News / Art
Ernie Weckbaugh Promotes Book to Help Others
Former Little Rascal Has Written THE SPIRIT OF DAVID to Inspire the Disadvantaged
Ask Ernie Weckbaugh, aged 77, and he’ll say, “yes!” Weckbaugh has been making a difference since he was six years old. Using his creativity, Weckbaugh has entertained others from an early age. To hear him tell it, he’s “spent his life making up for the fact he didn’t become the movie star his mother hoped he would be.”
Pursuing his desire to make a difference, Weckbaugh’s latest project is the first book in an on-going series titled The Spirit of David, 7 Ways to Win Against All Odds. The book is a compilation of stories of those who have succeeded in overcoming their disabilities. The book honors the late Dr. David Schumacher who, in spite of being blind most of his adult life, earned a fortune in California real estate and contributed much of it to charity.
“I feel the book is a fitting tribute to David as well as the culmination of my life’s work in entertainment,” says Weckbaugh. “I plan to devote the remainder of my life to making the book a success. In the process, I hope the book will inspire and motivate others to achieve their dreams.”
Weckbaugh is one of the few living cast members of the Our Gang Comedies. He starred as “Stinkey” along with Alfalfa, Spanky and Darla. Movie director William McGann selected Weckbaugh for his photogenic looks and talent and signed him to a Warner Bros. contract. Weckbaugh was loaned to Hal Roach studios for the Our Gang Comedies where he starred in one dozen films.
Always progressive, Weckbaugh’s reminisces about working with African-American children in the 1930s. “I remember the Our Gang shows of the late 1930s,” Weckbaugh recalls, “where the Little Rascals’ cast was made up of little black children—Buckwheat, Farina, Sunshine Sammy and Stymie—as well as little white children, and no one gave it a second thought.”
Mr. Weckbaugh also starred with Claude Rains in Sons of Liberty and later with Hedy Lamarr as her son.
As he grew older, Mr. Weckbaugh changed from entertainer to cartoonist as he drew for the Santa Monica High School newspaper. He carried the love of drawing forward as he was an artist/illustrator for the Air Force during the Korean War.
Following the war, Weckbaugh became a weekly columnist for the Los Angeles Daily News and other local newspapers.
Weckbaugh and his wife, Patty, founded Casa Graphics in 1977 to help small publishers get their books into print—over 150 to date, and counting. An author himself, Weckbaugh has written over a dozen books.
Weckbaugh has lectured at UCLA, USC and Woodbury College. He has donated over 25 gallons of blood throughout the past 35 years. Weckbaugh was given a Life Achievement Award 2004-2005 from the Young Artists International, a Golden Globe affiliate.
All proceeds of The Spirit of David will go to charitable causes. The book is available on Amazon and in the bookstores.
About Ernie Weckbaugh
Ernie Weckbaugh is a veteran journalist, columnist, author and former child actor. Weckbaugh is a member of the original cast of the Our Gang Comedies (Little Rascals) in the 1930s. Currently Weckbaugh is owner and president of Casa Graphics, Inc. and Bestseller Books Publishing. He and his wife Patty (who contributed to The Spirit of David, too) have produced several hundred books for self-publishers. Weckbaugh is a former L.A. Daily News columnist. He has lectured on small business success, marketing and promotion at UCLA, USC and Woodbury College. Weckbaugh is the current president of the Book Publicists of Southern California. Weckbaugh can be reached at (818) 842-4278 or casag@wgn.com.
