Darryl Hickman, a child actor whose career in television and film extended into adulthood, died at age 92 on Wednesday, May 22, his family confirmed to Deadline.
The Hollywood, California, native appeared in more than 40 films after being a contract actor at Paramount and MGM in the late 1930s.
In one of his most notable roles, Rickman played Winfield, the youngest member of the Joad family in John Ford’s film adaptation of The Grapes of Wrath (1940), when he was only eight years old.
He also played the younger version of the Van Heflin character in the noir drama The Strange Love Of Martha Ivers (1946) as a teenager.
In 1951, Rickman made the shocking decision to retire from acting and entered a monastery. But he ended up returning to the industry just over a month later.
Darryl Hickman, a child actor whose career in television and film extended into adulthood, died at age 92 on Wednesday, May 22, his family confirmed to Deadline; seen in 2016
His many other films include The Star Maker (1939), Untamed (1940), Men Of Boys Town (1941), Mob Town (1941), Joe Smith, American (1942), The Human Comedy (1943), Rhapsody In Blue. (1945), Two Years Before the Mast (1946), Boys’ Ranch (1946), Alias Nick Beal (1949), and The Set-Up (1949).
He also had several supporting roles on television such as The Life And Legend of Wyatt Earp, The Untouchables, Perry Mason, Gunsmoke, Climax!, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, General Electric Theater and Wanted: Dead or Alive.
As he grew from a child to an adult, Rickman saw his opportunities as an actor diminish as the years passed.
He starred in several films by the time he turned 50, including the comedy-drama Network (1976) and Sharky’s Machine (1981).
From there, he moved to Broadway, replacing Robert Morse as J. Pierrepont Finch in the original production of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
Rickman later became a screenwriter and television executive.
He also served as CBS’ head of daytime programming for nearly five years.
The Hollywood, California native was a child actor who starred alongside Henry Fonda in the dramatic film adaptation of The Grapes Of Wrath (1940).
Hickman (right) also starred in many more movies and television shows as an adult, including The Untouchables series.
Hickman was married to actress Pamela Lincoln, with whom he had acted in the horror film The Tingler (1959) in November 1959, but they divorced in 1982 after having two children; seen in 2016
Hickman was married to actress Pamela Lincoln, with whom he had acted in the horror film The Tingler (1959) in November 1959.
The couple ended up having two children together, but eventually divorced in 1982.
Tragically, the former couple’s son, Justin, committed suicide when he was just 19 years old in 1985.
As of now, there is no official information on Hickman’s cause of death.