Dean Stockwell, cult star of ‘Blue Velvet’ and ‘Quantum Leap,’ dies

Former child star Dean Stockwell, the Oscar-nominated actor who turned his back on Hollywood again and again only to earn cult status in “Blue Velvet” and “Married to the Mob,” has died.

The veteran actor, who appeared in more than 200 roles that spanned film, television and theater, starred in “The Boy With Green Hair,” “Anchors Aweigh,” “Blue Velvet” and “Married to the Mob” before turning to the small screen for star roles in the sci-fi series “Quantum Leap” and “Battlestar Galactica.”

Stockwell died early Sunday morning at home, peacefully of natural causes, agent Jay Schwartz said Tuesday in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. He was 85.

“I had the pleasure of working with Dean Stockwell for a short period of time before his retirement from the entertainment industry,” his former manager Lesa Kirk said in a statement to The Times. “Dean was gentle, gracious and one of a kind, a class act. Dean will truly be missed.”

Stockwell was very much a child of Hollywood: He was born Robert Dean Stockwell in North Hollywood in 1936 into a show business family, complete with stage parents. His father was Harry Stockwell, who voiced Prince Charming in Walt Disney’s 1937 animated classic “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” and his mother, Betty, was an actress and dancer. His younger brother, Guy Stockwell, was an actor who appeared in dozens of movies and TV shows and later became an acting coach before his death in 2002.

Stockwell’s parents pushed him into theater at the age of 7, and as a young boy he made his Broadway debut with his brother in 1943’s “The Innocent Voyage.” Two years later, he signed as a contract player at MGM, where he made his film debut in “The Valley of Decision” with Greer Garson and Gregory Peck.

That same year he made a splash in Gene Kelly’s classic musical comedy “Anchors Aweigh,” alongside Kelly, Frank Sinatra and Kathryn Grayson. Over the next seven years, he appeared in 17 MGM films, including “The Green Years” (1946), “Gentleman’s Agreement” (1947), “The Boy With Green Hair” (1948) and “The Secret Garden” (1949).

By 15, he’d already made 20 films but disliked the attention, so he bid farewell to Hollywood in 1952, when he was just 16. To escape the pressure of stardom, he changed his name and roamed the country for five years, picking up what odd jobs he could.

But with few marketable skills, he returned to acting in 1957, appearing in a Broadway production of “Compulsion” as the intense leading man. He reprised the role for the 1959 film adaptation and won an acting award at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance. He also appeared as Edmund opposite Katharine Hepburn and Ralph Richardson in the 1962 film version of “Long Day’s Journey Into Night.” That performance earned him another Cannes award.

WEDNESDAY

Sherwood Church, 1 Goodman Road, will host a free communitywide Night of Hope event from 6-8 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 14. Bring your lawn chair and enjoy an evening concert featuring As Isaac. Food, s’mores and a drawing to win a car. Register for tickets by Nov. 10, at Sherwoodrome.com/ events.

THURSDAY

American Legion Post 52, 1205 Calhoun Ave, will be hosting a Veterans Day BBQ and Yard Sale on Thursday, Nov. 11, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, call 706-3460119.

SATURDAY

The nonprofit TMMA Farms and Sanctuary,

1570 Halks Valley Road in Trion, is holding a black tie dinner fundraiser called “Night at the Sanctuary” from 3:30-10:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 13.

For tickets and more information, visit Tmmafarms.com.