American actor
Jason Lawrence Geiger (born September 17, 1974), professionally known as Austin St. John, is an American actor best known for his portrayal of Jason Lee Scott in the "Power Rangers" franchise.
Early life.
Austin St. John is the son of U.S. Marine and martial artist Steve John and his wife, Sharon. He has one sibling, a brother named Stephen. With a parent in the armed forces, St. John lived all over the United States while growing up.
Career.
Austin St. John's first acting role and most well-known role to date came to him when he was just 17 years old, when he was cast as teen superhero Jason Lee Scott, the Red Power Ranger in "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers", the first installment of the "Power Rangers" franchise, which debuted on Fox Kids in 1993. For his role, he took the stage name Austin St. John, Austin coming from "The Six Million Dollar Man"'s Steve Austin and St. John being a name of his own choosing.
Like St. John, his character had a background in martial arts. Though the series was hugely successful and brought St. John international recognition as an actor, long hours on set combined with low pay and no union recognition presented real challenges for him. As a result, St. John, along with all of his other co-stars including Jason David Frank agreed to leave the show during its second season if their employers rejected their pay demands and unionization attempts, but when time came, only Walter Emanuel Jones and Thuy Trang joined him in the ultimatum and ultimately left the show. St. John was replaced by Steve Cardenas as the Red Ranger.
St. John went on to reprise the role of Jason several times over, in both film and television, including a permanent role in "Power Rangers Zeo", and making an appearance as the character in 2002, in an episode of "Power Rangers Wild Force" entitled "Forever Red". He also appeared alongside Jones, as himself, in the Power Rangers special The Lost Episode in 1999, which focused on the history of the franchise up to that point and showed the original pilot episode for the series, which had never before been aired.
In 2017, he made a cameo in the movie "Surge of Power: Revenge of the Sequel". In 2018, he was acting in the television movie "Monsters At Large" and had a major role in the 2019 dramatic movie "A Walk with Grace".
In 2020, St. John reprised the role of Jason in a second season episode of "Power Rangers Beast Morphers" titled "Grid Connection".
In 2022, he had the lead role in the film "Tres Leches", directed by John Schneider. The film is available for free on Schneider's official YouTube channel.
Other ventures.
Austin St. John began as a proficient martial artist, holding a second-degree black belt in Taekwondo, a first-degree black belt in Judo and a first-degree black belt in Kenpo and for a time, he worked as a martial arts instructor. Additionally, he published a book on the subject, "Karate Warrior: A Beginner's Guide to Martial Arts", in 1996.
In February 2024, he announced plans to start a controversial "warrior"-inspired clothing line featuring quotes from prominent historical figures — including Adolf Hitler. This drew fierce condemnation from fans, as well as Amy Jo Johnson, who costarred in the series as Kimberly Hart, the Pink Ranger. The clothing line debuted in April 2024, however, the theme had been altered from warriors to wise leaders, titled Wise Leader Wear, and now included quotes from Anne Frank. St. John debuted the line with a video on his X account in which he stated that his store would not be including Hitler.
Personal life.
Austin St. John attended Robert Frost Middle School and W.T. Woodson High School in Fairfax, VA, before moving to Fullerton, California, where he attended Sunny Hills High School, but did not graduate. As an adult, he went on to earn his G.E.D. and ultimately obtained his undergraduate degree from Concordia University.
CARES Act indictment.
In May 2022, St. John was indicted on federal criminal charges related to the CARES Act. He allegedly conspired in a $3.5 million scheme to create businesses or use an existing business to submit applications to fraudulently obtain Paycheck Protection Program funding. Prosecutors said participants in the conspiracy would file false supporting documentation and misrepresent key details, including the number of their employees and the amount of their payroll, causing the Small Business Administration and financial institutions to issue loans. Prosecutors allege St. John and co-defendants paid the ringleaders of the scheme, and spent the money on personal purchases. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.
Since the indictment, St. John agreed to be put on pre-trial release. He is only allowed to leave the state of Texas for work, with the permission of the court. This includes his previously scheduled convention appearances. On May 25, 2022, St. John released a video confirming these recent events as true and reiterated his legal inability to discuss said events at his entertainment-based public appearances. St. John pled guilty to the charges on April 22, 2024 as part of a plea agreement, the notice of which was published on May 1.
References.
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