John Vivyan ( John R. Vukayan; May 31, 1915 – December 20, 1983) was an American stage and television actor, who was best known for portraying the title character in the television series Mr. Lucky.
Early life
John R. Vukayan was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to parents of Serbian background. His family moved to Chicago when he was an infant. He attended the Serbian Orthodox Church on Schiller Street as a boy, where he sang in the choir. After a year at Lake View High School, he dropped out to start work.
He was employed by the Continental Can Company in Chicago during October 1940, when he registered for the draft as John Vukayan. The Draft Registrar recorded him as being 6'3" and weighing 185 pounds, with brown eyes and hair, and a scar on his forehead.
Military service
Two months before his 26th birthday, on April 8, 1941, he enlisted in the US Army. His enlistment papers carried the name "John R. Vukayan", and noted he was a citizen, single, had completed one year of high school, and was semi-skilled in metal working. He was assigned to the 132nd Infantry Regiment (Illinois National Guard), which deployed overseas to Australia in January 1942. From there his regiment moved to New Caledonia in March 1942, eventually forming part of the Americal Division. His regiment was sent to take part in the Battle of Guadalcanal on December 8, 1942, and within a week was engaged in fighting off Japanese infiltrators. John was a corporal with Company E of the 2nd Battalion, which was thrown into the Battle for Mt Austen on January 2, 1943. The battalion suffered heavy casualties during the fighting, one of whom was John, his left leg hit by gunfire.
Evacuated from the Solomon Islands on January 6, 1943, he would spend the next fourteen months in Army hospitals recovering from his wounds. He later recounted that the Army doctors had several times considered amputating the leg. He was eventually moved stateside to a hospital in Michigan, where he recalled meeting actress Loretta Young when she visited wounded soldiers. Awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star he was judged unfit for further active service and was discharged from the Army on March 23, 1944. The injury to his left leg would continue to bother him and limit his physical activity for years to come.
Early stage career
While pondering his career options during his long convalescence, John became interested in the theater. In June 1946 he starts appearing as "John Vivyan" among the cast of the Barter Theatre group's junior company, at the "Barter Colony" near Abingdon, Virginia. The circumstances of his stage name's adoption are not known, and from later sources it is apparent he retained "John R. Vukayan" as his legal name until at least 1960.
The Barter Theatre provided free room and board for prospective actors but no pay. When not performing, they were expected to help out with sets, lighting, and costumes, as well as work in the lodging and cafeteria used by the troupe. It was a lifestyle that appealed to many recently discharged veterans, thirty-six of whom, including Vivyan, were inducted into the American Legion at a ceremony in July 1946. Performances had short runs, often no more than two evenings and a matinee. At the time, the Barter Theatre group had no venue of its own, so plays were performed at the Municipal Theatre in nearby Abingdon. The Barter Theatre performers also entertained at local social clubs; Vivyan sang Serbian folk songs at one such event.
Vivyan finished out his time with the Barter Theatre group during a 1946-47 winter tour of Virginia and South Carolina, in which the troupe alternated the plays Arms and the Man and Much Ado About Nothing.
Summer stock and New York television
In 1947, Vivyan moved to Manhattan. He used his G.I. Bill money to pay for lessons at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts there. After graduating, however, he was unable to find any acting jobs. He later told an interviewer that this was a grim period in his life. He scraped by on doing summer stock theatre, performing work disdained by established actors for its low pay and grueling pace.
He also found work in the new television industry, doing a couple of minor roles each year from 1949 thru 1954. New York City was a creative center for early live television, particularly anthology series, which featured a new story and cast with each episode. Film actors disliked the pressure of performing live, so an out of work stage actor had an advantage.