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.[1] June Collins enrolled both Jack and Arthur at the Barbara Speake Stage School, an independent school in Acton, west London.[1]
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.[2] 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 starred as Jimmy in Pufnstuf's only season (1969), as well as in the film Pufnstuf (1970), which was released shortly after the show was concluded.
"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". In the early 1970s, Wild also released the albums Everything's Coming Up Roses and Beautiful World for Buddah Records.[5]
Later career
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. The show ran for two weeks at the Theatre Royal, Nottingham, in 1999. For his final film appearance, he had a minor role in Moussaka & Chips (2005), in which he once again worked with Ron Moody.[4]
Personal life
Wild first met Welsh-born actress Gaynor Jones when they were around 12 years old at the Barbara Speake stage school. After he left in 1966, he did not see her again until Christmas 1970. They married on 14 February 1976.[6] She left him in 1985 because of his chronic drinking.[2] Wild met his second wife, Claire Harding, when he was working with her in Jack and the Beanstalk in Worthing.[2] They married in Bedford in September 2005.[7] In 2001, Wild was diagnosed with oral cancer; he blamed the disease on his drinking and smoking habits.[8] He underwent chemotherapy immediately, and had his tongue and voice box removed in July 2004, leaving him unable to speak.[2] Wild had to communicate through his wife Claire for the rest of his life.[2]
Alcoholism
By 21, Wild was an alcoholic. After exhausting his remaining fortune, he lived with his retired father for a few years.[9] His alcoholism caused three cardiac arrests and resulted in numerous hospital stays.[9] He was diagnosed with diabetes on 14 March 1983. His alcoholism ruined both his career and marriage to Gaynor Jones, who left him in 1985 because of his drinking.[2]
During the mid-1980s, he often drank three to four bottles of vodka a week, and typically drank half a bottle of vodka and two bottles of wine every day.[10] He later admitted his alcoholism was so debilitating that he was incapable of performing any kind of work.[11] He once attended a drying-out clinic for drug addicts and alcoholics, run by Pete Townshend, but after being "dry" for six weeks, he bought a bottle of champagne to celebrate the fact he had stopped drinking. Wild eventually became sober on 6 March 1989, after joining a support group, Alcoholics Victorious.[11]
Death and legacy
Wild died on 1 March 2006 of oral cancer.[12] He is buried in Toddington Parish Cemetery, Bedfordshire.[13] He had been unable to speak for the last two years of his life following the operation in which his vocal cords and part of his tongue were removed.[14]
At the time of his death, he and his wife Claire had been working on his autobiography.[15] She said: "All the material was there when Jack died, it just needed rearranging, editing, and in certain sections, writing out from transcripts Jack and I made as we recorded him talking about his life."[10] The book, It's a Dodger's Life, was published in 2016 with a foreword by Pufnstuf co-star Billie Hayes, an afterword by Clive Francis, and an epilogue by Wild's wife.[10]
Filmography
List of acting performances in film and television
^Barkham, Patrick (3 March 2006). "Child star Jack Wild, the Artful Dodger, dies of cancer aged 53". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 June 2021. Wild admitted his heavy smoking and drinking made him a "walking time bomb" for mouth cancer. The disease was diagnosed in 2000. Although unable to speak after an operation two years ago...
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