Tommy Bond
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Tommy Bond | |
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Northridge, California, U.S. | |
Resting place | Riverside National Cemetery, Riverside, California |
Other names | Butch |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1932–2005 |
Thomas Ross Bond (September 16, 1926 – September 24, 2005) was an American actor, director, producer and writer. He was best known for his work as a child actor for two nonconsecutive periods in Our Gang (Little Rascals) comedies (first as "Tommy" and later as "Butch"). Also, he is noted for being the first actor to appear onscreen as DC Comics character Jimmy Olsen, in the film serials Superman (1948) and Atom Man vs. Superman (1950).
Biography
Early years and Our Gang
Born in
Bond was hired at Hal Roach Studios for the Our Gang series in the summer of 1931 to begin work that upcoming fall, at around the same time as
After leaving the gang for the first time, Bond also worked as a
Bond returned to Our Gang on a recurring basis late in 1936, when Roach hired him to play "Butch", the neighborhood bully. In the film
By the late 1930s Bond was so established as a juvenile actor that other studios recruited him for feature films. He was a regular in Columbia's Five Little Peppers series of children's stories in 1939-40. He also appeared opposite singing star Gloria Jean in Universal's A Little Bit of Heaven (1940).
When the Our Gang series moved to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1938, Bond remained with the group. His final Our Gang short, Bubbling Troubles (1940); Bond continued to work in other MGM productions following his departure from Our Gang. In total, Bond appeared in 27 Our Gang shorts – 13 as "Tommy" and 14 as "Butch".
Later years
After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, Bond returned to acting, and appeared in two Gas House Kids features alongside former on-screen rival Carl Switzer. In the late 1940s, Bond became the first actor to portray cub reporter Jimmy Olsen in two Superman film serials: Superman (1948) and Atom Man vs. Superman (1950).[1]
In 1951, Bond graduated from college and quit acting, but remained in show business in the areas of television directing and production, and worked with individuals such as Norman Lear, George Schlatter, and many others. He worked at
During the 1960s, Bond was an active member of Emmanuel Lutheran Church in North Hollywood where a number of his Hollywood friends and colleagues attended. Together, they were instrumental in the production and presentation of the annual Christmas Pageant presented on the grounds of Emmanuel's school Laurel Hall. The production, which involved a cast of several hundred, a chariot and horses, numerous other animals and professional Hollywood sets and lighting, was presented each year during the Christmas season for several weeks leading up to Christmas. Grandstand-style bleachers were installed that seated about 1000 guests. Highlights of the pageant included a horse-driven chariot and Roman soldiers on horseback riding through the gates of Bethlehem to proclaim the census requiring Jews to register in their hometowns. Bond was instrumental in arranging for the production to be filmed and aired on Metromedia-owned Channel 11, KTTV in about 1965.
In 1972, he appeared as a guest on
Throughout his lifetime, Bond appeared in 73 films, was a charter member of the Screen Actors Guild, joining in 1937, and worked with many Hollywood stars in the years of 1933 to 1951, including James Stewart, Eleanor Powell, Ray Bolger, Frank Morgan, and Eddie Cantor among many others.
Death
Bond died on September 24, 2005,
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1934 | Kid Millions | Little Boy in Ice Cream Number | Uncredited |
1935 | The Marriage Bargain | Jimmy Sparks | |
1935 | The Calling of Dan Matthews | Tommy | Uncredited |
1936 | Next Time We Love | Pesky Kid | Uncredited |
1936 | The Return of Jimmy Valentine | Listener | Uncredited |
1936 | Silly Billies | Student | Uncredited |
1936 | Counterfeit | Dicky | Uncredited |
1936 | Libeled Lady | Waif | Uncredited |
1937 | Champagne Waltz | Otto, Singing Student | Uncredited |
1937 | Married Before Breakfast | Baglipp's Kid | Uncredited |
1937 | Hideaway | Oscar Peterson | |
1937 | Rosalie | Mickey | Uncredited |
1938 | City Streets | Tommy Francis Devlin | |
1938 | Block-Heads | Neighbor's Son | Uncredited |
1939 | Five Little Peppers and How They Grew | Joey Pepper | |
1940 | Five Little Peppers at Home | ||
1940 | Out West with the Peppers | ||
1940 | Five Little Peppers in Trouble | ||
1940 | A Little Bit of Heaven | Jerry | |
1941 | Adventure in Washington | Peewee Haynes | |
1941 | New York Town | Willie | Uncredited |
1943 | This Land Is Mine | Pug-nosed School Bully | Uncredited |
1944 | Man from Frisco | Russ Kennedy | |
1945 | Twice Blessed | Horace | |
1945 | The Beautiful Cheat | Jimmy | |
1947 | Gas House Kids Go West | Chimp | |
1947 | Gas House Kids in Hollywood |
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1948 | Big Town Scandal | Waldo 'Dum Dum' Riggs | |
1948 | Superman | Jimmy Olsen | Serial |
1949 | The Lucky Stiff | Newsboy | Uncredited |
1949 | Any Number Can Play | Mike | Uncredited |
1949 | Intruder in the Dust | Minor Role | Uncredited |
1949 | Tokyo Joe | Fingerprint Sergeant | Uncredited |
1949 | Battleground | Runner | Uncredited |
1950 | Atom Man vs. Superman | Jimmy Olsen | Serial |
1950 | Hot Rod | Jack Blodgett | |
1951 | Call Me Mister | Little Soldier | Uncredited |
1951 | Bedtime for Bonzo | Student Reading Newspaper | Uncredited |
1971 | The Love Machine | Stagehand | Uncredited |
1972 | I've Got a Secret | Himself | |
2004 | Bob's Night Out | Crazy Neighbor | (final film role) |
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7864-5210-1. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
- ^ "I've Got a Secret - Kaye Ballard (1972)". YouTube.
Books
- Bond, Tommy, w. Genini, Ron (1994). Darn Right It's Butch: Memories of Our Gang/The Little Rascals. Delaware: Morgan Press. ISBN 0-9630976-5-2.
Further reading
- Dye, David. Child and Youth Actors: Filmography of Their Entire Careers, 1914-1985. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 1988, pp. 23–24.
- Holmstrom, John. The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995, Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, pp. 153.