Exhibits: Irish American Hall of History

Jackie Coogan

1914 - 1984

Film

Jackie was born into a family of vaudevillians where his father was a dancer and his mother was a child star. Jackie was on stage by the age of four and touring with the family by five years old. Charlie Chapman spotted him and in 1921 they made the movie The Kid which was very successful. By 1923, at age 9, he was one of the highest paid stars in Hollywood. His last memorable films were Tom Sawyer (1930) and Huckleberry Finn (1931). His estimated earnings over this time were $4 million. In 1935 he sued his parents to get the money he had earned from his career and was only awarded $126,000. The public uproar resulted in the "Child Actors Bill" or "The Coogan Act" in California, which would set up a trust fund for any child actor and protect his earnings. He may be remembered today as Uncle Fester in the popular TV series The Adams Family which ran from 1964-1966.

External Links

• Jackie Coogan - goldensilents.com
• Jackie Coogan - Wikipedia