John Warren Hull (
January 17 1903 –
September 14 1974) was an actor and TV personality, active from the 1930s through the 1960s. He was one of the most popular
serial actors in the action-adventure field.
A native of
Gasport, New York, Hull attended
New York University. Later, he left college to study voice and pursue a career in
operas and
operettas. He also worked frequently as a
radio announcer.
The handsome Hull made his screen debut in 1934 for
Educational Pictures, a short-subject studio. He co-starred opposite singer Sylvia Froos in the "Young Romance" series of musical comedies filmed in New York; Hull often joined Froos in song. In 1935 Hull was signed to a contract by
Warner Bros., and spent the next few years playing leading men both in dramas and musicals. His best appearance of this period came in
The Walking Dead 1936), a horror movie starring
Boris Karloff and directed by
Michael Curtiz. Some of Hull's early appearances have him billed as "J. Warren Hull."