This project was supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian. Made accessible through a grant from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and Photo Friends.
Reginald Thomas Kirkwood (1920–2006), better known as Joe Kirkwood Jr., was a professional golfer on the PGA Tour, as well as a film actor. In 1948, Kirkwood Jr. and his father, Joe Kirkwood Sr. who was a golf pro, both made the cut in the U.S. Open becoming the first father and son duo to do so. In 1945, Kirkwood Jr. was invited to test for the role of the comic book character, boxer Joe Palooka. He got the part and starred in eleven Joe Palooka films and two additional movies, between the years of 1946 and 1961. In the late 1950s Kirkwood Jr. became a reporter for an NBC Radio program as well as hosting a show on KHJ-TV. Joe Kirkwood Jr., who has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, died on September 7, 2006 in Hesperia, California, at the age of 86. Photograph caption dated February 13, 1959 reads, "Joe Kirkwood Jr. of Studio City, the movie Joe Palooka, gives advice to young Martin Ojeda, who boxes in the Golden Glove tournament tonight at the Hollywood Legion Stadium."
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