Mickey Kuhn

Mickey Kuhn
Born Theodore Matthew Michael Kuhn Jr.
(1932-09-21) 21 September 1932
Waukegan, Illinois, U.S.
Residence Naples, Florida, U.S.
Other names Michael Kuhn
Occupation Child actor
Years active 1934–1951
1955–1957
Spouse(s)
Jean Marie Hannick
(m. 1956; div. 1962)

Barbara Traci (m. 1984)

Theodore Matthew Michael Kuhn Jr. (born 21 September 1932), better known as Mickey Kuhn, is an American former child actor who was very famous in Hollywood during the 1930s and 1940s.

His most remembered role was in Gone with the Wind (1939), which received widespread critical acclaim. He also appeared in Juarez (1939), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945), Red River (1948), and Broken Arrow (1950).

Life and career

Born in Waukegan, Illinois of German descent, he started as a child actor in the 1930s and appeared opposite Conrad Nagel and Leslie Howard, amongst others. His first fame came in playing the role of Beau Wilkes (Ashley and Melanie's son) in Gone with the Wind (1939). He later went on to appear in Juarez (1939) opposite Bette Davis, as the adoptive son of John Wayne in Red River, and in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), in which he was reunited with Vivien Leigh a dozen years after they first worked together in Gone with the Wind. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Kuhn played a sailor who directs Blanche to the correct streetcar which will take her to her sister's neighborhood at the beginning of the film. He is the only actor to share screen time with Leigh in each of her Oscar-winning performances.[1]

Kuhn left film business in 1957 and later worked for American Airlines and the Boston airport in administrative positions until his retirement. He now regularly visits film festivals dealing with his old films.

Kuhn, along with Olivia de Havilland (who portrayed his mother, Melanie Wilkes), is one of the last two surviving credited cast members from Gone with the Wind.[2] Patrick Curtis is also a survivor, although his part of Melanie's infant newborn son is uncredited.

Kuhn currently lives in Naples, Florida and volunteers four hours per week at a local hospital.[3]

Filmography

Year Title Role
1934 Change of Heart Adopted baby (film debut, uncredited)
1937 A Doctor's Diary Boy in hospital
1939 King of the Underworld Young Boy
Juarez Agustín de Iturbide y Green
S.O.S. Tidal Wave Buddy Shannon
When Tomorrow Comes Boy (uncredited)
Bad Little Angel Bobby Creighton - Age 5 (uncredited)
Gone with the Wind Beau Wilkes
1940 I Want a Divorce David Holland, Jr.
Slightly Tempted Boy (uncredited)
1941 One Foot in Heaven Boy (uncredited)
1944 Beneath Western Skies Teddy (uncredited)
1945 Roughly Speaking John
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Boy at Christmas Tree Throw (uncredited)
This Love of Ours Youngster (uncredited)
Dick Tracy Junior
1946 Roaring Rangers Larry Connor (uncredited)
The Strange Love of Martha Ivers Young Walter
The Searching Wind Sam as a Boy
The Return of Rusty Marty Connors
Three Little Girls in Blue Farm boy
1947 High Conquest Peter Oberwalder Jr.
Magic Town Hank Nickleby
1948 Red River Young Matt
1949 Scene of the Crime Ed Monigan, Jr.
1950 Broken Arrow Bob Slade (uncredited)
1951 That's My Boy Student (uncredited)
A Streetcar Named Desire The Helpful Sailor
On the Loose Bob Vance
1955 The Last Frontier Luke
1956 Away All Boats Seaman (final film)
Alfred Hitchcock Presents Bellhop/Ellerbee

References

  1. ↑ Argetsinger, Amy (December 15, 2014). "A quiet 75th anniversary for 'Gone With the Wind' and one of its last surviving actors, Mickey Kuhn". Washington Post. Retrieved June 27, 2016.
  2. ↑ Noland, Claire (April 8, 2014). "Mary Anderson dies at 96; actress had role in 'Gone With the Wind'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 8, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Mickey Kuhn, child actor during Hollywood's Golden Age, lives in Naples, Florida". Naples Daily News. Retrieved 22 December 2017.

Bibliography

  • Goldrup, Tom and Jim (2002). Growing Up on the Set: Interviews with 39 Former Child Actors of Film and Television. McFarland & Co. p. 178-185. ISBN 1476613702.
  • Holmstrom, John (1996). The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995. Norwich: Michael Russell, p. 178.
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