Jackie Cooper, child star and Daily Planet editor Perry White in 'Superman' films, dies at 88

Jackie Cooper in 1931's "The Champ." He died Tuesday, May 3, 2011, in Los Angeles at age 88.

LOS ANGELES - Funeral services were pending today for actor Jackie Cooper, who starred in "Our Gang" shorts as a child and was nominated for an Oscar at age 9, but was known to later fans as Daily Planet editor Perry White in the "Superman" films of the 1970s and 80s.

Cooper died Tuesday in a Beverly Hills hospital after a sudden illness, the celebrity website TMZ.com reported. He was 88.

Born in Los Angeles in 1922, Cooper appeared for almost 10 years as Jackie in the famous "Our Gang" film shorts. At age 9, he played the lead role in "Skippy," and became the youngest actor ever nominated for a lead-acting Oscar.

He also played young Jim Hawkins in the 1934 film version of "Treasure Island," and later went on to develop a successful television career, most notably playing the lead role of a Navy lieutenant in "Hennesey" in the early 1960s.

Although he continued acting, Cooper also made a name for himself behind the camera. He won an Emmy Award in 1974 for directing an episode of "M*A*S*H" and another in 1979 for directing the pilot episode of "The White Shadow." He also earned a Directors Guild of America nomination for his work on "White Shadow."

He played the editor of the fictional newspaper The Daily Planet in four "Superman" films beginning in 1978, appearing opposite Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder.

Cooper was married three times and had four children.

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