Luke Halpin

Luke Austin Halpin (born April 4, 1947) is an American actor. Beginning a prolific career as a child actor at the age of eight, Halpin is perhaps best known for his role as Sandy Ricks in the feature films Flipper and Flipper's New Adventure, as well as for reprising his role for the television series adaptation, also titled Flipper.

Early life

Halpin was born in Astoria, Queens, New York City to Helen Joan (née Szczepanski) and Eugene A. Halpin. His father was of Irish and German descent, and his maternal grandparents were Polish. He grew up with his family in Long Island City. He has an older brother, Eugene, Jr., and an older sister, Joan. He and his siblings were raised as Roman Catholics.

Career

Early career

Halpin's career began when a music teacher, impressed by Halpin's "all-American" look, encouraged him to try acting. In 1955 he co-starred with Natalie Wood in an episode of Studio One entitled "Miracle at Potter's Farm". Numerous roles followed, and by his mid-teens, Halpin had appeared on many of the major TV series of the day: Armstrong Circle Theatre, The United States Steel Hour, Studio One, Kraft Television Theatre, Hallmark Hall of Fame, The Phil Silvers Show, Harbormaster, The Defenders, Route 66, Naked City, The Everglades, and had a recurring role for six months on the soap opera Young Doctor Malone.