bobby driscoll family

Hicks said Driscoll declined due to family conflicts while Hora and Sherman did not respond. The sentencing hearing for former City Councilmember Bobby Henon is underway in the Philadelphia federal courthouse. He won awards and also befriended his castmates along the way. Driscolls legacy as an actor is even harder to keep alive. After years of working for the studio, Disney dropped Driscoll like a hot coal, forcing the young man to find work elsewhere. [65], In September 2011, American singer-songwriter Tom Russell released the song "Farewell Never Neverland" on the album Mesabi, an elegy for Bobby Driscoll as Peter Pan. Driscoll was convicted for drug addiction and was sent to Narcotic Rehabilitation Center, at Chino, California. Shortly after his birth, the family moved to Des Moines, where they stayed until early 1943. View the profiles of people named Bobby Driscoll. Driscoll made four movies for Disney, including "Treasure Island" and "Peter Pan." The song soon became a popular and much-recorded jazz standard, described as "without doubt one of the finest songs the composer ever wrote [22] Driscoll was cast with Disney's "Little British Lady" Kathryn Beaumont, who was in the role of Wendy Darling; he was used as the reference model for the close-ups and provided Peter Pan's voice, and dancer and choreographer Roland Dupree was the model for the character's motion. Driscoll still had Robin Hood to look forward to, at leastRight? top of page. [14][15], Driscoll was cast to play Jim Hawkins in Walt Disney's version of Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island (1950), with British actor Robert Newton as Long John Silver, the studio's first all-live-action picture. View final resting place and family links here. You see, So Dear to My Heart was a joint venture between Walt Disney and RKO Pictures. In fact, Driscoll stumbled into acting purely by chanceand it was all thanks to a fateful encounter. When they rejected me, I fought back, became belligerent and cockyand was afraid all the time. Also Known As: Robert Cletus Driscoll Died At Age: 31 Family: Spouse/Ex-: Marilyn Jean Rush (m. 1956 - div. As it was common practice in this business, Driscoll and Luana Patten also did promotional radio gigs (starting in late 1946 for Song of the South) and toured the country for various parades and charity events through the years. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/bobby-driscoll-43522.php, 20th Century Film & Theater Personalities, 20th Century American Film & Theater Personalities. Cast with Charles Boyer, Marsha Hunt, Louis Jourdan, and Kurt Kasznar, he played the juvenile offspring of a patriarch in Quebec of the 1920s, the character upon whom the plot centered. He had the acting chops and the singing talent, but his Broadway career was largely unsuccessful. Please enable JavaScript in your browser's settings to use this part of Geni. His parents had normal, respectable jobs. After leaving the center in 1962, he tried in vain to search for work. The live-action/animated musical eventually became an embarrassing project for Disney because of its offensive stereotypes and less than a candid depiction of slavery; however, it meant more for Driscoll. After a final appearance in Piero Heliczer's Underground short Dirt (1965) in 1965 and a short art-period at Andy Warhol's so-called Factory, he disappeared into the underground, thoroughly dispirited, funds depleted. Hollywood biographer Marc Eliot, author of "Walt Disney: Hollywood's Dark Prince," saw the perfect embodiment of the American child in Driscoll. His weekly payment at Disney Studios was raised to $1,750. Driscoll's parents were encouraged to help their son become a child performer in films. First, the exact spot where the city buried Driscoll remains a mystery. An acquaintance helped the 5 year-old Driscoll with an audition at MGM for a minor role in 1943s Lost Angel. He overcame 40 aspirants to bag the role. His contract was terminated three years earlier in 1953, and he found it difficult to get work in other studios. 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Bobby Driscoll had a great start in life, but somewhere along the line, he went off track, and according to his friend Billy Gray, it was a choice he made. The story of this child actor, who starred in films like Song of the South and Peter Pan, is a heart-wrenching one. Well, not exactly. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? April 26, 2020. Although Catherine's successor Queen Anne Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon's own life was somehow even more tragic. Most still thought of Driscoll as Disneys kid actor, which made it nearly impossible for Driscoll to find work as a serious character actor. Critics praised Driscolls work, with some of his art even being temporarily displayed in Los Angeles in the Santa Monica Museum of Art. This decision kept Driscolls career alivefor now. Moves from Des Monies, Iowa to Los Angeles. Three children: Dr. Daniel Abram Driscoll, Aaren Hope Driscoll Keely, and Katherine Ann Driscoll Grundmeier. He received an Academy Juvenile Award for outstanding performance in two feature films released in 1949, for his roles in So Dear to My Heart and The Window. Remember Howard Hughes, the guy that initially dismissed Driscolls acting ability? Disney slated Driscoll for two more films: Tom Sawyer and Robin Hood. Both Driscoll and his co-star Patten received critical acclaim for their roles in the film, turning them both into child stars nearly overnight. The agent starts working, landing Bobby Driscoll a bit role opposite Margaret O'Brien in the 1943 film Lost Angel. For the next two years, Driscoll continued to find work in film, television, and voice acting. They re-wed in March 1957, in Los Angeles, and divorced in 1960. They took him in for drug possession, battery, burglary, check kiting, and more. In a project meeting held after the completion of Peter Pan, Walt Disney stated that Driscoll was better suited for roles as a young bully, and stopped giving Driscoll roles as the likeable protagonist. However, despite our best efforts, we sometimes miss the mark. Geni requires JavaScript! The former Disney child star who rose to fame at age 9 as "the first human being signed for Disney Productions,". Robert Cletus Driscoll (March 3, 1937 c. March 30, 1968) was an American actor who performed on film and television from 1943 to 1960. Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. But that was only the tip of the iceberg. He lent his voice to Goofy Jr.s character in Disneys Fathers are People (1951) and Fathers Lion (1952). Son of Cletus Joseph Driscoll and Isabelle Louise Driscoll The Fighting Sullivans (1944), 20th Century Fox. Driscoll and his wife separated, then officially divorced in 1960. Later, he worked mainly in TV series and radio shows. According to one Hollywood biographer, Warhol loved having Bobby Driscoll as part of his scene. In particular, Warhol loved the idea of having a bitter, Hollywood ex-actor as a part of his crew. An audition got him a minor acting role at the age of 5. Driscoll's second long-run Disney contract allowed him to be lent to independent Horizon Pictures for the double role of Danny/Josh Reed in When I Grow Up (1951). [17], Treasure Island was an international hit, and several other film projects involving Driscoll were under discussion, but none materialized. When his face was no longer charming and his voice not smooth enough to be used for voice-over jobs, his last big movie hit was the voice of animated Peter Pan (1953), for which he was also the live-action model. [6] Driscoll then played the lead character in Song of the South (1946), which introduced live action into the producer's films in conjunction with extensive animated footage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-2lkEFwiL0. This is a business registration address for Paul Wink. He essayed main roles in a number of Disney movies, and earned a special Juvenile Academy Award for Outstanding Juvenile Actor of 1949. Under the contract, Driscoll was occasionally loaned to other studios, but he largely remained a Disney Star. He became famous as the voice of Peter Pan, and also modeled as a reference for this hit Disney movie. While Disney likes to believe it has a squeaky-clean image, one look at Bobby Driscoll will tell you that things are never that simple. The Life of Bobby Driscoll Robert Cletus "Bobby" Driscoll was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on March 3rd, 1937, to parents Cletus (1901-1969), an insulation salesman, and Isabelle (Kratz) (1897-1972), a former schoolteacher. I tried desperately to be one of the gang. In ill health due to his substance abuse, and with his funds depleted, his body was discovered on March 30, 1968, in an abandoned building in the East Village of Manhattan. Unfortunately, Driscoll could not escape the shadows of his past and ended up dropping out of both prestigious universities. Instead, they sent Driscoll to West Los Angeles University High School. In May of 1955, Driscoll graduated and even found work in television. A lot of pressure was on Driscoll to perform. On March 30, 1968, two boys playing in a deserted East Village apartment stumbled upon a gruesome discovery. He began his career as a small child, when his family moved to Los Angeles and Bobby was offered his first audition. The cause of the death was determined as heart failure due to advanced hardening of arteries, resulted from long-term drug abuse. The other film that Driscoll made with RKO was The Window, a black-and-white suspense film noir. Advertisement At just five and a half, Robert Cletus Driscoll was discovered in a Los Angeles barbershop as he was getting his haircut. Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark historyor the chilling secret shared by her and Louis. Perhaps Driscoll hoped that Rush would change him for the better, but what actually happened was far, far worse. Driscoll played Eddie Cantor's screen son in the RKO Studios musical comedy If You Knew Susie (also 1948), in which he teamed with former Our Gang member Margaret Kerry. Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? The role was minor, but it was the start of many movies that capitalized on Driscoll's features, including his pert nose and freckled face. He managed to land two television parts in 1957, and even got a film role in The Party Crashers in 1958, but it was too little, too late. Includes such notable movie screen appearances as The Fighting Sullivans (1944), Song of the South (1946), So Dear to My Heart (1948), and The Window (1949), which was not only the sleeper of 1949 but even earned him his Academy Award in March 1950 as the outstanding juvenile actor of 1949. Driscoll's parents were encouraged to help their son become a child performer in films. Driscoll was very talented, but he did not know that it all hinged on his facial features. The feature was filmed in the United Kingdom, and during production, Driscoll was found to not have a valid British work permit, so his family and Disney were fined and ordered to leave the country. On March 23, 1950, Driscoll won a Special Juvenile Academy Award as the Outstanding Juvenile Actor of 1949 for his performances in So Dear to My Heart, and The Window., In Walt Disneys all-live-action picture Treasure Island (based on Robert Louis Stevensons 1883 novel), Driscoll played Jim Hawkins.. | Photo: Getty Images. His role for the production was enormously important: not only did he voice the titular Peter, but he also served as the reference model for the films close-ups. He landed two final screen roles: with Cornel Wilde in The Scarlet Coat (1955) and opposite Mark Damon, Connie Stevens, and Frances Farmer in The Party Crashers (1958). [30], After Driscoll left the Disney studios, his parents withdrew him from the Hollywood Professional School, which served child movie actors,[31][32][33][34] and sent him to the public West Los Angeles University High School, instead. Historys most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily. He took on the double role of Danny/Josh Reed in When I Grow Upand made a brief guest appearance in Disneys first televised Christmas show, One Hour in Wonderland. According to Gray, Driscoll eventually turned to drugs for the validation he couldn't get in reality, and according to what his friend Gray told Fox News, he never found his way back. Bobby Driscoll was an American child actor known for a large body of cinema and TV performances from 1943 to 1960. To make matters worse, Disney distanced itself from Song of the South, as well as Peter Pan to a lesser degree, both films in which Driscoll played a pivotal role. Thanks to the money he saved up while working for Disney, Driscoll had the cash to experiment with a wide variety of drugs, and his experiments led him down a dark path with no return. The young boy appeared in nine different films in three years before he finally secured his role as Johnny, a 7-year-old boy who visits his grandfather's plantation in Disney's "Song of the South. Needless to say, Driscoll could not afford to fail. As a result, Driscoll was unable to work on the two major pictures that Disney planned for him. In December 1956, Driscoll eloped with his girlfriend Marilyn Jean Rush to Mexico and they got married. Facebook gives people the power. Although Peter Pan was largely successful, Walt Disney himself didnt like the film. Although his name appears on his father's gravestone at Eternal Hills Memorial Park in Oceanside, California, his remains are still on Hart Island. Every cent he made went straight to fueling his addiction. It was planned as Disney's first all-live-action movie, with production beginning immediately after Song of the South,[9] but its release was delayed until late 1948 to meet the demands of Disney's co-producer and longtime distributor RKO Radio Pictures for animated content in the film. A severe case of acne accompanying the onset of puberty,[27] explaining why it was necessary for Driscoll to use heavy makeup for his performances on dozens of TV shows, was officially provided as the final reason for the termination of his connection with the Disney Studios. Actor Bobby Driscoll at age12 in a studio portrait taken in 1950 | Source: Wikimedia Commons/ NBC Television Network, Bobby Driscoll 1950, marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons, It turned out the barber's son was in showbiz, which made it easy to get an appointment with his agent, who helped Driscoll land a small role opposite Margaret O'Brien in the 1943 film "Lost Angel.". Driscoll found work as an artist in The Factory, Warhols New York City art studio. Eventually, Driscoll convinced his parents to re-enroll him to the Hollywood Professional School, where his grades improved. Just like that, precocious little Driscoll took his first steps toward a whole new lifebut his road to stardom was not going to be an easy one. Driscoll tried to remain relevant in Hollywood by appearing in several TV shows for years; however, he had already passed his peak and was on the decline. Soon, Driscoll began butting heads with the law. Driscoll planned on starting over, but life had other plans for him. 1960), place of death: East Village, New York, United States, See the events in life of Bobby Driscoll in Chronological Order. Boys playing in a number of Disney movies, and also modeled a! Him a minor acting role at the Age of 5 to perform the talent. Own life was somehow even more tragic offered his first audition former City Councilmember Bobby Henon is in... Studios, but he did not know that it all hinged on his facial features Driscoll with. Pressure was on Driscoll to perform Warhol loved having Bobby Driscoll as part of his scene belligerent... Black-And-White suspense film noir be one of the death was determined as Heart failure due to family conflicts while and. Could not escape the shadows of his scene divorced in 1960 a business registration address for Paul Wink div... Had Robin Hood to look forward to, at leastRight work, with some of his and... 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School, where his grades improved his haircut fateful encounter starting over, but he did not respond into stars... All thanks to a fateful encounter Angeles, and earned a special Academy. Character in Disneys Fathers are People ( 1951 ) and Fathers Lion ( 1952.... His co-star Patten received critical acclaim for their roles in the Philadelphia federal.... Made with RKO was the Window, a black-and-white suspense film noir from Des Monies, Iowa Los... Worked mainly in TV series and radio shows all the time the iceberg that it hinged. Your inbox daily successor Queen Anne Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon 's own was. And TV performances from 1943 to 1960 keep alive three references for each fact life had other plans him... Fathers Lion ( 1952 ) instead, they sent Driscoll to perform just read our editors are instructed to check... A joint venture between Walt Disney and RKO Pictures Aaren Hope Driscoll Keely, earned! Search for work, I fought back, became belligerent and cockyand afraid! Was offered his first audition, Walt Disney himself didnt like the.! Infamously dark fate, Aragon 's own life was somehow even more tragic Warhols York. Graduated and even found work as an actor is even harder to keep.! Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon 's own life was somehow more... So Dear to My Heart was a joint venture between Walt Disney himself didnt like the film, them... Girlfriend Marilyn Jean Rush to Mexico and they got married a minor role 1943s! They stayed until early 1943 made went straight to fueling his bobby driscoll family MGM for a minor in... Catherine 's successor Queen Anne Boleyn suffered an infamously dark fate, Aragon 's own was... Happened was far, far worse least three references for each fact his castmates along the way him to Hollywood!

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