Biography
John Boles was an American actor and singer. He appeared in leading and supporting roles in films from the silent era through the early 1950s. Born in Greenville, Texas, he graduated from the University of Texas in 1917 and served in US Army intelligence during the First World War before studying music in New York.
Boles made his Broadway debut in the 1923 musical Little Jesse James and transitioned to Hollywood, starring in early sound musicals including The Desert Song (1929) and Rio Rita (1929). He is known for his roles as Victor Moritz in Frankenstein (1931), Edward Morgan in Curly Top (1935), and Stephen Dallas in Stella Dallas (1937). He also appeared as Ronald Hall III in The White Parade (1934). Boles retired from acting after Babes in Baghdad (1952) and later worked in the oil industry in Texas.
