Johnny Seven (actor)
Encyclopedia
Johnny Seven was a prolific American
character actor
who appeared in twenty-six films and approximately six hundred television shows during his career, which spanned more than forty years. His credits including a recurring role as Lt. Carl Reese on the 1968-1975 NBC
television series, Ironside
, and the 1960 film The Apartment
, directed by Billy Wilder
.
immigrants, had five other daughters in addition to him. Fetto began acting and singing as a teenager.
He served with the United States Army
in the Philippines
during World War II
and performed with the United Service Organizations
(USO). Fetto earned his nickname "Johnny Seven" while serving in the Army and kept it as his stage name
following the end of the war.
career in New York City
theater.
He portrayed Karl Matuschka, the brother in-law of Shirley MacLaine
's character, in the 1960 Billy Wilder
film, The Apartment
. His other film credits include a small role in 1959's The Last Mile, Guns of the Timberland
in 1960 and What Did You Do in the War, Daddy?
, a 1968 comedy directed by Blake Edwards
. Seven co-wrote, produced, directed and starred in Navajo Run, his western indie film released in 1964.
On television, Seven had a recurring role as Lt. Carl Reese in Ironside
, a television series airing on NBC from 1968 until 1975. He was later cast in Ironside's spin-off, Amy Prentiss
. His other television credits included roles on Bonanza
, Gunsmoke
, CHiPs
, Naked City
, The Phil Silvers Show
, Batman
, Death Valley Days
, Peter Gunn
, Charlie's Angels
, The Untouchables
and The Wild Wild West
.
In addition to his acting career, Seven also owned a real estate
business in Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley
.
s from lung cancer
at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center
in Mission Hills, California
on January 22, 2010, aged 83. He was survived by his wife, Edith. The couple had been married for 60 years. His memorial service
was held at St. John Baptist de La Salle Parish in Granada Hills, California, on February 6, 2010.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
who appeared in twenty-six films and approximately six hundred television shows during his career, which spanned more than forty years. His credits including a recurring role as Lt. Carl Reese on the 1968-1975 NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
television series, Ironside
Ironside (TV series)
Ironside is a Universal television series which ran on NBC from September 14, 1967 to January 16, 1975. The show starred Raymond Burr as the wheelchair-using Chief of Detectives, Robert T. Ironside. The character's debut was in a TV-movie on March 28, 1967. The original title of the show in the...
, and the 1960 film The Apartment
The Apartment
The Apartment is a 1960 American comedy-drama film produced and directed by Billy Wilder, and starring Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, and Fred MacMurray. It was Wilder's follow-up to the enormously popular Some Like It Hot and, like its predecessor, was a commercial and critical hit, grossing $25...
, directed by Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder was an Austro-Hungarian born American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, artist, and journalist, whose career spanned more than 50 years and 60 films. He is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Hollywood's golden age...
.
Early life
Seven was born John Anthony Fetto II in Brooklyn, New York, on February 23, 1926. His parents, who were ItalianItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
immigrants, had five other daughters in addition to him. Fetto began acting and singing as a teenager.
He served with the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and performed with the United Service Organizations
United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization that provides morale and recreational services to members of the U.S. military, with programs in 160 centers worldwide. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense , and has provided support and...
(USO). Fetto earned his nickname "Johnny Seven" while serving in the Army and kept it as his stage name
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
following the end of the war.
Career
He began his actingActing
Acting is the work of an actor or actress, which is a person in theatre, television, film, or any other storytelling medium who tells the story by portraying a character and, usually, speaking or singing the written text or play....
career in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
theater.
He portrayed Karl Matuschka, the brother in-law of Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine
Shirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
's character, in the 1960 Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder was an Austro-Hungarian born American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, artist, and journalist, whose career spanned more than 50 years and 60 films. He is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Hollywood's golden age...
film, The Apartment
The Apartment
The Apartment is a 1960 American comedy-drama film produced and directed by Billy Wilder, and starring Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, and Fred MacMurray. It was Wilder's follow-up to the enormously popular Some Like It Hot and, like its predecessor, was a commercial and critical hit, grossing $25...
. His other film credits include a small role in 1959's The Last Mile, Guns of the Timberland
Guns of the Timberland
Guns of the Timberland is a 1960 feature film starring Alan Ladd and Jeanne Crain. It was made by Ladd's Jaguar Productions and released through Warner Bros..-Plot:...
in 1960 and What Did You Do in the War, Daddy?
What Did You Do in the War, Daddy?
What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? is a 1966 comedy film written by William Peter Blatty and directed by Blake Edwards. It stars James Coburn and Dick Shawn.-Plot:...
, a 1968 comedy directed by Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards was an American film director, screenwriter and producer.Edwards' career began in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon turned to writing radio scripts at Columbia Pictures...
. Seven co-wrote, produced, directed and starred in Navajo Run, his western indie film released in 1964.
On television, Seven had a recurring role as Lt. Carl Reese in Ironside
Ironside (TV series)
Ironside is a Universal television series which ran on NBC from September 14, 1967 to January 16, 1975. The show starred Raymond Burr as the wheelchair-using Chief of Detectives, Robert T. Ironside. The character's debut was in a TV-movie on March 28, 1967. The original title of the show in the...
, a television series airing on NBC from 1968 until 1975. He was later cast in Ironside's spin-off, Amy Prentiss
Amy Prentiss
Amy Prentiss is an American police drama television series which aired on NBC. It is a spinoff of Ironside, and aired as part of the NBC Mystery Movie from 1974-1975. Jessica Walter stars as Amy Prentiss, a relatively young investigator who becomes Chief of Detectives for the San Francisco Police...
. His other television credits included roles on Bonanza
Bonanza
Bonanza is an American western television series that both ran on and was a production of NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series and still continues to air in syndication. It centers on the...
, Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
, CHiPs
CHiPs
CHiPs is an American television drama series produced by MGM Studios that originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to July 17, 1983. CHiPs followed the lives of two motorcycle police officers of the California Highway Patrol...
, Naked City
Naked City (TV series)
Naked City is a police drama series which aired from 1958 to 1963 on the ABC television network. It was inspired by the 1948 motion picture of the same name, and mimics its dramatic "semi-documentary" format....
, The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show is a comedy television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959 for 142 episodes, plus a 1959 special. The series starred Phil Silvers as Master Sergeant Ernest G...
, Batman
Batman (TV series)
Batman is an American television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company network for three seasons from January 12, 1966 to...
, Death Valley Days
Death Valley Days
Death Valley Days is an American radio and television anthology series featuring true stories of the old American West, particularly the Death Valley area. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program was broadcast on radio until 1945. It continued from 1952 to 1975 as a syndicated television series...
, Peter Gunn
Peter Gunn
Peter Gunn is an American private eye television series which aired on the NBC and later ABC television networks from 1958 to 1961. The show's creator was Blake Edwards...
, Charlie's Angels
Charlie's Angels
Charlie's Angels is a television series about three women who work for a private investigation agency, and is one of the first shows to showcase women in roles traditionally reserved for men...
, The Untouchables
The Untouchables (1959 TV series)
The Untouchables is an American crime drama that ran from 1959 to 1963 on ABC. Based on the memoir of the same name by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley, it fictionalized the experiences of Eliot Ness, a real-life Prohibition agent, as he fought crime in Chicago during the 1930s with the help of a...
and The Wild Wild West
The Wild Wild West
The Wild Wild West is an American television series that ran on CBS for four seasons from September 17, 1965 to April 4, 1969....
.
In addition to his acting career, Seven also owned a real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
business in Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
.
Death
Johnny Seven died of complicationComplication (medicine)
Complication, in medicine, is an unfavorable evolution of a disease, a health condition or a medical treatment. The disease can become worse in its severity or show a higher number of signs, symptoms or new pathological changes, become widespread throughout the body or affect other organ systems. A...
s from lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center
Providence Holy Cross Medical Center
Providence Holy Cross Medical Center is a hospital in Mission Hills, California, USA. The hospital has 254 beds, and is part of Providence Health & Services.-History:...
in Mission Hills, California
Mission Hills, California
Mission Hills is a census-designated place in Santa Barbara County, California, a short distance north of Lompoc on Highway 1. The population was 3,576 at the 2010 census, up from 3,142 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
on January 22, 2010, aged 83. He was survived by his wife, Edith. The couple had been married for 60 years. His memorial service
Funeral
A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor...
was held at St. John Baptist de La Salle Parish in Granada Hills, California, on February 6, 2010.