'Our Gang' Actress Jean Darling Dies at 93

She started acting at the age of 4.

ByABC News
September 7, 2015, 2:11 PM
An image of Jean Darling in 1935.
An image of Jean Darling in 1935.
Getty Images

— -- Jean Darling, who is best known for her work in "Our Gang," the silent comedy shorts dating back to the early 1900s, has died. She was 93.

Darling, born Dorothy Jean LeVake, died Friday in a nursing home in Germany, her son Roy told The Hollywood Reporter.

Darling, who started acting at the age of 4, join "Our Gang" in the mid-1920s, before sound was added to the shorts. The shorts were the inspiration for what became "The Little Rascals" years later. She also starred in "Jane Eyre" in 1934.

Even as recently as 2013, Darling was still active, featured in "The Butler's Tale." The New York Times also confirmed the actress' death with her friend Rene Riva, who directed her in this project.

But the talented woman was more than an actress and wrote autobiographies, a novel and hundreds of short stories. She also starred on Broadway and worked in Irish radio, telling children's stories, according to IMDB.

In addition to her son Roy, she is survived by her grandsons Robert and Alec.