Bobby Driscoll

Bobby Driscoll (born March 3, 1937; died March 30, 1968) was an American film actor who was highly successful as a child actor.

Related Topics:
March 3 - 1937 - March 30 - 1968 - America - Film - Child actor

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Born Robert Cletus Driscoll in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Driscoll made his first film appearance in 1943. His role in the 1949 drama The Window earned him an Academy Juvenile Award. He also gave a critically acclaimed performance in So Dear to My Heart the same year and in 1950 played Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island. He was the model used for the animated Walt Disney feature Peter Pan (1953) and also voiced the role of Peter Pan. It was his last success.

Related Topics:
Cedar Rapids, Iowa - 1943 - 1949 - The Window - Academy Juvenile Award - So Dear to My Heart - 1950 - Treasure Island - Walt Disney - Peter Pan - 1953

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As with many child actors, Hollywood studios grew indifferent to him as he reached his teens and he was no longer offered the roles that he hoped for. Dispirited, he grew ever more dependent on drugs, and made his last film appearance in filmmaker Piero Heliczer's 1965 underground classic, Dirt.

Related Topics:
Drugs - Piero Heliczer - 1965

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His body was found in a derelict East Village apartment in 1968. He had died from heart failure after years of drug abuse. Initially not recognized, his body was buried in a pauper's grave. Only after Driscoll's mother requested a search for her son a year later was his body identified.

Related Topics:
East Village - 1968 - Heart failure - Drug abuse

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