Francis Douglas Arthur Keston, generally known as John Keston, was a British-born American stage actor and singer who was best known as a world record-breaking runner.
26 Facts About John Keston
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John Keston served in the Royal Air Force during World War II.
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In 1968, John Keston appeared with Juliet Prowse in the original West End production of Neil Simon's Sweet Charity at the Prince of Wales Theatre, in the role of Vittorio Vidal, receiving billing directly below the title.
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John Keston once recalled his audition for Neil Simon, who was bringing the hit show to London from Broadway.
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In 1974, John Keston travelled to Washington, DC, with the Royal Shakespeare Company's touring production of Sherlock Holmes, directed by Frank Dunlop, with artistic director Trevor Nunn.
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John Keston continued his career in the US as a performing artist, appearing in summer stock, cabaret, and opera engagements.
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John Keston portrayed the photographer Alfred Stieglitz in a film.
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John Keston wrote, produced and performed a one-man show, Expressions of Aging.
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John Keston performed selections from it until late in his life.
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John Keston relates autobiographical episodes of his early days as an actor, when he would dash to the theatre by train with just enough time to make up.
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John Keston was a tenor, and employed his voice to cry out with a characteristically tremulous passion, to poignant effect.
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John Keston appeared as The Jester in annual Madrigal Dinners, presented by The Bemidji Choir and The Chamber Singers under the direction of choral conductor Paul Brandvik.
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John Keston presented voice recitals, performed with the Bemidji Opera Society both in full opera productions and in Opera Night, and continued to present his one-man show in the region.
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John Keston wrote a thesis on composer Gerald Finzi, whose natural treatment of spoken cadence in his melodies appealed to Keston.
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John Keston began running at age 55 to combat mild hypertension.
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At ages 80 and 85, John Keston set world age records for 12-kilometers in the Bloomsday Run in Spokane, Washington.
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On 14 May 2005, John Keston ran the mile in 6:48:2 in the Fountain of Youth Masters Mile at Canby High School, Canby, Oregon, but this was not ratified as an American M80 record.
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On 15 April 2005, John Keston set a half-marathon M80 world record of 1:39:27, at the sixth annual Earth Day Half Marathon in St Cloud, Minnesota.
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John Keston often sang the American and Canadian national anthems at running events, at the starting line just before the race began, and was a popular invitee to races nationwide.
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John Keston presented lectures at these events, speaking about his experiences and challenges as a Masters athlete.
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John Keston holds the current, ratified M75 American records for 5000 meters, and 10,000 meters.
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John Keston holds several other US world age records, and continued to compete in marathons and other track and field events.
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John Keston became a US citizen in 1995, and lived in Sunriver, Oregon, with his wife Anne.
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John Keston latterly produced a memoir, with the working title Expressions of Aging.
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John Keston had three children from his marriage to Anne; Pamela, John and Richard.
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John Keston died from complications of COVID-19 in Minneapolis, on 13 February 2022, at the age of 97, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Minnesota.