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Theodore Matthew Michael Kuhn Jr. (September 21, 1932 – November 20, 2022) was an American actor. He started his career as a child actor, active on-screen during the Golden Age of Hollywood from the 1930s until the early 1950s. He is noted for having played Beau Wilkes in Gone with the Wind (1939).
Kuhn also appeared in Juarez (1939), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945), The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946), Red River (1948), Broken Arrow (1950), and A Streetcar Named Desire (1951).
Kuhn considered Juarez (1939) his "big break", having been chosen from more than 50 children for the role. Afterwards, he was selected for the role of Beau Wilkes in Gone with the Wind, recalling that the receptionist at the casting call told him "Mickey, we've been waiting for you", and instantly announced the role had been filled. Kuhn went on to appear as the adoptive son of John Wayne's character in Red River in 1948 and then in Broken Arrow in 1950 starring James Stewart.
The film A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) reunited him with Vivien Leigh twelve years after they first worked together in Gone with the Wind. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Kuhn played a sailor who directs Leigh's character Blanche to the correct streetcar which will take her to her sister's neighborhood at the beginning of the film. He therefore achieved the distinction of being the only actor to share screen time with Leigh in each of her Academy Award-winning performances, and following the death of Dame Olivia de Havilland on July 26, 2020, he became the last surviving credited cast member in both films.
Kuhn was married five times. His first marriage, to Jean Marie Hannick, lasted from 1956 until 1962; they had two children, including son Theodore Matthew Michael III. He was later married to Shannon Farnon, Rosa Negrete, and Yolanda Borbon, all of which ended in divorce. His last wife, an American Airlines co-worker named Barbara Traci, was married to him from 1985 until his death.
Navy career
Kuhn served in the U.S. Navy from 1951 until 1955 and worked as an aircraft electrician there.
Post-acting career
After finishing his Navy service, Kuhn attempted to return to acting, briefly appearing in the TV anthology Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but was only offered television roles which he found unappealing. He left the film business in 1956 to attend college, and worked for American Airlines from 1965 to 1995 and the Boston airport in administrative positions until his retirement. He regularly visited film festivals dealing with his films.
Death
Kuhn had been living in Naples, Florida, and volunteered four hours per week at a local hospital. He died at a hospice facility in Naples on November 20, 2022, at the age of 90.
Awards
In 2005, Kuhn received a Golden Boot Award, an award given to acknowledge significant contributions to the Western genre.
Filmography
1934 Change of Heart Baby (film debut) 1937 A Doctor's Diary Boy in hospital 1939 King of the Underworld Young Boy Juarez Agustín de Iturbide y Green S.O.S. Tidal Wave Buddy Shannon When Tomorrow Comes Boy Bad Little Angel Bobby Creighton – Age 5 (uncredited) Gone with the Wind Beau Wilkes 1940 I Want a Divorce David Holland, Jr. Slightly Tempted Boy (uncredited) 1941 One Foot in Heaven Boy (uncredited) 1944 Beneath Western Skies Teddy (uncredited) 1945 Roughly Speaking John A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Boy This Love of Ours Boy Dick Tracy Junior 1946 Roaring Rangers Larry Connor The Strange Love of Martha Ivers Young Walter The Searching Wind Sam as a Boy The Return of Rusty Marty Connors Three Little Girls in Blue Farm boy 1947 High Conquest Peter Oberwalder Jr. Magic Town Hank Nickleby 1948 Red River Young Matt 1949 Scene of the Crime Ed Monigan, Jr. 1950 Broken Arrow Bob Slade (uncredited) 1951 That's My Boy Student (uncredited) A Streetcar Named Desire A Sailor On the Loose Bob Vance 1955 The Last Frontier Luke 1956 Away All Boats Seaman (final film) 1957 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Bellhop Season 2 Episode 22: "The End of Indian Summer" Alfred Hitchcock Presents Ellerbee Season 2 Episode 23: "One for the Road" (credited but does not appear) Alfred Hitchcock Presents Season 2 Episode 29: "Vicious Circle"
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