Tag Archives: child star

Kurt Russell: Rugged Child Star

Kurt Vogel Russell was born on March 17, 1951, in Springfield, Massachusetts. His father, Bing Russell, is a former baseball player, who played the deputy sheriff on the television series, “Bonanza” for six years. Kurt was a child star, landing a ten-year contract with Walt Disney in 1960 and in 1963, a part in an Elvis Presley movie, “It Happened at the World’s Fair.” He graduated from Thousand Oaks High School along with Michael Richards of “Seinfeld” fame. Richards was said to have voted Kurt the “best looking in the class.” Although he was well on his way to establishing … Continue reading →

Melissa Gilbert: Child Star Shining Bright

Born on May 8, 1964, in Los Angeles, California to a Jewish family, Melissa Ellen Gilbert, also known as Missy, was adopted by actor, Paul Gilbert and his wife, Barbara. She has a brother and a sister, both of whom were also adopted. When she was eight years of age, her adoptive parents divorced and when she was eleven, Paul Gilbert died. She was a child star and one of five hundred young girls who auditioned for the part of Laurra Ingalls Wilder for the television series, “Little House on the Prairie.” Her screen test was the only one sent … Continue reading →

Ron Howard: Child Star and Gifted Director

Ronald William Howard was born on March 1, 1954, to an acting family in Oklahoma. His father, Rance Howard, majored in drama at the University of Oklahoma and his mother, Jean Speegle Howard, attended acting school in New York. He made his movie debut at the tender age of 18 months, when he appeared in “Frontier Woman” (1956). His first real part was in 1958 at the age of four. He became a regular on “Playhouse 90,” and in 1960 was cast as Andy Griffith’s precocious son in the “The Andy Griffith Show.” In his shift from child star to … Continue reading →

Liza Minelli: A Rise Above

Liza Minelli once said: “reality is something you must rise above.” For the daughter of the late Judy Garland and Vincent Minelli who was born in Los Angeles, California, on March 12, 1946, this phrase could not reflect more truth. Named after Ira Gershwin’s song, “Liza (All The Clouds’ll Roll Away)”, she was practically raised at the MGM studio where her parents worked, and she made her debut at the tender age of 14 months in the musical “In the Good Old Summertime” (1949). In 1951, her world came crashing down when her parents divorced and her mother quickly remarried … Continue reading →