From Lawman to Space Commander Through the Magic of Makeup

I was flipping the channels on a recent Sunday afternoon and came across an old “Lawman” TV series rerun, originally produced by Warner Brothers for the fledging ABC Network. I had almost forgotten what a great Western leading man John Russell was. Tall, rugged, square-jawed, good-looking, extremely trim, plus he had those lady-killer, Clint Eastwood eye wrinkles way before Clint Eastwood made the same wrinkles famous.

John Russell had been a pretty big name in movies before he switched to television to play The Lawman – the city marshal of Laramie. He had worked opposite John Wayne and Randolph Scott more than once if I remember correctly, plus he was under contract to Republic Pictures for several years where he played everything from heroes to bad guys – including romantic comedies. As The Lawman, John presented a persona that filled every young kid who watched the show with a greater than normal respect for law and order. When he spoke, he spoke the truth. When he fought, it was for justice.

As a contract actor on the Warner Brothers’ lot, John Russell stood out from all the others. First of all, he wasn’t in his 20s. I suspect he was probably somewhere in his mid-30s with white streaks added to his hair to make him look even older. He stood out because he was believable. Clint Walker’s Cheyenne was Superman on a horse; Will Hutchins’ Sugarfoot was too gentle and the character was too weak (in my opinion); James Garner’s Maverick was great, but the show was more of a comedy, tongue-in-cheek; and Wade Preston’s Colt-.45 was just, well, Colt-.45.

I was privileged in 1979 to work on a Saturday morning children’s show called, Jason of Star Command shot at the Filmation Studios in Canoga Park, California – a few miles from Hollywood. It was about a young Space Command officer played by, Craig Littler, who fights evil in his jurisdiction of space. In the first season, Jason’s commander was played by James Doohan, the actor who had brought Scotty to life on Star Trek. Doohan was replaced in season two by no other than John Russell. I had never met Russell, but I somehow knew the man I’d grown up knowing as Marshal Dan Troop wouldn’t be that far from the upstanding fictional character he’d played on The Lawman series when I finally met him in real life. I wasn’t wrong. John Russell was everything a gentleman was supposed to be - kind, gentle, officious, warm, and straight forward. We got along very well. My job was to dress him in a costume befitting a Space Commander, which was easy; but the makeup department had a difficult job. They were asked to make John Russell’s skin the color of blue.

Remember, this was a science fiction space show. The producers were more than likely fans of Star Trek so they had written that John’s character was from a planet other than earth. The way they wanted to show his differences was by making him blue. By now I’ll bet you’re thinking that someone like John Russell would say no to being panted blue every morning. He didn’t. Why? Number one, John Russell was a professional. And, even when he was painted blue, he presented a character, not unlike Dan Troop, The Lawman, who was respected by all, both on screen and off.

John was nearing the end of his career when he did Jason of Star Command, although he had a few other good performances left in him. His most famous, if I remember correctly, was as the character of Stockburn, in Clint Eastwood’s Pale Rider.

John was suffering from emphysema during the time we shot Jason of Star Command. I guess it must have caught up with him. He passed away on January 19, 1991 at the age of 70. John Russell was one of the nicer ones.