John Leslie "Jackie" Coogan

 John Leslie "Jackie" Coogan (October 26, 1914 – March 1, 1984)

Coogan began his movie career as a child actor in silent films. Charlie Chaplin's film The Kid (1921) made him one of the first child stars in film history. Many years later, he became known as Uncle Fester on the 1960s sitcom The Addams Family. His first marriage was to Betty Grable, which lasted from 1937 until their divorce in 1939. Coogan enlisted in the United States Army in March 1941. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he requested a transfer to United States Army Air Forces as a glider pilot because of his civilian flying experience. After graduating from glider school, he was made a flight officer and he volunteered for hazardous duty with the 1st Air Commando Group. As a child actor, Coogan earned an estimated $3 to $4 million, but the entire amount was spent by his mother and stepfather, Arthur Bernstein, on fur coats, diamonds and other jewelry, and expensive cars. Coogan sued them in 1938, but after his legal expenses, he received just $126,000 of the $250,000 remaining of his earnings. The legal battle focused attention on child actors and resulted in the 1939 enactment of the California Child Actor's Bill, often referred to as the 'Coogan Law' or the 'Coogan Act'. It required that a child actor's employer set aside 15% of the earnings in a trust (called a Coogan account), and specified the actor's schooling, work hours, and time-off. After suffering from heart and kidney ailments, Jackie Coogan died of heart failure on March 1, 1984, at age 69 in Santa Monica, California. He is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.