Jack Wild

Jack Wild (30 September 1952 – 1 March 2006) was an English actor and singer.

Wild was born into a working-class family in Royton, Lancashire, on 30 September 1952.

In 1960, at the age of eight, with his parents and his elder brother Arthur, he moved to Hounslow, in Middlesex, where he got a job helping the milkman, which paid about five shillings.

While playing football with his brother in the park, he was discovered by theatrical agent June Collins, mother of Phil Collins.

June Collins enrolled both Jack and Arthur at the Barbara Speake Stage School, an independent school in Acton, west London.

The Wild brothers sought acting roles to supplement their parents' income.

In the autumn of 1964, the pair were cast in the West End theatre production of Lionel Bart's Oliver! – Arthur in the title role and Jack as Charley Bates, a member of Fagin's gang.

In the spring of 1966, Wild left the stage show of Oliver! to make the film serial Danny the Dragon for the Children's Film Foundation.

Wild's first speaking roles on TV were in an episode of Out of the Unknown, and in the third part of the BBC's version of the Wesker trilogy, I'm Talking About Jerusalem.

He also appeared in episodes of Z-Cars, The Newcomers, and George and the Dragon.

After he left in 1966, he did not see her again until Christmas 1970.

He is best known for his role as the Artful Dodger in the film Oliver! (1968), for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the age of 16, becoming the fourth-youngest nominee in the category.

He also received BAFTA Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for the role.

Wild was chosen to play the Artful Dodger for the 1968 movie version of Oliver! His performance received critical acclaim and several nominations:

At the 1968 premiere of Oliver!, Wild met brothers Sid and Marty Krofft, who thought he would make a good lead for a show they were developing called H.R. Pufnstuf.

Wild also starred in the television series H.R. Pufnstuf (1969) and its film adaptation Pufnstuf (1970), as well as in the films Melody (1971) and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991).

Wild starred as Jimmy in Pufnstuf's only season (1969), as well as in H.R. Pufnstuf segments in the second (and final) season of The Banana Splits Adventure Hour and in the film Pufnstuf (1970), which was released shortly after the show was concluded.

During the early 1970s, Wild was considered a teen heartthrob, alongside David Cassidy and Barry Williams.

In the early 1970s, Wild also released the albums Everything's Coming Up Roses and Beautiful World for Buddah Records.

Wild then appeared in Melody (1971, with Oliver! co-star Mark Lester) and Flight of the Doves (1971, with another Oliver! co-star, Ron Moody).

In 1972, Wild appeared as a stowaway in an episode of BBC TV's The Onedin Line.

In 1973, he played Reg in The 14, a film directed by David Hemmings.

On television, Wild appeared in a BBC adaptation of Our Mutual Friend in 1976.

They married on 14 February 1976.

She left him in 1985 because of his chronic drinking.

He met his second wife, Claire L. Harding, when he was working with her in Jack and the Beanstalk in Worthing.

Wild returned to the big screen in a few minor roles, such as in the 1991 Kevin Costner film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and as a peddler in Basil (1998).

For the most part, he spent the remainder of his career working in theatre.

Wild's last major appearance was as the male lead, Mouse, in Tayla Goodman's rock musical Virus.

In 1999, Wild lamented, "'When I first entered in the show business, of course I didn't mind playing younger roles. However, it did bug me when I would be 21 being offered the role of a 13-year-old. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy playing these roles; I had barrels of fun, I just wanted more serious and dramatic roles; it's that simple.'"

He also embarked on a recording career, releasing The Jack Wild Album for Capitol Records, which contained the single "Some Beautiful".

The show ran for two weeks at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham, in 1999.

In 2001, Wild was diagnosed with oral cancer; he blamed the disease on his drinking and smoking habits.

He underwent chemotherapy immediately, and had his tongue and voice box removed in July 2004, leaving him unable to speak.

Wild had to communicate through his wife Claire for the rest of his life.

By 21, Wild was an alcoholic.

After exhausting his remaining fortune, he lived with his retired father for a few years.

For his final film appearance, he had a minor role in Moussaka & Chips (2005), in which he once again worked with Ron Moody.

Wild first met Welsh-born actress Gaynor Jones when they were around 12 years old at the Barbara Speake stage school.

They married in Bedford in September 2005.