Bobby Buntrock

[eddie146]

did he die??

[Mr. Television]

Yea he died in a car accident. I think it was around 1972.

[blzwet@yahoo.com]

Refer to Wikipedia on Bobby.

[SitcomGyrl1955]

Originally Posted by eddie146

did he die??

It's so ironic that he died on the same bridge that his mom died on.

[Wet Water]

I'm tempted to think it was not ironic. I seriously consider the possibility that it was suicide. The same location a year later is too much of a coincidence. He was probably already despondent over his career-- child actors are usually not wanted anymore once they're grown. Add the loss of his mother and the motivation can be comprehended.

[1960'sTVfan]

Originally Posted by Wet Water

I'm tempted to think it was not ironic. I seriously consider the possibility that it was suicide. The same location a year later is too much of a coincidence. He was probably already despondent over his career-- child actors are usually not wanted anymore once they're grown. Add the loss of his mother and the motivation can be comprehended.

I agree, I tend to believe he committed suicide. He might have been despondent with his life in general, and the loss of his mom might have put him over the edge. Whatever the cause, it's very sad that Bobby passed on at such a young age.

[Mr B]

I agree he probably met the same fate as other child actors....drugs, booze ultimately suicide. Hazel ended its run in the spring of 1966, Buntrock died in April of '74.....What did he do for those 8 years? I read somewhere that he was working in a gas station on South Dakota....What happened to the $$$ he made on Hazel? Did his parents or he himself squander it?We'll probably never find out!

[karl59]

Originally Posted by Mr B

I agree he probably met the same fate as other child actors....drugs, booze ultimately suicide. Hazel ended its run in the spring of 1966, Buntrock died in April of '74.....What did he do for those 8 years? I read somewhere that he was working in a gas station on South Dakota....What happened to the $$$ he made on Hazel? Did his parents or he himself squander it?We'll probably never find out!

Bobby Buntrock's last acting credit was on a 1967
episode of The Virginian TV series.

[old grouch]

I just finished watching the first season of 'Hazel' and was really impressed with what a good actor little Bobby Buntrock was. He seemed like a real kid in his scenes, and if Jay North wasn't playing Dennis the Menace, Bobby would have been a good candidate for the role. it's a shame about his early death, which may or may not have been suicide by car.

[Hula]

Found this online:

BOBBY BUNTROCK
The young actor who played Harold, Bobby Buntrock, died in a 1974 auto accident. After the 1972 Keystone, South Dakota flood (one reference is National Geographic) during bridge construction an awful road hazard was left unbarricaded or cautioned in any way. An accident at that point was imminent. There was a well traveled "y" intersection. In the middle of the "y" construction had left a fourteen foot hole just wide enough for a Buick to fit in. There was four to five feet of water in the hole. Bobby was turning to go visit a friend in Rocky Gulch, South Dakota. His automobile slipped off the side of the bank, where there should have been jersey barriers, and landed upside down in the water. It took the diver quite some time to get Bobby out, and he informed us that Bobby tried to escape. However, because of a concrete structure on one side and a dirt wall on the other, he could only get the doors open about four inches.

http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclop...zel-(TV-series)

[old grouch]

What a horrible and tragic way to die. Death by drowning is supposed to be one of the worst ways to die. If they would have put up the barriers, Bobby would probably be alive today.

[Hula]

Originally Posted by old grouch

What a horrible and tragic way to die. Death by drowning is supposed to be one of the worst ways to die. If they would have put up the barriers, Bobby would probably be alive today.

I agree on all counts.