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Veteran actor Jay North, who portrayed the title character in the 1960s comedy “Dennis the Menace,” has away. TMZ has verified.
North’s longtime friend Laurie Jacobson, who is married to “Lassie” star Jon Provost, says TMZ… After battling colorectal cancer, Jay died away on Sunday at his Lake Butler, Florida, home.
His health reportedly began to decline over the last month, and when he died away, his wife Cindy and her kids from a previous marriage—whom we are told he “adored”—were there to be with him.
“Gave him a family he never had” since he was an only kid and never met his father, Laurie recalls of Cindy and her girls.
According to the story, Jay had not seen his pals in a while since he had to isolate himself to maintain his health because of his sickness.
However, Laurie gathered hundreds of fan letters and presented them to him around Christmas, which she claims made him very happy.
North became well-known in the late 1950s after making brief appearances on shows including “77 Sunset Strip,” “Rescue 8,” and “Sugarfoot” at the age of ten.
When Jay began portraying Dennis Mitchell on “Dennis the Menace” in 1959, he became well-known throughout the country. He starred in all 146 episodes of the show from 1959 to 1963.
He was told to pretend he was a year younger than he was in interviews, and his hair was dyed platinum blonde for the role.
Years after the show’s conclusion, North spoke candidly about his difficulties on stage, saying his aunt beat him up for mispronouncing.
A phrase and even took him away from onlookers to do it. He always said that neither his mother nor other crew members knew about the abuse at the time.
According to Jacobson, “He had a rough ride in Hollywood– he did not enjoy the experience — he was at a time very angry and bitter that.
The adults that surrounded him did nothing to help him or make his time easier.” After four seasons, “Dennis the Menace” was discontinued.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, North switched to voice acting, appearing in shows including “Arabian Knights,” “Here Comes the Grump,” and “The Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm Show.”
By the late 1980s, North had given up acting, though he has made a few appearances as himself in television shows including “The Simpsons” and David Spade’s film “Dickie Roberts:
Former Child Star.” North apparently assisted disturbed youngsters in the juvenile system while serving as a correctional officer in Florida in more recent years.
via the 1990s, he also assisted in counseling former child stars via the organization A Minor Consideration.
According to Jacobson, he also worked with death row convicts who had also had a difficult upbringing, and their discussions enabled him to reconcile his early years.
Jacobson claims that although though Jay dislikes Hollywood, he did value one benefit he received from the business:
Lifelong friends who were also child stars at the same time, such as Angela Cartwright, Jerry Mathers, Stan Livingston, Paul Petersen, and Brandon Cruz.
