Luke Halpin
| Luke Halpin | |
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| Born | Luke Austin Halpin April 4, 1947 Astoria, Queens, New York, U.S.A. |
| Occupation | Actor, stuntman, marine coordinator |
| Years active |
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| Spouse | Deborah J. Halpin |
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Luke Halpin (born April 4, 1947) is an American actor. Beginning a prolific career as a child actor at the age of eight, Halpin is perhaps best known for his role as Sandy Ricks in the feature films Flipper and Flipper's New Adventure, as well as for reprising his role for the television series adaptation, also titled Flipper.
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[edit] Early life
Halpin was born Luke Austin Halpin on April 4, 1947 in Astoria, Queens, New York City to parents, Helen and Eugene Halpin.[1] He has one older brother, Eugene, Jr., and one older sister, Joan.[2]
[edit] Career
[edit] Early Career
Halpin's career began when a music teacher, impressed by Halpin's "all-American" look, encouraged him to try acting.[3] In 1955 he co-starred with Natalie Wood in an episode of Studio One entitled Miracle at Potter's Farm. Numerous roles followed, and by his mid-teens, Halpin had appeared on many of the major TV series of the day: Armstrong Circle Theatre, United States Steel Hour, Studio One, Kraft Television Theatre, Hallmark Hall of Fame, The Everglades, The Phil Silvers Show, The Defenders, Route 66, Naked City, and had a recurring role for six months on the soap opera Young Doctor Malone.
Halpin's early career also included several stage roles. He made his Broadway debut in Take Me Along starring Jackie Gleason, and appeared with Mary Martin in both Annie Get Your Gun and Peter Pan.
[edit] Flipper
Halpin's most famous role came when he was picked to play Sandy Ricks in the 1962 (released 1963) feature Flipper. The successful film spawned a sequel, Flipper's New Adventure (1964), and a TV series which co-starred Brian Kelly as Porter Ricks. Kelly played a young widowed father to Halpin, who was only sixteen years younger than Kelly, and Tommy Norden. Character actor Andy Devine also appeared in the series.
Flipper ran for 88 episodes (1964–1967), and is still in syndication. The TV series made Halpin a popular teen idol among younger viewers. He was often featured in teen magazines, including Bravo, Teen Life, 16 Magazine, and the earliest issues of Tiger Beat. On the basis of his appearance in the original Flipper movie, Luke was a guest "contestant" on the panel show To Tell The Truth prior to Flipper's move to television.
[edit] Later work
Following the end of the Flipper series, Halpin appeared in feature films, including Island of the Lost (1967), If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969), and Shock Waves (1977). TV guest appearances in the years shortly after Flipper included Judd for the Defense, The Dating Game, Death Valley Days, and Bracken's World. One notable later appearance was in the TV-movie The Ordeal of Dr. Mudd in 1979.
[edit] After acting
Following an acting career that spanned three decades, Halpin began working as a stuntman, marine coordinator, diver, and speedboat pilot for such feature films as Never Say Never Again, Porky's Revenge!, and Speed 2: Cruise Control as well as for the television series Miami Vice.[4][5] He also continued to make cameo appearances, most notably, on the television series Key West, and in the 1996 feature film remake, Flipper, starring a 15-year-old Elijah Wood as Sandy Ricks.[4][6]
Halpin lives on Florida's west coast with his second wife, Deborah.[7] He has three sons, Kyle Austin Halpin (born in October 1980), Blair Luke Halpin (born in December 1982), and Courtney Luke Halpin (born in April 1990).[4][7]
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ "Luke Halpin Answers 40 Intimate Questions", 16 Magazine, February 1965
- ^ "Ten Things You Never Knew about ME, by Luke Halpin", 16 Magazine, December 1966
- ^ "This Is Me!...Luke Halpin", Teen Life Magazine, November 1965
- ^ a b c Kevin D. Thompson (May 17, 1996). "Will The Real Flipper Please Swim By?". The Palm Beach Post. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=PBPB&p_theme=pbpb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAF3F86BAE197FD&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM.
- ^ Sally Kestin (June 12, 2004). "Stars From The Flipper TV Series Return To Miami". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/sun_sentinel/access/650291591.html?dids=650291591:650291591&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jun+12%2C+2004&author=Sally+Kestin+Staff+Writer&pub=South+Florida+Sun+-+Sentinel&desc=SWIMMING+IN+NOSTALGIA+STARS+FROM+THE+FLIPPER+TV+SERIES+RETURN+TO+MIAMI+TO+REMINISCE+AND+PROMOTE+SEAQUARIUM+SHOWS.+BUT+THOSE+GOOD+OLD+DAYS+ARE+OVER%2C+CRITICS+SAY.&pqatl=google.
- ^ "Tales Of The Human Heart: Flipper". Bangor Daily News. December 6, 1996. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=1KhJAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MQ4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=5880,1674573&dq=luke-halpin&hl=en.
- ^ a b Associated Press (June 14, 2004). "Flipper's 40th Is Celebrated In Miami". Ocala Star-Banner. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=RuJPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_ggEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5605,5368802&dq=luke-halpin+wife&hl=en.
