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| Jackie Coogan could very well be branded as the first "child star" of the silver screen.
He was born John Leslie Coogan Jr. on October 26th, 1914 in Los Angeles, California. His mother and father was already in the vaudeville biz, and it wasn't long until young Jackie would follow. At the ripe age of five, he began appearing with his parents in vaudeville shows. In 1919, Charlie Chaplin met the young talent and gave him a minor role in his production of "A Day's Pleasure." (a GREAT film!) Chaplin liked the talent he saw in Jackie and cast him alongside him in the classic film "The Kid." Jackie went on to play a child in a number of popular films in the 1920's, such as "Peck's Bad Boy" (1921), "Oliver Twist" (1922) opposite Lon Chaney, and "The Rag Man" (1925), and he continued to tour with his father on the stage. Although there were other child stars performing in films in the 1920's, Jackie's career and stardom were the most heavily promoted during the decade. Magazines of the day depicted Jackie touring the world with his father, Jackie at birthday parties, Jackie posing in front of his expensive toys, his cars, his homes, etc. At the height of his career in the 1920's, he was one of the most highly paid performers in Hollywood, earning millions for the studios which hired him, including First National, Lesser, Universal, M-G-M, and for his own production company set up by his parents, called Jackie Coogan Productions. By 1927, at the age of 13, Jackie had grown up on the screen and his career was starting to wind down as he aged and other child stars took hold of what Jackie had started...the introduction of children to the silver screen. He fould roles in sound versions of"Tom Sawyer", and "Huckleberry Finn." These would never be as popular as his first films. When he came of age he naturally wanted the money which he had earned making films as a child star, but his mother and his step-father refused his request. Jackie filed suit against them for the four million dollars that he had earned during those years. Under California Law at the time he had no rights to the money he made as a child, and he was eventually awarded only $126,000 in 1939! The public was outraged when they learned of the situation, and the California Legislature was pressured to pass the "Coogan Act", which would set up a trust fund for any child actor to protect his earnings. The role he would become most noted and famous for came in 1964, when he was cast as Uncle Fester in "The Addams Family." The show ran from 1962-63 and was a huge success. In 1972 Jackie was reunited with his old friend Charlie Chaplin, who returned to the United States to accept an honorary Oscar. Jackie and a small crowd of well wishers met Charlie at the airport, and the frail Chaplin, upon recognizing Jackie, broke down, hugged him and whispered to him, "I think I would rather see you than anybody else." Jackie would continue to do small roles on television shows, and film, but none of the roles would ever compare to his role in "The Kid" or as "Fester." This would continue until March 1st, 1984, when Jackie was visiting a friend in Santa Monica, and suffered a heart attack. Hollywood had lost a legend. Jackie was 69 years young. R.I.P. View his grave and leave virtual flowers for Jackie here. TRIVIA He was engaged to stunning actress Toby Wing in 1935. When approached for autographs while dating her he would often write inscriptions backward to impress her, more or less confusing the autograph seeker. They eventually broke up over differences in their temperaments, just adding to 1935 being probably the single worst year of his life given his father's death and mother's refusal to pay out his childhood earnings. According to his daughter, his "Uncle Fester," role was his most liked role he ever did. When he was cast as Uncle Fester on "The Addams Family", he was fifty years old and nearly broke. After the show ended in 1966, he never lacked for work again, with numerous TV and film assignments. Although he eventually reconciled with his mother and stepfather after the lawsuit over his earnings, things were never the same, and his advice to future child stars was "stay away from mothers." |
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