Harry Sherman Bonner (December 16, 1921 – September 22, 2006),Harry S. Bonner, Social Security Death Index, SSN 557-26-4992 also known as Harry Spear, was an American

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage or in movies or television. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associated t ...

and

vaudevillian Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

. He was notable for appearing in the ''

Our Gang ''Our Gang'' (also known as ''The Little Rascals'' or ''Hal Roach's Rascals'') is an American series of comedy short films chronicling a group of poor neighborhood children and their adventures. Created by film producer Hal Roach, also the ...

short subjects A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

series from 1927 to 1929 and

Educational Pictures Educational Pictures, also known as Educational Film Exchanges, Inc. or Educational Films Corporation of America, was an American film production and film distribution company founded in 1916 by Earle (E. W.) Hammons (1882–1962). Educational pr ...

shorts from 1925 to 1927. He was a native of

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. Notable for appearing in a total of 31 ''Our Gang'' comedies, Spear also appeared in other shorts before his time in the Gang. He gained recognition for his ginger hair and freckles, as both of his well-known nicknames. After leaving showbiz, Spear started in vaudeville.

Early life

Born in December 16, 1921 on

, Harry was born to Joseph Francis Bonner (1893-1961) and Louise Dorothy Spear (1901-1947) He had a grandmother, Bertha Spear. Spear's legal surname, Bonner, was not used in documents like contracts, with his mother's maiden name, Spear being used instead. This was used after his parents divorced.

Acting career

Early acting career

Before joining the wildly popular ''Our Gang'' series, Spear made appearances in several ''Juvenile Comedies'' as supporting character Ginger. He also appeared in

comedias, like the ''Tuxedo Comedies'', and in a couple ''Smith Family'' shorts. Though Spear slowly was given a lead role over time, Spear was often was foreshadowed by "Big Boy" Malcolm Sebastian, the leading and youngest character in the series. Even though it is stated that he appeared in a few

Buck Jones Buck Jones (born Charles Frederick Gebhart; December 12, 1891 – November 30, 1942) was an American actor, known for his work in many popular Western movies. In his early film appearances, he was credited as Charles Jones. Early life, milita ...

westerns, Spear actually appeared in one,

The Flying Horseman ''The Flying Horseman'' is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Orville O. Dull and written by Gertrude Orr. The film stars Buck Jones, Gladys McConnell, Bruce Covington, Walter Percival, Hank Mann, and Harvey Clark. The film was ...

''Our Gang''

Spear made his first appearance in the ''Our Gang'' series at the age of five in the film ''

Chicken Feed Poultry feed is food for farm poultry, including chickens, ducks, geese and other domestic birds. Before the twentieth century, poultry were mostly kept on general farms, and foraged for much of their feed, eating insects, grain spilled by catt ...

''. Spear first made small appearances as an extra during mid-1927. After a void was left by

Scooter Lowry Elmer Camden Lowry (December 19, 1919 – 1 May 1989) was an American child actor and vaudevillian. He appeared in several ''Our Gang'' short films as Skooter. His character, Washington-born Skooter, was fond of Charles G. Dawes, known for his ...

after his contract expired, Spear took over the "tough kid" role, often targeting

Allen "Farina" Hoskins Allen Clayton Hoskins (August 9, 1920 – July 26, 1980) was an American child actor, who portrayed the character of Farina in 105 ''Our Gang'' short films from 1922 to 1931. Acting career 1920–1936 ''Our Gang'' Stardom Born in Boston ...

, though it would not be until 1928 when Spear made appearances as a leader. Spear was a popular member of the gang during the late silent era (1927–1929), often donning an oversized

bowler hat The bowler hat, also known as a billycock, bob hat, bombín (Spanish) or derby (United States), is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown, originally created by the London hat-makers Thomas and William Bowler in 1849. It has traditionally been worn ...

. At the dawn of the sound era, newcomer

Jackie Cooper John Cooper Jr. (September 15, 1922 – May 3, 2011) was an American actor, television director, producer, and executive, known universally as Jackie Cooper. He was a child actor who made the transition to an adult career. Cooper was the first ...

took over the role as either the leader or tough guy in the gang, replacing Spear, though Spear did make a few sound appearances. Spear's final ''Our Gang'' film would be ''

Bouncing Babies ''Bouncing Babies'' is a 1929 ''Our Gang'' short comedy film directed by Robert F. McGowan. Produced by Hal Roach and released to theaters by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, it was the 92nd ''Our Gang'' short to be released. Plot Wheezer is jealous o ...

''.

Vaudeville

After departing the series, Spear briefly entered

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

, entertaining audiences with a dancing and monologue routine. Maltin, Leonard and Bann, Richard W. (1977, rev. 1992). ''The Little Rascals: The Life and Times of Our Gang'', p. 253–254. New York: Crown Publishing/Three Rivers Press. Joining in 1930, Spear was dubbed as Freckles and known for his bad boy character. He was one of the young vaudeville stars that took dance instruction from Roy Randolph around September of that year. Spear "told several amusing stories" at a meeting of the Rotary Club in

Waynesboro, Virginia Waynesboro (formerly Flack) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is a principal city of the Staunton-Waynesboro Metropolitan Statistical Area. Waynesboro is located in the Shenandoah Valley and is surrounded by Augusta Co ...

, in April 1932. In Christmas 1933, twelve-year-old Spear would be offered a contract for a series similar to that of

Horatio Alger Horatio Alger Jr. (; January 13, 1832 – July 18, 1899) was an American author who wrote young adult novels about impoverished boys and their rise from humble backgrounds to lives of middle-class security and comfort through good works. His wr ...

, however, it was never completed. In the mid-1940s, though, he had left the entertainment industry and severed ties with his former ''Our Gang'' alumni.

Lost ''Rascal''

Spear's whereabouts after the 1940s remained a mystery for over half a century. However, several diligent ''Our Gang'' fans attempted to track down Spear in 1995. Residing in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

at the time, Spear (who went by his legal name of Harry Bonner) continually denied being the "Harry Spear" of ''Our Gang'' fame for unknown reasons, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary From U.S. Naval records, it was found that Harry Spear served as a

Chief Petty Officer A chief petty officer (CPO) is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards. Canada "Chief petty officer" refers to two ranks in the Royal Canadian Navy. A chief petty officer 2nd class (CPO2) (''premier maître de deuxiè ...

in the U.S. Navy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...

and

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Death

Spear died of

kidney cancer Kidney cancer, also known as renal cancer, is a group of cancers that starts in the kidney. Symptoms may include blood in the urine, lump in the abdomen, or back pain. Fever, weight loss, and tiredness may also occur. Complications can include sp ...

on September 22, 2006, in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

. He was 84 years of age.

Personal life

Spear was managed by his grandmother Bertha Spear, who was also his legal guardian. Some name confusion existed for a while because of a different actor named Harry Spear, who appeared in some bit roles in several movies in the 1960s.

References

External links

* *
The Strange Tale of Harry Spear
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spear, Harry American male child actors American male silent film actors Deaths from kidney cancer Deaths from cancer in California 1921 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American male actors American male comedy actors Hal Roach Studios actors Our Gang United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy personnel of the Korean War United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War