It has been 58 years, almost to the day, since beloved Disney child star Bobby Driscoll passed away. Driscoll died on March 30, 1968, at age 31. His story is one of triumph and tragedy.
Bobby Driscoll’s Fame
GettyDuring the height of his fame, Driscoll worked closely with Disney. Some of his film credits include “Peter Pan,” Treasure Island,” “Melody Time,” and “So Dear to My Heart.” He started acting not long after being discovered at age 5 and reflected on how his barber had found him.
“My dad used to take me to a barber in Pasadena whose son was in the movies,” Driscoll said in an interview in 1954, The Walt Disney Family Museum reports. “The barber liked me, so he spoke to his son and his son spoke to his agent and his agent spoke to a director who was arranging a tryout for a part with Margaret O’Brien in ‘Lost Angel.’”
Born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Driscoll’s career started in 1943 and ended in 1960, Hollywood Walk of Fame reports. Several years before he left Hollywood, his career started to decline, and his life took a tragic turn, including substance abuse and a stint in prison. “I’m not really sure why I started using narcotics. I was 17 when I first experimented with the stuff. In no time at all, I was using whatever was available,” he said in an interview, The Walt Disney Family Museum reports.
Bobby Driscoll’s Passing Went Unnoticed For Years
GettyDriscoll’s health was poor due to his drug usage, and he sadly died alone, in “an abandoned building in the East Village of New York, 58 years ago, on March 30, 1968. He had only recently celebrated his 31st birthday,” It All Started With Walt Disney reports. At the time, his identity had not been confirmed, and he was buried in an unmarked grave.
Two years later, his family learned of his passing, and the public became aware of his death in 1971. “In October 1969, Bobby’s father was dying,” the child star’s mother, Isabel Driscoll, said, according to The Walt Disney Family Museum. “He asked to see Bobby. I called Disney Studios, and asked if anyone there knew where my son was.” It was this event that sparked the search for Bobby and ultimately led to the knowledge of his death. His cause of death was listed as “occlusive coronary arteriosclerosis,” The Walt Disney Family Museum reports.
