Crash and Burn
1990 · Bud
Double Revenge
1988 · Big Charlie
Adventures in Babysitting
1987 · Bleak
Love Among Thieves
1987 · San Francisco Desk Clerk
Triumphs of a Man Called Horse
1983 · Mason
The Sword and the Sorcerer
1982 · Guard 1
The Little Dragons
1980 · Carl
Doc Hooker's Bunch
1978 · Roy
Confessions of the D.A. Man
1978 · Robin Saydo (as John Chandler)
The Shadow of Chikara
1977 · Rafe
Whiskey Mountain
1977 · Rudy
Chesty Anderson U.S. Navy
1976 · Dr. Cheech
Scorchy
1976 · Nicky
The Outlaw Josey Wales
1976 · First Bounty Hunter
Mako: The Jaws of Death
1976 · Charlie
Walking Tall Part II
1975 · Ray Henry
Capone
1975 · Hymie Weiss
The Desperate Miles
1975 · Truck Driver
The Ultimate Thrill
1974 · Evans
Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid
1973 · Norris
Hitched
1973 · Jannis
Chase
1973 · Thomas L. Traylor
Moon of the Wolf
1972 · Tom Jr.
Drag Racer
1972 · Dave
Shoot Out
1971 · Skeeter (as John Chandler)
O'Hara, United States Treasury: Operation Cobra
1971 · Al Garver, the Henchman
Barquero
1970 · Fair
The Good Guys and the Bad Guys
1969 · Deuce
The Hooked Generation
1968 · Acid
Return of the Gunfighter
1967 · Sundance
Once a Thief
1965 · James Arthur Sargatanas, Walter's Henchman
Major Dundee
1965 · Jimmy Lee Benteen
Those Calloways
1964 · Ollie Gibbons
Ride the High Country
1962 · Jimmy Hammond
Ricochet
1961 · Kelso
The Young Savages
1961 · Arthur Reardon
Mad Dog Coll
1961 · Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll
Séries (40)
ER
1994 · Thornberg
Chicago Hope
1994 · Mr. Ray
Walker, Texas Ranger
1993 · Homeless Man
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
1993 · Flith
Renegade
1992 · Captain at Base
Murder, She Wrote
1984 · John Detweiler, Gilbert Stoner
Hunter
1984 · Paul Hammond
Supercopter
1984 · Gentry
Matt Houston
1982 · Hank, Roman Petrovich
T. J. Hooker
1982 · Waylon Gilbert
Cassie & Co.
1982 · Gillian
Simon & Simon
1981
Hill Street Blues
1981
Hart to Hart
1979
B. J. and the Bear
1979 · Marsh
Fantasy Island
1978 · Ed Larson
The Incredible Hulk
1977
Lucan
1977
Quincy, M.E.
1976 · Robert Gideon
Spencer's Pilots
1976
Police Woman
1974 · Nolan
Police Story
1973
The Rookies
1972
The Partners
1971
Columbo
1971 · Eddie Kane
Cannon
1971
Adam-12
1968 · Wally Barstow, Robin Saydo, Steve Deal
The High Chaparral
1967 · Kid Curry
Judd, for the Defense
1967
Felony Squad
1966
Run for Your Life
1965 · Dr. Walker
The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters
1963 · Dick McBride
The Fugitive
1963 · Kenny, Quimby
Empire
1962 · Aflen
The Virginian
1962 · Dog
Straightaway
1961
Route 66
1960 · Frank Lauderbeck
The Detectives
1959 · Starr
The Rifleman
1958 · Brooks
Gunsmoke
1955 · Rogers, Willie Tomsen