{{Short description|American actor (1902–1988)}} {{about|the actor who portrayed the fictional character, Don Winslow|the author|Don Winslow}} {{Use American English|date=October 2021}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2021}} {{Infobox person | name = Don Terry | image = 1928 Don Terry.jpg | caption = Terry in 1928 | birth_name = Donald Prescott Loker | birth_date = {{Birth date|1902|08|08|mf=yes}} | birth_place = Natick, Massachusetts, U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|1988|10|06|1902|08|08|mf=yes}} | death_place = Oceanside, California, U.S. | resting_place = | occupation = Actor | years_active = 1928–1943 | spouse = {{marriage|Katherine Bogdanovich<br>|1940}} | children = 2 | relatives = }}
'''Don Terry''' (born '''Donald Prescott Loker''', August 8, 1902 – October 6, 1988) was an American film actor, best known for his lead appearances in B films and serials in the 1930s and early 1940s. Perhaps his best-known role is Naval Commander Don Winslow in two Universal Pictures serials of the early 1940s, ''Don Winslow of the Navy'' (1942) and ''Don Winslow of the Coast Guard'' (1943).
==Early life and background== Terry was born Donald Loker in Natick, Massachusetts, in 1902. He was a 1927 graduate of Norwich University.<ref name=Discovery/><ref name=DailyBreeze/> Some sources give the family name as ''Locher'', perhaps confusing him with actor Charles Locher who became famous as Jon Hall; the Loker spelling is correct, as many charitable enterprises bear the Loker name, as detailed below.
Don Terry was discovered while visiting Los Angeles as a tourist. During the visit, he hoped to see some film stars, but had been disappointed. Nearing the end of his trip, he decided to have lunch at Hollywood's Café Montmartre since it was a favorite of many in the film industry. Terry thought he might finally see a film star while having lunch, but found only other tourists who had the same hope.<ref name=Discovery>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/stream/photoplay3536movi#page/n77/mode/2up|title=Embarrassment|publisher=Photoplay|date=January 1929|pages=74, 105|author=Bailey, Vernon|access-date=November 24, 2014}}</ref> However, Fox screenwriter Charles Francis Coe was at the restaurant and happened to see Terry and thought of the screenplay he had just completed, based on his 1927 novel.<ref name="Langman1998">{{cite book|last=Langman|first=Larry|title=American Film Cycles: The Silent Era|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ltcNWzVEaEUC&pg=PA230|date=1 January 1998|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-313-30657-0|page=230}}</ref> Coe introduced himself and asked Terry if he was in the film industry. He gave Terry his business card and invited him to the Fox lot for a screen test. Terry went to the lot expecting only to be able to see some film stars. When Terry's screen test came out of the film laboratory, he was signed as the lead in the 1928 film ''Me, Gangster'', the screenplay Coe had just written.<ref name=Discovery/>
==Film career== [[File:Don Terry 1928.jpg|thumb|right|Don Terry on his film debut in ''Me, Gangster'' (1928), opposite Anders Randolph]] Known for his "typical clean-cut American hero roles,"<ref name="Fyne1997">{{cite book|last=Fyne|first=Robert|title=The Hollywood Propaganda of World War II|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sKb-szl1WqcC&pg=PA146|year=1997|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-3310-4|page=146}}</ref> he was signed by Columbia Pictures as a possible replacement for the studio's veteran action star Jack Holt. Terry was one of several tough-guy heroes (including Victor Jory, Paul Kelly, and Charles Quigley) who portrayed "bare-knuckled, sleeves-rolled-up hard hats" in various films.<ref name="SklarZagarrio">{{cite book|last1=Sklar|first1=Robert|last2=Zagarrio|first2=Vito|title=Frank Capra: Authorship and the Studio System|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s3ewZWu0YJEC&pg=PA234|publisher=Temple University Press|isbn=978-1-4399-0489-3|page=234}}</ref> Terry's Columbia "B" features include ''A Fight to the Finish'' (1937), ''Paid to Dance'' (1937),<ref name="LangmanFinn1995">{{cite book|last1=Langman|first1=Larry|last2=Finn|first2=Daniel|title=A Guide to American Crime Films of the Thirties|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SntZAAAAMAAJ|date=1 January 1995|publisher=Greenwood Press|isbn=978-0-313-29532-4|page=198}}</ref> ''Who Killed Gail Preston?'' (1937),<ref name="Rainey1992">{{cite book|last=Rainey|first=Buck|title=Sweethearts of the sage: biographies and filmographies of 258 actresses appearing in western movies|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BeZkAAAAMAAJ|year=1992|publisher=McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub|isbn=978-0-89950-565-7|page=516}}</ref> ''When G-Men Step In'' (1938),<ref name="Moscati1986">{{cite book|last=Moscati|first=Massimo|title=I predatori del sogno: i fumetti e il cinema|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R_Vx4sjgoFUC&pg=PA143|year=1986|publisher=Edizoni Dedalo|isbn=978-88-220-4517-1|page=143|language=it}}</ref> and ''Squadron of Honor'' (1938).<ref name="Slide1999">{{cite book|last=Slide|first=Anthony|title=Actors on Red Alert: Career Interviews with Five Actors and Actresses Affected by the Blacklist|url=https://archive.org/details/actorsonredalert0000slid|url-access=registration|date=1 January 1999|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=978-0-8108-3649-5|page=[https://archive.org/details/actorsonredalert0000slid/page/154 154]}}</ref> Terry's portrayals are complemented by his distinct New England accent, which he never completely lost.
Don Terry also became a star of serials, his first chapter play being ''The Secret of Treasure Island'', released by Columbia in 1938. He was one of the three male leads in Universal's western serial ''Overland Mail'' (1942). Terry's best-known serials are the "Don Winslow" maritime adventures of the early 1940s, ''Don Winslow of the Navy'' (1942)<ref name="Rowan">{{cite book|last=Rowan|first=Terry|title=World War II Goes to the Movies & Television Guide|year=2012|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OdvGBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA131|publisher=Lulu.com|isbn=978-1-105-58602-6|page=131}}</ref> and ''Don Winslow of the Coast Guard'' (1943).
Terry signed with Universal in 1939, appearing in an incidental role in the W. C. Fields comedy ''You Can't Cheat an Honest Man''. The studio kept him busy in various roles, large and small. Terry appeared in ''Danger in the Pacific'' (1942) as a scientist, co-starring Louise Allbritton.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |first=Barry |last=Monush |year=2003 |title=Louise Allbritton |encyclopedia=The Encyclopedia of Film Actors from the Silent Era to 1965 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=toTIb1Ek2WwC&q=don-terry+actor&pg=PA8 |page=8 |volume=1 |publisher=Applause Theatre and Cinema Books |location=New York City |isbn=9781557835512 |access-date=19 December 2014 }}</ref> Other credits include ''Fugitives'' (1929), ''Border Romance'' (1929), ''Barnacle Bill'' (1941), ''Sherlock Holmes in Washington'' (1943), and ''White Savage'' (1943), his last screen appearance before enlisting in the U.S. Navy. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander and was awarded the Purple Heart. He left the Navy in 1946 and never returned to the film industry.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.usc.edu/uscnews/stories/12887.html |title=Katherine B. Loker Donates $1.5M to USC |access-date=2015-01-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304064254/http://www.usc.edu/uscnews/stories/12887.html |archive-date=2016-03-04 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Post-film life and career== In 1941, Terry married Katherine Bogdanovich, a daughter of the founder of StarKist tuna.<ref name=UnionTimes/> Bogdanovich, a 1940 graduate of University of Southern California (USC), shared an interest in Olympic competition with her husband. She tried out for the 1932 Olympics as a sprinter.<ref name=UnionTimes/> The couple had two daughters, and after completing his World War II service, Terry dropped his screen name and went to work for StarKist as vice president of public and industrial relations.<ref name=DailyBreeze>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailybreeze.com/general-news/20080719/obituary-loker-helped-local-colleges|title=Obituary: Loker helped local colleges|author=Littlejohn, Donna|work=Daily Breeze|date=July 17, 2008|access-date=November 29, 2014}}</ref>
Loker retired from the company in 1965, and the couple then devoted their time and energies to various philanthropic projects by establishing the Donald and Katherine Loker Foundation.<ref name=DailyBreeze/> The foundation supported many projects, with a special emphasis on the colleges that were the Lokers' alma maters. They supported USC as board members of long standing, and with financial gifts of more than $30 million over a period of time. The Lokers were longtime friends of Richard and Pat Nixon and were also supporters of the Nixon Library.<ref name=UnionTimes>{{cite news|url=http://www.utsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080628/news_1m28loker.html|title=Katherine Bogdanovich Loker; Philanthropist supported Oceanside schools and USC|date=June 29, 2008|work=Union-Times San Diego|access-date=November 29, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205001558/http://www.utsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080628/news_1m28loker.html|archive-date=December 5, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/white-house-east-room-opens-august-21-71613847.html|title=White House East Room Opens August 21|publisher=PR Newswire|access-date=November 29, 2014}}</ref> Despite the Lokers' lack of experience in chemistry, Carl Franklin, who was at the time USC's legal vice president, referred them to the university's hydrocarbon research institute, which was established in 1978 with the Lokers' financial aid.<ref name=hydrocarbon>{{cite book |first=George Andrew |last=Olah |author-link=George Andrew Olah |year=2001 |chapter=Moving to Los Angeles: Building the Loker Institute—Hydrocarbons and Hydrocarbon Research |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DjAboQVLjOsC&q=don+loker&pg=PA114 |pages=114+ |title=A Life of Magic Chemistry: Autobiographical Reflections of a Nobel Prize Winner |publisher=Wiley-Interscience |location=New York City |isbn=9780471220404 |access-date=December 19, 2014 |via=Google Books }}</ref> In 1983, it was renamed Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute in their honor.<ref name=hydrocarbon/>
He died at Oceanside, California on October 6, 1988, aged 86. After his death, his widow continued the couple's philanthropic efforts until her death in 2008.<ref name=DailyBreeze/><ref name=USC>{{cite web|url=http://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/495/in-memoriam-katherine-b-loker-92/|title=In Memoriam: Katherine B. Loker, 92|publisher=USC Dornsife|date=June 2008|access-date=November 29, 2014}}</ref>
==Partial filmography== {{div col}} *''Me, Gangster'' (1928) - Jimmy Williams *''Blindfold'' (1928) - Buddy Brower *''Fugitives'' (1929) - Dick Starr *''The Valiant'' (1929) - Policeman (uncredited) *''Border Romance'' (1929) - Bob Hamlin *''Lady with a Past'' (1932) - Party Guest (uncredited) *''Whistlin' Dan'' (1932) - Bob Reid *''The Billion Dollar Scandal'' (1933) - Boxer in Fight Montage (uncredited) *''Her First Mate'' (1933) - Purser, Albany Night Boat (uncredited) *''A Fight to the Finish'' (1937) - Duke Mallor *''A Dangerous Adventure'' (1937) - Tim Sawyer *''Paid to Dance'' (1937) - William Dennis *''Who Killed Gail Preston?'' (1937) - Tom Kellogg *''When G-Men Step In'' (1938) - Fred Garth *''The Secret of Treasure Island'' (1938, serial) - Larry Kent *''Squadron of Honor'' (1938) - District Attorney Don Blane *''You Can't Cheat an Honest Man'' (1939) - Ping-Pong Player (uncredited) *''Barnacle Bill'' (1941) - Dixon *''Mutiny in the Arctic'' (1941) - Cole *''In the Navy'' (1941) - Reef (uncredited) *''Tight Shoes'' (1941) - Haystack, Reporter (uncredited) *''Hold That Ghost'' (1941) - Strangler (uncredited) *''Don Winslow of the Navy'' (1942, serial) - Cmdr. Don Winslow *''Valley of the Sun'' (1942) - Lieutenant (uncredited) *''Unseen Enemy'' (1942) - Canadian Army Captain William Flynn Hitchcock, aka Bill Flinn, posing as Captain Wilhelm Roering *''Drums of the Congo'' (1942) - Captain Kirk Armstrong *''Escape from Hong Kong'' (1942) - Rusty *''Danger in the Pacific'' (1942) - Dr. David Lynd *''Top Sergeant'' (1942) - Sgt. Dick "Rusty" Manson *''Overland Mail'' (1942, serial) - Buckskin Bill Burke *''Moonlight in Havana'' (1942) - Eddie Daniels *''Sherlock Holmes in Washington'' (1943) - Howe *''Don Winslow of the Coast Guard'' (1943, serial) - Cmdr. Don Winslow *''White Savage'' (1943) - Chris (final film role) {{div col end}}
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Don Terry}} *{{IMDb name|0855969}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20141204204643/http://www.usc.edu/dept/chemistry/loker/ Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute] at the University of Southern California
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Terry, Don}} Category:American male film actors Category:1902 births Category:1988 deaths Category:People from Natick, Massachusetts Category:Harvard University alumni Category:20th Century Studios contract players Category:Male actors from Middlesex County, Massachusetts Category:20th-century American male actors