John Howard Payne (May 23, 1912 – December 6, 1989) was an American film actor who is mainly remembered from film noir crime stories and 20th Century Fox musical films, and for his leading roles in Miracle on 34th Street and the NBC Western television series The Restless Gun.
Payne was born in Roanoke, Virginia. His mother, Ida Hope (née Schaeffer), a singer, graduated from the Virginia Seminary in Roanoke and married George Washington Payne, a developer in Roanoke. They lived at Fort Lewis, an antebellum mansion that became a state historic property but was destroyed by fire in the late 1940s. Payne attended prep school at Mercersburg Academy in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania and then went to Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia. He then transferred to Columbia University in New York City in the fall of 1930. He studied drama at Columbia and voice at Juilliard School. To support himself, he took on a variety of odd jobs, including wrestling and singing in vaudeville. In 1934, a talent scout for the Shubert theaters spotted Payne and gave him a job as a stock player.
John Payne may refer to:
John D. Payne (born May 15, 1933) is a former American collegiate and professional football coach. He served as head coach for the Saskatchewan Roughriders (1973–1976), Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1978–1980) and Ottawa Rough Riders (1996) of the Canadian Football League (CFL), compiling a career record of 62–63–3. Payne also was the head football coach at Abilene Christian University from 1985 to 1990, posting a mark of 26–34–2.
After serving as an assistant with Central High School and BYU, Payne moved to the Canadian Football League in 1968. He served as an assistant with the Edmonton Eskimos, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders before becoming the Roughriders head coach in 1973. In his four season as head coach, Payne had a 40–23–1 record and led Saskatchewan to the 1976 Grey Cup.
In 1977, Payne left the Roughriders and joined the Detroit Lions. Payne and the rest of the coaching staff was fired at the end of the season. He returned to the CFL, replacing Tom Dimitroff as head coach of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats five games into the 1978 season. He had some success with Hamilton, compiling an 18–24–1 record over three seasons and leading the team to the 1980 Grey Cup. After the Tiger-Cats thirty-point loss in the Grey Cup, owner Harold Ballard indicated that he preferred recently fired Arizona State football coach Frank Kush over Payne, which led to his resignation.
John Henry Payne (19 March 1858 — 4 January 1942 (aged 83)) born in Broughton, was an English rugby union footballer of the 1880s, playing at representative level for England, and Lancashire (captain), and at club level for Broughton RUFC, as a Half-back, e.g. Fly-half, or Scrum-half, he died in Victoria Park, Manchester.
Payne also played first-class cricket for Cambridge University in the 1880 season and for Lancashire in 1883.
John Payne won caps for England while at Broughton RUFC in the 1881–82 Home Nations rugby union matches against Scotland, in the 1883 Home Nations Championship against Wales, Ireland, and Scotland, in the 1884 Home Nations Championship against Ireland, and in the 1885 Home Nations Championship against Wales, and Ireland.
John Payne won cap(s) for Lancashire captain while at Broughton RUFC including against Middlesex at The Oval on Saturday 12 March 1887, that was attended by the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII), and is believed to be the first rugby match attended by royalty.