Carl Switzer

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Carl Switzer's grave on August 7, 2012

Carl Dean Switzer (born August 7, 1927 in Paris , Illinois , USA ; † January 21, 1959 in Mission Hills , California , USA ) was an American film actor . He achieved fame during the 1930s primarily through his appearances as "alfalfa" with the little rascals .

Life

family

Carl Dean Switzer was born as the youngest of four children of Fred and Gladys Switzer in Paris, a small town on the border with the US state of Indiana , on August 8, 1927 according to his birth certificate, even if his gravestone indicates August 7. While his two siblings Harold Frederick Switzer (born January 16, 1925) and Janice Genevieve Switzer (born March 18, 1923) reached adulthood, Switzer's brother, who saw the light of day on May 18, 1922, died after a few weeks in Infancy.

The family lived in poor conditions in a tenement house. When Switzer's father, who is said to have been an enthusiastic gun fanatic, accidentally shot himself in the leg and the leg had to be amputated, the family was forced to limit themselves financially.

The Switzers took advantage of the talent of their two sons, whose singing voices were clearly distinctive, by having Harold and later Carl perform at agricultural festivals and fairs in order to earn money.

Career

Encouraged by the Switzer's neighbors, who wanted to see Harold and Carl in Hollywood , the family moved to Los Angeles in October 1934 . Here they took part in a casting in the studios of Hal Roach , where Roach himself became aware of the boys, recognized their talent and immediately signed them.

With Beginner's Luck , the first episode of Die kleine Trolche , the brothers made their debut as actors in 1935 and quickly played their way into the hearts of viewers. While Harold Switzer became known under the nicknames Deadpan or Slim , Carl Switzer still achieved fame even today under the pseudonym Alfalfa . Alfalfa - the pseudonym later became part of his name - was considered a problem child in his environment, who beat his teenage fellow actors as well as the crew members of the films more than once. Although Darla Hood played his girlfriend in front of the camera, the two of them didn't get along at all behind the camera. There were also conflicts with Fred Switzer, the father of the young actors: Although Roach always tried to treat all children as stars of equal rank, Fred Switzer insisted that Alfalfa in particular should get more salary or time in front of the camera than the other children . Only the love of the cinema audience prevented Alfalfa's expulsion.

By 1940, Alfalfa Switzer was in over 100 episodes of The Little Rascals in front of the camera. In 1940 the two brothers separated, at least in terms of their professional careers. After Harold Switzer survived a traffic accident as a passenger, the 15-year-old left the scene of the accident without helping the driver. Although he was diagnosed with a concussion and thus impaired behavior, the production company took this as an opportunity to terminate the contract.

Later career

After 1940, Alfalfa Switzer was only able to build on the success of the Kleine Trolche to a limited extent . If he was in front of the camera in twelve films a year at the zenith of his career, from now on there were only five films for which the former child star was signed on. In addition, his roles became noticeably smaller. He made a small appearance in the Christmas classic Isn't life beautiful? where he bores Donna Reed with his endless tales at a school ball. He settled in Van Nuys , and worked among other things as a bartender , hunting guide in the Sierra Nevada and as a dog trainer for feature films.

In his last role, Switzer stood in front of the camera in Escape in Chains in 1958 , and two years earlier, in a 1956 cameo in The Ten Commandments .

Private life

After a brief liaison with Beverly Osso, who later married his brother Harold, Switzer fell in love with Diane Collingwood, the daughter of a wealthy Kansas farmer . The two married in 1954. Their son was born in the same year. Although the couple was in love, they divorced in 1956 after only two years of marriage. The reason was that Collingwood did not want to move from Kansas to California, nor, as Switzer wished, to have a long-distance marriage. Alfalfa Switzer's son didn't know who his father was for a long time. To protect him from the media, his identity is still unknown today. The only thing that is certain is that he made a career in the US military.

death

Carl Switzer's grave in Hollywood Forever Cemetery

In January 1959, Switzer planned a hunting expedition and borrowed a hunting dog from Moses Stiltz, a friend of the family, but it ran away. Switzer then placed an advertisement in the newspaper and promised the person who found the dog a reward. A little later, a cattle farmer actually reported who had found the dog. Switzer gave the man $ 35 in cash and paid the remaining $ 15 in the form of drinks. In constant need of money and possibly under the influence of alcohol, Switzer thought that his friend Stiltz owed him the money for the reward.

On the evening of January 21, 1959, he asked Moses Stiltz, accompanied by a friend, the cameraman Jack Piott , to give him back the 50 dollars. An argument finally broke out in the house of Stiltz's friend in the San Fernando Valley , because Stiltz did not want to pay him the money and instead called him crazy. There was a physical argument in which Stiltz suffered a slight head injury. As a result, he pulled out a .38 caliber revolver , which Switzer tried to get in a scuffle. The ricochet triggered in the process caused Stiltz's fiancée to leave the house with the children and to call the police. Switzer now pushed his former friend into a small room and locked him in there. He threatened to kill him with the knife he was carrying. When the former child star actually tried to attack, Stiltz started shooting at him. Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer was hit in the abdomen and fell seriously injured to the ground. Although rescue workers were called and the actor was hospitalized, he died a few hours later. He was only 31 years old.

Although Carl Switzer was still known to many Americans, his death received little media attention because he died on the same day as Hollywood director Cecil B. DeMille .

Aftermath

On January 25, 1959, there was a short trial before the examining magistrate, in which Moses Stiltz was acquitted for lack of evidence. Although there were some arguments in favor of manslaughter at the time, the judges ruled that Stiltz had acted in self-defense, as Switzer threatened him with a knife. Alcohol was also found in the blood during the autopsy of Switzer's body.

On January 25, 2001, another eyewitness reported the incident. This was the now 56-year-old Tom Corrigan, son of western hero Ray Corrigan and stepson of Moses Stiltz, who was also present at the shooting. According to Corrigan, Switzer's death was much more of a murder than an act of self-defense. In reality, Switzer and his friend wanted to retreat after fragments of the ricochet hit Corrigan. After Corrigan had already left the house, he heard a second shot. Although he asserted that he had no direct visual contact, he found Switzer lying on the ground, seriously injured. Contrary to Stiltz's statement, however, he did not carry a hunting knife, just a simple pocket knife.

Despite this new information, no attempt has been made to reopen the case.

Others

Carl Switzer was survived by his parents and siblings. Fred Switzer died just over a year later, in May 1960, in California and was buried next to his son in Hollywood Forever Cemetery . Gladys Switzer was 92 years old and died on March 8, 1997.

Harold Switzer, the childhood actor and older brother of Alfalfa, made a living running a laundromat . He married Beverly Osso, with whom he had three children. After the divorce in the mid-1960s, he had a brief relationship with another woman who gave birth to his fourth child. On April 14, 1967, Harold had a heated argument with a customer whom he killed in the process. He then first killed his own girlfriend and then committed suicide .

Janice Switzer, Alfalfa's sister, is only known to have died of cancer in 1988 .

Switzer is also known to have been a member of the Freemasons .

Filmography (selection)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Carl Switzer birth certificate .
  2. ^ Carl Switzer birth certificate .
personal data
SURNAME Switzer, Carl
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Switzer, Carl Dean (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American film actor
DATE OF BIRTH August 7, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Paris , Illinois , USA
DATE OF DEATH January 21, 1959
Place of death Mission Hills , California , USA