John Irwin McGiver (November 5, 1913 – September 9, 1975) was an American character actor who made more than a hundred appearances in television and motion pictures over a two-decade span from 1955 to 1975.
[1] The owl-faced, portly character actor with his New York elite accent and precise diction, was often cast as pompous Englishmen and other stuffy, aristocratic and bureaucratic types.
[5] Returning to civilian life, he continued to teach English and speech at Christopher Columbus High School in the Bronx and worked occasionally in off-Broadway plays until 1955, when he became a full-time actor.
His most recognized film roles came in 1961–62 when he appeared in The Manchurian Candidate as the principled, incorruptible Senator Jordan, and as a wistful jewelry salesman in Breakfast at Tiffany's.
McGiver was married to Ruth Schmigelsky from 1947 until his death; they had ten children: Brigit, Maria, Terry, Basil, Clare, Oliver, Ian, Clemens, Boris, and Cornelia.