John Blake Rice (May 28, 1809 – December 17, 1874) was an American male actor, theatrical producer and politician.

On July 30, 1850, in the middle of Vincenzo Bellini's opera La Sonnambula, a fire broke out in the theater.

In 1865, near the end of the Civil War, Rice ran for mayor of Chicago as a very conservative Republican.

Aided by the end of the war and the subsequent assassination of Abraham Lincoln only days before the election, Rice won easily.

[3] As mayor, Rice was anti-labor, and he vetoed a plan to enforce an eight-hour work day.

[8] Rice had been in ill health for some time, even before his election to congress, but refused medical treatment.

[8] He had not sought re-election in 1874, and his death soon after the election raised issues about whether Illinois Governor John Beveridge was required to appoint a replacement to complete his term.