Oliver! '' co-star
Mark Lester at the
41st Academy Awards, 14 April 1969 The Wild brothers sought acting roles to supplement their parents' income. In the autumn of 1964, the pair were cast in the
West End theatre production of
Lionel Bart's
Oliver! – Arthur in the title role and Jack as Charley Bates, a member of Fagin's gang. Wild was chosen to play the
Artful Dodger for the 1968 movie version of
Oliver! His performance received critical acclaim and several nominations: •
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor – nominated at the
41st Academy Awards •
Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – nominated at
26th Golden Globe Awards •
BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer – nominated at
22nd British Academy Film Awards TV work children's series
H.R. Pufnstuf, 1969 In the spring of 1966, Wild left the stage show of
Oliver! to make the film serial
Danny the Dragon for the
Children's Film Foundation. Wild's first speaking roles on TV were in an episode of
Out of the Unknown, and in the third part of the BBC's version of the Wesker trilogy, ''
I'm Talking About Jerusalem. He also appeared in episodes of Z-Cars, The Newcomers, and George and the Dragon''.
After Oliver! At the 1968 premiere of
Oliver!, Wild met brothers
Sid and Marty Krofft, who thought he would make a good lead for a show they were developing called
H.R. Pufnstuf. Wild starred as Jimmy in Pufnstuf's only season (1969), as well as in the film
Pufnstuf (1970), which was released shortly after the show was concluded. Wild then appeared in
Melody (1971, with
Oliver! co-star
Mark Lester) and
Flight of the Doves (1971, with another
Oliver! co-star,
Ron Moody). In 1972, Wild appeared as a stowaway in an episode of BBC TV's
The Onedin Line. In 1973, he played Reg in
The 14, a film directed by
David Hemmings. On television, Wild appeared in
a BBC adaptation of
Our Mutual Friend in 1976. In 1999, Wild lamented, "When I first entered in the show business, of course I didn't mind playing younger roles. However, it did bug me when I would be 21 being offered the role of a 13-year-old. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy playing these roles; I had barrels of fun, I just wanted more serious and dramatic roles; it's that simple." He also embarked on a recording career, releasing
The Jack Wild Album for
Capitol Records, which contained the single "Some Beautiful". In the early 1970s, Wild also released the albums ''Everything's Coming Up Roses
and Beautiful World'' for
Buddah Records.
Later career Wild returned to the big screen in a few minor roles, such as in the 1991
Kevin Costner film
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and as a peddler in
Basil (1998). For the most part, he spent the remainder of his career working in theatre. Wild's last major appearance was as the male lead, Mouse, in
Tayla Goodman's rock musical
Virus. The show ran for two weeks at the
Theatre Royal,
Nottingham, in 1999. For his final film appearance, he had a minor role in
Moussaka & Chips (2005), in which he once again worked with Ron Moody. ==Personal life==