EDDIE HODGES

'Eddie Hodges' (born 5 March 1947) is a former child actor and recording artist who left show business as an adult.

Contents

Biography

Acting career

Recording career

Out of the limelight

External links

Biography

Born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.. Hodges went to New York City with his family and became a contestant on the TV game show ''Name That Tune''. He was noticed by Rini Willson, the wife of playwright and composer Meredith Willson who was looking for a boy to cast in a new musical.

Acting career

Hodges made his professional acting debut on stage in Willson's 1957 Broadway musical ''The Music Man''. He made his film debut in the 1959 film ''A Hole in the Head'' with Frank Sinatra and Edward G. Robinson, in which Hodges and Sinatra performed a song called "High Hopes". Hodges did not perform on Sinatra's hit recording of the song. Hodges made eight feature films and numerous TV guest appearances. He is probably best remembered for the title role in Michael Curtiz's 1960 film ''The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'', which is considered one of the best of the many attempts to film Mark Twain's classic. Both Hodges and his co-star as Jim, Archie Moore, received generally positive reviews for their performances. The film had excellent production values and a fine supporting cast.

Recording career

Hodges recorded for Cadence Records and his biggest hit was "I'm Gonna Knock On Your Door" in 1961. He also scored a minor hit with "(Girls, Girls, Girls) Made to Love," a song written by Phil Everly. He recorded for several other record labels. Before he left Hollywood, he was a union musician, record producer, song writer and music publisher. He collaborated with Tandyn Almer ("Along Comes Mary") with whom he wrote and published several songs and owned his own music publishing business. Hodges continues to write songs today but is no longer involved in the music business.

Out of the limelight

Hodges was drafted into the Army during the Vietnam War in the late 1960s. After he was discharged, he returned to Hollywood and became disillusioned with show business. He decided to return to his native Mississippi and entered the The University of Southern Mississippi where he received his B.A. in Psychology and an M.S. in Counseling. He became and is still a mental health counselor. He is divorced and has two grown children and three grandchildren. He occasionally gets in touch with his old show business friends and still writes songs. Hodges rode out Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and informed his fans that he was fine after being missing for 19 days when the utilities were restored.

External links

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★ Meeker Museum