Larry Lee Simms (October 1, 1934 – June 17, 2009) was an American child actor who appeared in 36 films between 1937 and 1951.

Life and career

Larry Simms was born October 1, 1934. He worked as a child model from the age of two and was discovered by a Hollywood talent scout when he appeared in a 1937

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

advertisement. His first film was '' The Last Gangster'' (1937), where he played Edward G. Robinson's young son. Simms became known for his appearances as Alexander "Baby Dumpling" Bumstead in the popular '' Blondie'' film series starring

Penny Singleton Penny Singleton (born Mariana Dorothy McNulty, September 15, 1908 – November 12, 2003) was an American actress, singer, dancer and labor leader. During her 60-year career on stage, screen, radio and television, Singleton appeared as the ...

and Arthur Lake. Between 1938 and the end of the series in 1950, Simms appeared as Alexander in 28 films earning at one point $750 a week. In 1946, Simms joined the cast of the '' Blondie'' radio program, portraying Alexander there as he had in movies. Simms occasionally acted outside of the ''Blondie'' series, most notably in two

Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-born American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s ...

films. He played one of the sons of Governor Hopper (

Guy Kibbee Guy Bridges Kibbee (March 6, 1882 – May 24, 1956) was an American stage and film actor. Early years Kibbee was born in El Paso, Texas. His father was editor of the ''El Paso Herald-Post'' newspaper, and Kibbee learned how to set type at age ...

) in ''

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington ''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' is a 1939 American political comedy-drama film directed by Frank Capra, starring Jean Arthur and James Stewart, and featuring Claude Rains and Edward Arnold. The film is about a newly appointed United States Sen ...

'' (1939) and Pete Bailey, the oldest son of James Stewart's George Bailey in ''

It's a Wonderful Life ''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a 1946 American Christmas fantasy drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, based on the short story and booklet '' The Greatest Gift'', which Philip Van Doren Stern self-published in 1943 and is in turn loo ...

'' (1946). He retired from show business to join the Navy (he appeared in uniform as himself in the Columbia Screen Snaphots short ''Hollywood Grows Up''), then studied aeronautical engineering at California Polytech. He later worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California and around the world as an engineer until his retirement from aeronautical engineering. Simms and his wife resided in Thailand prior to his death (on June 17 at age 74) in 2009."Where are they now?"
article about Larry Simms

Filmography

* '' The Last Gangster'' (1937) - Joe Krozac Jr. as a Baby (uncredited) * '' Blondie'' (1938) - Baby Dumpling * ''

Blondie Meets the Boss ''Blondie Meets the Boss'' is a 1939 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake. Based on the Chic Young comic strip of the same name, the film is the second in the '' Blondie'' series, whic ...

'' (1939) - Baby Dumpling * ''

Blondie Takes a Vacation ''Blondie Takes a Vacation'' is a 1939 American black-and-white comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, and Larry Simms. The film is based on Chic Young's comic strip of the same name. This was the ...

'' (1939) - Baby Dumpling Bumstead * ''

'' (1939) - Hopper Boy #4 * ''

Blondie Brings Up Baby ''Blondie Brings Up Baby'' is a 1939 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, Larry Simms. It is the fourth of 28 films based on the comic strip. Plot summary Blondie is convinced by a sales ...

'' (1939) - Alexander 'Baby Dumpling' Bumstead * ''

Blondie on a Budget ''Blondie on a Budget'' is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake and Rita Hayworth. It is the fifth entry into the long-running Blondie series of films, which ran between 1938 and 1950 ...

'' (1940) - Baby Dumpling Bumstead * ''

Blondie Has Servant Trouble ''Blondie Has Servant Trouble'' is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake. It is sixth of the series of 28 Blondie movies. Plot summary Blondie proves to be a real nuisance to her ...

'' (1940) - Baby Dumpling * ''

Blondie Plays Cupid ''Blondie Plays Cupid'' is a 1940 American comedy film starring Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake and directed by Frank R. Strayer. Also in the cast is Glenn Ford. It is the seventh of the 28 ''Blondie'' films. Plot summary Blondie catches her hus ...

'' (1940) - Baby Dumpling * ''

Blondie Goes Latin ''Blondie Goes Latin'', also known as ''Conga Swing'', is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and Robert Sparks and starring Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, and Larry Simms. It is the eighth of the Blondie films. The film sho ...

'' (1941) - Baby Dumpling Bumstead * ''

Blondie in Society ''Blondie in Society'' is a 1941 black-and-white comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, and Larry Simms. It is the ninth of the 28 features in the Blondie film series. Plot Dagwood is given a Great ...

'' (1941) - Baby Dumpling * ''

Blondie Goes to College ''Blondie Goes to College'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer. The film is a part of the ''Blondie'' series, starring Penny Singleton in the title role. It is the tenth of twenty-eight Blondie movies starring Penny Singl ...

'' (1942) - Alexander 'Baby Dumpling' Bumstead * ''

Blondie's Blessed Event ''Blondie's Blessed Event'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer Frank Raymond Strayer (September 21, 1891 – February 3, 1964) was an actor, film writer, director and producer. He was active from the mid-1920s until t ...

'' (1942) - Baby Dumpling (Alexander) Bumstead * ''

The Gay Sisters ''The Gay Sisters'' is a 1942 American drama film directed by Irving Rapper, and starring Barbara Stanwyck, George Brent, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Donald Crisp, Gig Young (who adopted his character's name as his screen name) and Nancy Coleman. The W ...

'' (1942) - Austin * ''

Blondie for Victory ''Blondie for Victory'' is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake. It is the 12th entry in the Blondie series. Plot Blondie Bumstead forms a civilian defense group, Housewives of ...

'' (1942) - Baby Dumpling * '' It's a Great Life'' (1943) - Alexander Bumstead / Baby Dumpling * '' Footlight Glamour'' (1943) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Leave It to Blondie'' (1945) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Life with Blondie'' (1945) - Alexander Bumstead * ''

Blondie's Lucky Day ''Blondie's Lucky Day'' is a 1946 American comedy film directed by Abby Berlin and starring Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, Larry Simms, Marjorie Ann Mutchie. It is the 17th of the 28 Blondie films. Plot summary While his boss, Mr. Dithers, i ...

'' (1946) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie Knows Best'' (1946) - Alexander Bumstead * ''

'' (1946) - Pete Bailey * '' Blondie's Big Moment'' (1947) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie's Holiday'' (1947) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Golden Earrings'' (1947) - Horace - Pageboy (uncredited) * '' Song of Love'' (1947) - Prince Albert (uncredited) * '' Blondie in the Dough'' (1947) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie's Anniversary'' (1947) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie's Reward'' (1948) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie's Secret'' (1948) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie's Big Deal'' (1949) - Alexander Bumstead * ''

Madame Bovary ''Madame Bovary'' (; ), originally published as ''Madame Bovary: Provincial Manners'' ( ), is a novel by French writer Gustave Flaubert, published in 1856. The eponymous character lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and em ...

'' (1949) - Justin * '' Blondie Hits the Jackpot'' (1949) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Blondie's Hero'' (1950) - Alexander Bumstead * '' Beware of Blondie'' (1950) - Alexander Bumstead * ''Her First Romance'' (1951) - Military Boy (uncredited) (final film role) * ''

Screen Snapshots ''Screen Snapshots'' are a series of documentary short subjects produced by Columbia Pictures (and its predecessor CBC Film Sales Corporation) between 1920 and 1958. They featured behind-the-scenes footage of Hollywood stars of the day at vari ...

Series 33, Hollywood Grows Up'' (1954, Documentary short) - Himself

References

Bibliography

* John Holmstrom, ''The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995'', Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, p. 190.

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Simms, Larry 1934 births 2009 deaths American male child actors American male film actors 20th-century American male actors Male actors from Los Angeles