American child actor who did TV commercials from age six. He was the lead in the TV series “Dennis the Menace” from 1959 to 1963. North also starred in a short-lived series entitled “Maya” in 1965 and did guest shots on other series. During the late 1960s, he was a teenage long-haired drug freak. He was a has-been by age 21, doing a stint in the Navy and various odd jobs.
His father abandoned the family when he was four. North’s mom worked while his aunt and uncle took care of him on the set of “Dennis the Menace.” They often beat him and slapped him; he was brain-washed by the reign of terror, having to always get his lines right and do well, a true nightmare.
By the 1980s, the money his mother had invested in real estate 15-20 years earlier had made him well enough off to live a life of retirement in rural Lake Butler, Florida. He was considered a recluse and over the hill. At age 41, North was chubby, his hair was graying and he had a puffy face. In the ’90s he was traveling the country to appear at memorabilia/collectible shows and other types of events, signing autographs and answering questions about his life in show biz. He remains sour on Hollywood, feeling that he was used and abandoned like a commodity.
He married three times and was divorced twice. His third marriage resulted in new found hope, as he finished years of therapy and moved to Florida. With no kids, he plays parent to three step-daughters.
Link to Wikipedia biography