|
Post by mickeygubitosifan on Jan 13, 2011 3:07:13 GMT -5
I didn't realize that Cullen and Payne Johnson were brothers. They both have dark hair, but beyond that I guess I just didn't think to look for any family resemblance.
I have heard doubts raised in the past about the accuracy of "Elmer" as Scooter Lowry's real first name, but from what Rhapsody says, the name seems to be an assertion that is fairly well represented by the facts. If the obituary is not about him, though, then does that mean we don't even know for sure if he is deceased? Could Scooter Lowry still possibly be numbered among the surviving Gangsters?
|
|
|
Post by bigshotjones on Jan 13, 2011 9:21:00 GMT -5
Yeah. I'd say Lowry's vital status is "unknown." Not just that, but you have to entertain the possibility that "Elmer" may or may not have been his legal given name, or possibly might have been a middle name.
BTW, I found Hurlic's name in the phone book. Anyone wanna give him a call to see what hes been doing for the past 60 years? (I'm obviously not going to post it here, but if I can find it, anyone can.)
|
|
|
Post by rhapsody on Jan 13, 2011 10:20:48 GMT -5
Yeah. I'd say Lowry's vital status is "unknown." Not just that, but you have to entertain the possibility that "Elmer" may or may not have been his legal given name, or possibly might have been a middle name. I agree regarding Scooter's status. The only other information I can add is that his father died shortly after he was born and that as of the 1930 census he was living under the name Elmer Lowry on Long Island with who looked to be his stepfather's parents (along with his mother and sister.) He was only 10 at the time, so a later last name change is possible if he ever was adopted. A number of years ago, I saw a posting somewhere from someone who said she had an older neighbor once on Long Island who claimed to have been Scooter in Our Gang.
|
|
|
Post by rascalwatcher on Jan 13, 2011 21:16:25 GMT -5
Yeah. I'd say Lowry's vital status is "unknown." Not just that, but you have to entertain the possibility that "Elmer" may or may not have been his legal given name, or possibly might have been a middle name. BTW, I found Hurlic's name in the phone book. Anyone wanna give him a call to see what hes been doing for the past 60 years? (I'm obviously not going to post it here, but if I can find it, anyone can.) That's how I found the addresses of some of the gang when I was writing to them back in the 80s, starting with Sid Kibrick. From him I got Leonard Kibrick's address, which expanded to a few others through their sources. Phone books still can serve a vital purpose, apparently - if he's the right Hurlic.
|
|
|
Post by rhapsody on Jan 13, 2011 23:00:32 GMT -5
I have heard doubts raised in the past about the accuracy of "Elmer" as Scooter Lowry's real first name, but from what Rhapsody says, the name seems to be an assertion that is fairly well represented by the facts. If the obituary is not about him, though, then does that mean we don't even know for sure if he is deceased?? I hear ya, mickey, he just doesn't look like an Elmer. I had him pegged for a Frankie..... It's certainly possible he's alive somewhere at age 91. However, it seems a little strange that he never surfaced again anytime after the Rascals hit the TV airwaves. He does not come across as the retiring type in interviews and in the article from the 50's he made it clear that he missed his time in the "spotlight" (if you could call it that) and planned to return to Hollywood
|
|
|
Post by bigshotjones on Jan 13, 2011 23:01:42 GMT -5
Yeah, it's not a 100% guarantee, but that's a very unusual name, and there is one in a California city, who will be 81 this year, I think there's a good chance.
|
|
|
Post by littlerascal4891 on Jan 15, 2011 17:54:32 GMT -5
I'm glad that there are still a hand full of Rascals still with us. Wish there were more though... there easily could be more, some kids were born in the 1930s, which is a long time ago, but a lot of people born in the 30s are around today.
|
|
|
Post by rascal88 on Jan 15, 2011 21:59:45 GMT -5
Does anyone know where Marianne Edwards or Peggy Ahern are now?
|
|
|
Post by bigears on Jan 15, 2011 22:56:56 GMT -5
Darryl and Dwayne Hickman both made some apppearances with the gang, although they weren't regulars, and they are both still alive.
|
|
|
Post by mickeygubitosifan on Jan 16, 2011 1:54:05 GMT -5
Here is the full list of surviving Gangsters from the "Our Gang Personnel" Wikipedia page. Of course, some of these actors appeared only a single time in the series and weren't really part of the gang, so this might better be called a list of the surviving actors who made an appearance in the Our Gang films. The text at the top of the list reads "As of January 7, 2011, the following Our Gang kids are still living".
The list: Robert Blake; Jackie Cooper; Jean Darling; Marianne Edwards; Mildred Kornman; Sidney Kibrick; Leonard Landy; Dickie Moore; Jackie Lynn Taylor; Jerry Tucker; Jack Hanlon; Dick Jones; Billy Naylor; Peggy Lynch; Peggy Ahern; Lassie Lou Ahern; Priscilla Montgomery; Valerie Lee; Edith Fellows; Hugh Chapman; Leon Tyler; Annie Ross; Joy Wurgaft; Patsy Barry; Vincent Graeff; Philip Hurlic; Payne Johnson; Laura June Kinney; Patsy Britten; Darryl Hickman; Dwayne Hickman; Donnie "Beezer" Smith; Dickie Jackson.
That's exactly as the names appear on the list, thirty-three in all.
|
|
|
Post by bigshotjones on Jan 16, 2011 10:06:00 GMT -5
Another minor player, but who had one notable role, still living is Jackie Horner (Goldstein), best known for doing the Eleanor Powell dance routine in "Calling All Kids."
|
|
|
Post by mickeygubitosifan on Jan 16, 2011 14:42:19 GMT -5
I'll add Jackie Horner to the list on Wikipedia, then. So, we have thirty-four currently living Our Gang players, as far as I can see.
|
|
|
Post by ymymeatemup on Jan 16, 2011 15:01:05 GMT -5
Not to be a wise guy, but.... When it says "as of January 7, 2011" - what did the writer do, call each of those people on the phone that day and ask them if they were dead yet?
|
|
|
Post by littlerascal4891 on Jan 17, 2011 3:21:26 GMT -5
I wouldn't put 100% faith in Wikipedia pages anyway, since they can be edited by anyone.
|
|
|
Post by bigshotjones on Jan 17, 2011 17:29:57 GMT -5
I agree regarding Scooter's status. The only other information I can add is that his father died shortly after he was born and that as of the 1930 census he was living under the name Elmer Lowry on Long Island with who looked to be his stepfather's parents (along with his mother and sister.) I don't have access to any of the cool sites, but I did find an "Elmer C. Lowry" in the 1920 and 1930 census born "about 1920." It lists him living in Nassau County, which is on Long Island. The SSDI lists an "Elmer C. Lowry" born Dec. 26, 1919, dying in 1991, reasonably close to the DOB you found. Might these all be the same person?
|
|