Charles Eaton (June 22, 1910 – August 15, 2004) was an American juvenile stage and film performer, and the most important performing male member of the sibling clan once referred to as

The Seven Little Eatons The Seven Little Eatons was a family of young American stage performers in the early part of the twentieth century. Although they were called The Seven Little Eatons, in fact only five of the siblings embarked on a career in showbiz. Early da ...

. At one time or another, all the siblings appeared in ''

The Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air ...

'' each year between 1918 through 1923.

Career

With his sister Doris, Eaton made his Broadway debut in the 1918 version of ''Mother Carey's Chickens''. In a 1928 Broadway production called ''Skidding,'' which ran for 472 performances, Eaton created the role of ''

Andy Hardy Andrew "Andy" Hardy is a fictional character best known for the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer series of 16 films in which he was played by Mickey Rooney. The films were released from 1937 to 1946, except for a final one made in 1958 in an unsuccessful att ...

''. Eaton acted in ten

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

shows in total, including ''The Awakening ''and ''The Ziegfeld Follies'' of 1921, in which he shared the stage with

W. C. Fields William Claude Dukenfield (January 29, 1880 – December 25, 1946), better known as W. C. Fields, was an American comedian, actor, juggler, and writer. Fields's comic persona was a misanthropic and hard-drinking egotist who remained a sympathe ...

, ''A Royal Fandango,'' with

Ethel Barrymore Ethel Barrymore (born Ethel Mae Blythe; August 15, 1879 – June 18, 1959) was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors. Barrymore was a stage, screen and radio actress whose career spanned six decades, and was regarde ...

, ''Peter Pan'', and ''Tommy''. He also performed at vaudeville's storied ''Palace Theatre''; toured in plays like ''Don't Count Your Chickens'' with

Mary Boland Mary Boland (born Marie Anne Boland; January 28, 1882 – June 23, 1965) was an American stage and film actress. Early years Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Boland was the daughter of repertory actor William Augustus Boland, and his wife M ...

; and acted during the 1920s and 30s in about 21 films, including features and short film, now mainly forgotten. He began his film career in 1921, playing

Wallace Reid William Wallace Halleck Reid (April 15, 1891 – January 18, 1923) was an American actor in silent film, referred to as "the screen's most perfect lover". He also had a brief career as a racing driver. Early life Reid was born in St. Louis, M ...

as a child in ''

Forever Forever or 4ever may refer to: Film and television Films * ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice * ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama * ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...

'' (1921), the first screen version of

Gerald du Maurier Sir Gerald Hubert Edward Busson du Maurier (26 March 1873 – 11 April 1934) was an English actor and manager. He was the son of author George du Maurier and his wife, Emma Wightwick, and the brother of Sylvia Llewelyn Davies. In 1903, he m ...

's play ''

Peter Ibbetson ''Peter Ibbetson'' is a 1935 American black-and-white drama/ fantasy film directed by Henry Hathaway and starring Gary Cooper and Ann Harding. The film is loosely based on the 1891 novel of the same name by George du Maurier. A tale of a love th ...

''. He successfully made the jump to '

talkies A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

', and starred opposite

Helen Twelvetrees Helen Marie Twelvetrees ( Jurgens; December 25, 1908 – February 13, 1958) was an American actress. She starred in Hollywood films in the sound film era from 1929 to 1939. Many of her roles were of "suffering women". She has a star on the Holly ...

as the correspondence-school detective in the comedy '' The Ghost Talks'' (1929), which was

Fox Film Corporation The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American Independent film production studio formed by William Fox (1879–1952) in 1915, by combining his earlier Greater New York Film Rental Company and Box Office Attractions Film ...

's first talking picture; and as

Marguerite Churchill Marguerite Churchill (December 26, 1910 – January 9, 2000) was an American stage and film actress whose career lasted 30 years, from 1922 to 1952. She was John Wayne's first leading lady, in ''The Big Trail'' (1930). Early years She was th ...

's brother in ''Harmony at Home'' (1930). His last film role was in 1940. Offers from both Broadway and Hollywood dried up with the arrival of the Depression, and eventually Eaton turned to alcohol, as did his sisters

Pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

and Broadway star,

Mary Eaton Mary Eaton (January 29, 1901 – October 10, 1948) was an American stage actress, singer, and dancer in the 1910s and 1920s, probably best known today from her appearance in the first Marx Brothers film, ''The Cocoanuts'' (1929). A profession ...

. Mary died in 1948 of liver problems brought on by her drinking, and Pearl was tragically murdered a decade later, but, although the case was ruled a homicide the crime has never been solved.

Later life

Long after his showbiz career was over, Eaton served as a captain in the

Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...

in Foggia, Italy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Following the war, he went into business with his sister Doris, who operated a thriving Arthur Murray Dance Studios franchise in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, and did occasional theatrical engagements. In 2003, with his sister Doris, he co-wrote an Eaton family memoir entitled ''The Days We Danced''. He died the following year in

Norman, Oklahoma Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, Oklahoma, Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma C ...

at age of 94.

Filmography (selected)

*''

'' (1921) * ''

The Prodigal Judge ''The Prodigal Judge'' is a novel written by American novelist Vaughan Kester and published in 1911.(2 April 1911)"The Prodigal Judge": Mr. Vaughn Kester's Much-Heralded Novel Has a Flavor of All Its Own ''The New York Times''(12 March 1911)A Ta ...

'' (1922) *'' The Ghost Talks'' (1929) * ''Knights Out'' (1929) * ''

Harmony at Home ''Harmony at Home'' ( ''She Steps Out'') is a 1930 pre-Code domestic-comedy film directed by Hamilton MacFadden. It was produced and distributed by Fox Film Corporation. It was based on a 1925 Broadway play, ''The Family Upstairs'' by actor, writ ...

'' (1930) * ''Poor Little Rich Boy'' (1932) *''The Divorce Racket'' (1932) * '' Enlighten Thy Daughter'' (1934) * ''Son's of the Sea'' 1939 * ''Under your Hat'' (1940)

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eaton, Charles 1910 births 2004 deaths Male actors from Washington, D.C. American male film actors American male silent film actors American male stage actors American male child actors Vaudeville performers United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II 20th-century American male actors Eaton family