John Derek

John Derek, American actor, director, and cinematographer (died 1998)

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Born: August 12, 1926
Died: May 22, 1998
Zodiac sign: Leo
Birth year: 1926

About John Derek

John Derek was an American actor, filmmaker and photographer. He appeared in such films as Knock on Any Door, All the King's Men, Rogues of Sherwood Forest (1950), and The Ten Commandments (1956). He was also known for launching the career of his fourth wife, Bo Derek. I used to go to the directors of my films and say: 'I'm not an actor but I'll turn up on time and know my words.' In the 13 films I made I only ever did one take per scene.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when John Derek was born

John Derek was born in 1926. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1926

#1 song"Bye Bye Blackbird"
Top movieThe General (Buster Keaton)
Best-selling bookThe Sun Also Rises – Ernest Hemingway

Headlines and milestones

Major sports momentGertrude Ederle swims the English Channel
Top headlineA.A. Milne publishes Winnie-the-Pooh
Technology milestoneFirst demonstration of television
Defining fadFlagpole sitting
Notable inventionPop-up toaster
World population2.01 billion

United States snapshot

U.S. leaderCalvin Coolidge
Sports championSt. Louis Cardinals (World Series)
U.S. population117.4M

1926 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in John Derek's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure	1926	2026
Gas	$0.23	$3.45/gal
Average home	$6,000	$435,000
Average income	$3,620	$67,500
Movie ticket	$0.25	$11.95
Postage stamp	$0.02	$0.73
Population	117.4M	341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, IMDb, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.