Larry Lee Simms (October 1, 1934 – June 17, 2009) was an American aerospace engineer and former child actor who appeared in 36 films between 1937 and 1951.
Larry Simms | |
|---|---|
| Born | Larry Lee Simms October 1, 1934 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Died | June 17, 2009 (aged 74) Chonburi, Thailand |
| Years active | 1937–1951 |
Life and career
editLarry Simms was born October 1, 1934. He worked as a child model from the age of two and was discovered by a Hollywood talent scout when he appeared in a 1937 Saturday Evening Post advertisement.[1] His first film was The Last Gangster (1937), where he played Edward G. Robinson's young son. Simms became known for his appearances as Alexander "Baby Dumpling" Bumstead in the popular Blondie film series starring Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake. Between 1938 and the end of the series in 1950, Simms appeared as Alexander in 28 films earning at one point $750 a week.[2] In 1946, Simms joined the cast of the Blondie radio program, portraying Alexander there as he had in movies.[3]
Simms occasionally acted outside of the Blondie series, most notably in two Frank Capra films. He played one of the sons of Governor Hopper (Guy Kibbee) in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and Pete Bailey, the oldest child of James Stewart's George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life (1946). He retired from show business to join the Navy (he appeared in uniform as himself in the Columbia Screen Snaphots short Hollywood Grows Up), then studied aeronautical engineering at California Polytech. He later worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California and around the world as an engineer until his retirement from aeronautical engineering. Simms and his wife resided in Thailand prior to his death (on June 17 at age 74) in 2009.[4]
Filmography
edit- The Last Gangster (1937) - Joe Krozac Jr. as a Baby (uncredited)
- Blondie (1938) - Baby Dumpling
- Blondie Meets the Boss (1939) - Baby Dumpling
- Blondie Takes a Vacation (1939) - Baby Dumpling Bumstead
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) - Hopper Boy #4
- Blondie Brings Up Baby (1939) - Alexander 'Baby Dumpling' Bumstead
- Blondie on a Budget (1940) - Baby Dumpling Bumstead
- Blondie Has Servant Trouble (1940) - Baby Dumpling
- Blondie Plays Cupid (1940) - Baby Dumpling
- Blondie Goes Latin (1941) - Baby Dumpling Bumstead
- Blondie in Society (1941) - Baby Dumpling
- Blondie Goes to College (1942) - Alexander 'Baby Dumpling' Bumstead
- Blondie's Blessed Event (1942) - Baby Dumpling (Alexander) Bumstead
- The Gay Sisters (1942) - Austin
- Blondie for Victory (1942) - Baby Dumpling
- It's a Great Life (1943) - Alexander Bumstead / Baby Dumpling
- Footlight Glamour (1943) - Alexander Bumstead
- Leave It to Blondie (1945) - Alexander Bumstead
- Life with Blondie (1945) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Lucky Day (1946) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie Knows Best (1946) - Alexander Bumstead
- It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - Pete Bailey
- Blondie's Big Moment (1947) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Holiday (1947) - Alexander Bumstead
- Golden Earrings (1947) - Horace - Pageboy (uncredited)
- Song of Love (1947) - Prince Albert (uncredited)
- Blondie in the Dough (1947) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Anniversary (1947) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Reward (1948) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Secret (1948) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Big Deal (1949) - Alexander Bumstead
- Madame Bovary (1949) - Justin
- Blondie Hits the Jackpot (1949) - Alexander Bumstead
- Blondie's Hero (1950) - Alexander Bumstead
- Beware of Blondie (1950) - Alexander Bumstead
- Her First Romance (1951) - Military Boy (uncredited) (final film role)
- Screen Snapshots Series 33, Hollywood Grows Up (1954, Documentary short) - Himself
References
edit- ^ Larry Simms biography at the New York Times
- ^ Larry Simms biography at the New York Times
- ^ "Bumsteads". Harrisburg Telegraph. Harrisburg Telegraph. November 2, 1946. p. 19. Retrieved September 28, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Where are they now?", article about Larry Simms
Bibliography
edit- John Holmstrom, The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995, Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, p. 190.
External links
edit- Larry Simms at IMDb