- Jean Darling
Infobox actor
bgcolour = silver
name = Jean Darling
imagesize =
caption = Darling in the 1920s.
birthname = Dorothy Jean LeVake
birthdate = birth date and age|1922|8|23|mf=y
location =Santa Monica, California U.S.
deathdate =
deathplace =
occupation =Film actress
yearsactive = 1927-1953
birthname =
spouse =Reuben Bowen (1954-present)
othername =
homepage =
academyawards =Jean Darling (b.
August 23 ,1922 ,Santa Monica, California ) is a former Americanchild actress who was a regular in the "Our Gang "short subjects series from 1927 to 1929.In 1926 at the age of four, Dorothy Jean LeVake got her big break when she passed her screen test and was accepted for a part in the
Hal Roach Our Gang series. By that stage her name had been changed to Jean Darling. Jean appeared in 35 "Our Gang" films during this period. She is also the last surviving cast member of thesilent era version.Jean continued to appear in films after leaving the gang, including an appearance in
Laurel & Hardy 's 1934 adaptation of "Babes in Toyland" and as the young Jane inJane Eyre (1934).A round of stage and radio shows followed. Stage shows involved up to seven shows a day. It was punishing schedule for a fourteen-year-old. And that was not taking into account her educational studies. Jean began to study singing, and in 1940 she was given a scholarship by the New York Municipal Opera Association. She turned down an offer to play alongside
Mickey Rooney in one of theMGM "Andy Hardy " movies.Instead, she went on Broadway, making her debut in the musical "Count Me In" in 1942. Jean's stage career hit a real high when she landed the role of Carrie Pipperidge in the original Broadway production of "Carousel" in 1945. She appeared in 850 consecutive performances, setting a record for a singer. Fact|date=October 2007
Her role as Carrie helped her with parts for radio and TV in the 1950s and Jean hosted her own television show for
NBC inNew York City , ‘A Date With Jean Darling’. Her daily TV show for women, ‘The Singing Knit-Witch’, was aired on KHJ-TV inHollywood .Personal life
Jean married Reuben Bowen (whose stage name was Kajer the Magician). They had one son, Roy.
Since 1974 Jean has been living in
Dublin ,Ireland , where she has written mystery stories and has had over 50 short stories published in the "Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine " and "Whispers".As "Aunty Poppy", she reads stories, which she wrote herself, on RTÉ radio and TV. She has also written plays for radio and has worked as a journalist.
Darling is one of the few living "Our Gang"ers from the original series. Other surviving members are
Jackie Cooper ,Dorothy DeBorba , Dickie Moore,Shirley Jean Rickert , Mickey Gubitosi (Robert Blake),Jerry Tucker andJackie Lynn Taylor .External links
*imdb name|id=0201371|name=Jean Darling
*amg name|2:17033
* [http://indigo.ie/~jdarling/ Her Website]Persondata
NAME= Darling, Jean
ALTERNATIVE NAMES= LeVake, Dorothy Jean;
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Film actress
DATE OF BIRTH= 1922-8-23
PLACE OF BIRTH=Santa Monica, California U.S.
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=
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