Dwayne Hickman

Born in Los Angeles, on May 18, 1934, Hickman was the younger brother of child actor Darryl Hickman and the older brother of Deidre Hickman. His father, Milton, sold insurance and his mother, Katherine Louise (née Ostertag), was a housewife. His maternal grandfather, Louis Henry Ostertag, was a U.S. Navy seaman on Commodore George Dewey's flagship, the cruiser USS Olympia (C-6), and present at the Battle of Manila Bay on May 1, 1898, for which he was awarded the Dewey Medal by Act of Congress.

Hickman graduated from Cathedral High School in 1952 and intended to become a Passionist priest, but ultimately chose not to become a priest and attended Loyola Marymount University. Hickman's first screen appearances were as an extra in The Grapes of Wrath (1940) and Men of Boys Town (1941), in which his brother Darryl was featured. Other early screen appearances were in the 1942 Our Gang comedy Melodies Old and New, Captain Eddie (1945), The Hoodlum Saint (1946), and Faithful in My Fashion (1946).

In 1946, Hickman played young Chase in the movie The Secret Heart which starred Claudette Colbert, Walter Pidgeon, Lionel Barrymore, and June Allyson.

Hickman played different small roles in some of Columbia Pictures' eight-film "Rusty" series, about a boy and his valiant German Shepherd: The Return of Rusty (1946), For the Love of Rusty (1947), The Son of Rusty (1947), My Dog Rusty (1948), Rusty Leads the Way (1948), Rusty's Birthday (1949), and Rusty Saves a Life (1949).

Heaven Only Knows (1947), in which he appeared, starred Bob Cummings, who would play a major role in Hickman's career. Hickman also appeared in Her Husband's Affairs (1948), The Boy with Green Hair (1948), The Sun Comes Up (1949), Mighty Joe Young (1949), and The Happy Years (1950), which starred Darryl. As a teen, Dwayne and Darryl guest-starred in a 1950 episode of The Lone Ranger titled "Two Gold Lockets".

Hickman focused on his studies for a few more years, then returned to acting with appearances in Public Defender, The Loretta Young Show, Lux Video Theatre, and Waterfront. In 1955, Dwayne appeared in another Lone Ranger episode, titled "Sunstroke Mesa".

Hickman found his future in entertainment behind the scenes, becoming involved in production roles. From 1977 to 1988, Hickman served as a programming executive at CBS. He took time out for a cameo in the TV movie High School U.S.A. (1983).

Hickman reprised his role of Dobie in the TV movie Bring Me the Head of Dobie Gillis (1988). His autobiography is titled Forever Dobie. That year, he guest-starred on Win, Lose or Draw.

In the late 1980s, Hickman turned to directing episodic TV, doing episodes of Duet; Charles in Charge; Open House; Designing Women; Get a Life; Head of the Class; Harry and the Hendersons; and Sister, Sister.

He still occasionally acted, appearing in Murder, She Wrote, and A Night at the Roxbury (1998). He had a semi-regular role on the TV series Clueless.

He could be seen in Surviving Gilligan's Island: The Incredibly True Story of the Longest Three Hour Tour in History and Angels with Angles (2005).