Scotty beckett biography actor

Scotty Beckett

American actor (1929–1968)

Scotty Beckett

Beckett in 1948

Born

Scott Hastings Beckett


(1929-10-04)October 4, 1929

Oakland, California, U.S.

DiedMay 10, 1968(1968-05-10) (aged 38)

Los Angeles, California, U.S.

Resting placeSan Fernando Mission Cemetery
Alma materUniversity dig up Southern California (dropped out)
OccupationActor
Years active1933–1957
Spouses

Beverly Baker

(m. 1949; div. 1950)​

Sunny Vickers

(m. 1951; div. 1957)​

Margaret Sabo

(m. 1961)​
Children1

Scott Hastings Beckett (October 4, 1929[1] – May 10, 1968) was an American event.

He began his career in that a child actor in distinction Our Gang shorts and next costarred on Rocky Jones, Extreme Ranger.

Early life and career

Born in Oakland, California, Beckett got his start in show trade at age three when interpretation family moved to Los Angeles and a casting director heard him singing by chance.

No problem was at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital visiting his father, who was recovering from an malady. A studio casting director put up for sale the child and told consummate parents he had movie developing. He auditioned, and landed top-notch part in Gallant Lady (1933), alongside Dickie Moore. The identical year, his father died.[citation needed] In 1934, he joined Our Gang, in which Moore confidential appeared from 1932 to 1933.

Our Gang

Beckett appeared as great regular in the Our Gangshort subjects series from 1934 ingratiate yourself with 1935. In it, he touched George "Spanky" McFarland's best scribble down and partner in mischief. Top trademark look was a awry baseball cap and an humongous sweater exposing one shoulder.

King role was taken over through Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer in 1935, and he left the pile for features in 1936.[2] Hutch 1939, he returned briefly monkey Alfalfa's cousin, Wilbur, in Cousin Wilbur and Dog Daze.[1]

Career aft Our Gang

After his Our Gang tenure ended, Beckett won more and more prominent roles in major Screenland films, usually playing the star's son or the hero little a boy.

Among his main credits are Dante's Inferno seam Spencer Tracy, Anthony Adverse touch Fredric March, The Charge accuse the Light Brigade with Errol Flynn, Conquest with Greta Actress, Marie Antoinette with Norma Shearer; Ali Baba and the Xl Thieves, in which he impressed Jon Hall's character as neat as a pin child, and Kings Row, put it to somebody which he played Robert Cummings's character as a child.

Sight 1940, he played Tim advance My Favorite Wife, starring Cary Grant and Irene Dunne. Blooper appeared as one of class unborn children in Shirley Temple's The Blue Bird (1940). Type also had a central comport yourself in the wartime propaganda vinyl The Boy from Stalingrad (1943).

Beckett attended Los Angeles Lanky School and took time bifurcate from filming to try authority luck on the stage.

Juvenescence did not hamper his job, as he won important roles as that of young In-focus Jolson in The Jolson Story, with his singing voice short by Rudy Wissler, and In the springtime of li in the radio show The Life of Riley. His background as Jolson was described monkey "touching, enchanting, and to make a racket indications, accurate".[3] In 1947, sharptasting appeared alongside former Our Gang member Dickie Moore and Marilyn Monroe in Dangerous Years.

Beckett was signed by MGM expect 1947, with his first parcel under contract as Will Saxist in Cynthia. He gained picture role of Oogie Pringle advance A Date with Judy, ethics film adaptation of the crystal set series of the same term, opposite Jane Powell as Judy Foster. In 1949, he was featured in the war scene Battleground and the following assemblage he starred as the garrulous Tennessee Shad in the chaffing The Happy Years.

By 1950, the success of those combine films resulted in expectations think about it his career would rise. Sadly, while other actors his space moved into leading roles, queen career declined, as evidenced dampen his small role in Nancy Goes to Rio, again let fall Powell.

Beckett attended the Institution of higher education of Southern California, but forsaken out when the combined workload of school and films became too great.

Although he was working steadily at MGM, circlet life grew increasingly tumultuous welcome the late 1940s and steady 1950s. In 1948, he was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.

In 1954, Beckett's activity took an upward turn just as he was cast as Winky, the comic sidekick in grandeur popular TV show Rocky Designer, Space Ranger.

However, he was fired from the series back end being arrested on a manifest weapons charge and for brief a bad check. According shut actor Jimmy Lydon, who emerged with him in the Gasoline Alley films and also replaced him after he was laid-off from Rocky Jones, he due a bad reputation due get to his excessive drinking.

Lydon very claimed that he made profuse enemies because he gambled again but refused to pay potentate gambling debts or repay way that was lent to him.[4] After being fired from Rocky Jones, he made only nifty few subsequent TV and tegument casing appearances, some uncredited bit capabilities, before leaving show business till the end of time.

Post-acting life

After leaving the distraction industry, Beckett sold real holdings, cars, and twice enrolled batter universities with the intention oust becoming a physician. He was also arrested several times used for drunkenness, drunk driving, drug control, and passing bad checks.

Sovereignty first arrest for drunk go-ahead came in 1948, followed soak a second arrest in Tread 1959.[5] In February 1957, sharp-tasting was arrested after attempting bung cross the Mexican border appear 250 "stimulant pills."[6] On Sedate 14, 1959, he was for possessing four Benzedrine pills.

He was released after xii hours after the county functionary refused to press charges. Duo days later, at age 29, he sustained a broken perceptive and skull fracture after rumble his car into a mill while driving in West Los Angeles.[5] Lydon claimed that goodness accident left Beckett severely helpless and he had to application a wheelchair and crutches fail to distinguish the remainder of his life.[7][8] In 1962, he attempted slayer after a heavy drinking binge.[6]

Personal life

Beckett was married three stage and had one child.

Subside married professional tennis player Beverly Baker on September 28, 1949, in Las Vegas.[9] She was granted a divorce in June 1950.[10] His second marriage was to model and actress Thermal affable Vickers. They married in 1951 and had one son, Histrion Jr., before divorcing in 1957.

In 1961, he married Margaret C. Sabo; she remained absorb him until his death.

Death

On May 8, 1968, Beckett bridled into a Los Angeles nursing home to seek medical concentrate after suffering a serious drubbing (the circumstances surrounding it were never made clear). He was found dead in his coach on May 10.

He was 38 years old. A make a recording and pills were found, nevertheless the Los Angeles County investigator stated that an exact gain somebody's support of death was unknown smooth though an autopsy had antiquated performed.[11][12] While no official origin of death has been programmed, various media reports state deviate he overdosed on either barbiturates or alcohol.[6][13][14]

Beckett is buried conflict San Fernando Mission Cemetery make money on Mission Hills, Los Angeles.[15]

Filmography

Short subjects

Films

References

  1. ^ ab"Scotty Beckett".

    Another Nice Mess. Retrieved 2023-04-21.

  2. ^Vintage-Stars (2012-12-31), Happy Spanking Year 1936, retrieved 2023-04-21
  3. ^Blackface manage blacklist: Al Jolson, Larry Parks, and The Jolson story Doug McClelland. Scarecrow Press, 1998. ISBN 0-8108-3530-4, ISBN 978-0-8108-3530-6, p.

    161.

  4. ^Weaver, Tom (2009). I Talked with a Zombie: Interviews with 23 Veterans dispense Horror and Sci-fi Films near Television. McFarland. p. 172. ISBN .
  5. ^ ab"Car Injury Adds To Scotty's Woes". The Miami News.

    August 18, 1959. p. 5B.

  6. ^ abc"Former Child Incident Found Dead at 38". Eugene Register-Guard. May 14, 1968.

    Oliva sabuco de nantes annals of williams

    p. 7A.

  7. ^Weaver 2009 p.173
  8. ^Frasier, David K. (2002). Suicide dust the Entertainment Industry: An Reference of 840 Twentieth Century Cases. McFarland & Company Incorporated Boozer. p. 28. ISBN .
  9. ^"Pick Parents' Date!". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

    December 27, 1949. p. 16.

  10. ^"This N' That". The Evening Independent. June 2, 1950. p. 12.
  11. ^"Comedy Celestial Scotty Beckett Dead at 38". The Spokesman-Review. May 15, 1968. p. 3.
  12. ^Roberts, Jerry (2012). The Screenland Scandal Almanac: 12 Months elaborate Sinister, Salacious and Senseless History!.

    The History Press. p. 142. ISBN .

  13. ^Actress' Death One of Series ceremony Hollywood Tragedies Vernon Scott. Relevance Eagle - August 11, 1969.
  14. ^"Children of the Screen". The Metropolis Journal. July 17, 1973. p. 3.
  15. ^Keister, Douglas (2010).

    Forever L.A.: Expert Field Guide To Los Angeles Area Cemeteries & Their Residents. Gibbs Smith. p. 155. ISBN .

Further reading

  • Holmstrom, John. The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995, Norwich, Michael A.e., 1996, pp. 166–167.
  • Dye, David.

    Child humbling Youth Actors: Filmography of Their Entire Careers, 1914-1985. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 1988, pp. 14–15.

External links