About Jackie Cooper
John Cooper Jr. (September 15, 1922 – May 3, 2011), known professionally as Jackie Cooper, was an American actor and director. He began his career as a child actor and was a featured member of the Our Gang ensemble 1929–1931. At age nine, he became the only child and youngest person nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, for the 1931 film Skippy. He then successfully transitioned to adolescent roles in the 1930s and adult roles from 1940 on. As an adult, he starred as Socrates "Sock" Miller on the sitcom The People's Choice (1955–58) and as the title character on Hennesey (1959–1962), as well as playing Daily Planet editor-in-chief Perry White in the 1978–1987 Superman films. He also had success as a television director, earning two Primetime Emmy Awards for directing. He had a parallel career as a U.S. Navy officer, both active duty and reserve. For his contributions to the motion picture industry, Cooper was honored with a Hollywood Walk of Fame star located at 1507 Vine Street. Cooper first appeared in films as an extra with his grandmother, who took him to her auditions hoping it would help her get extra work. At age nine, Cooper was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor, the youngest actor to be nominated for an Oscar in that category.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.