Stuffy Singer
Singer in 2013
Born
Simon Singer

(1941-11-24) November 24, 1941 (age 82)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Known forUnited States and world champion American handball player; teenage radio and television actor
TelevisionBeulah, Blondie and Dagwood, Leave it to Beaver, My Three Sons, My Little Margie, The Life of Riley, and Annie Oakley.

Simon "Stuffy" Singer (born November 24, 1941) is an American former United States and world singles champion American handball player.[1][2] He has been inducted into the United States Handball Association Hall of Fame. He was also a teenage radio and television actor, starring on the television show Blondie and Dagwood in the 1950s.[3][4]

Early life

Singer was born in Los Angeles, California, is Jewish, and attended Bancroft Junior High School and Fairfax High School (class of 1957).[5][6] He lived in Hollywood, California.[7][6] In addition to American handball, in his youth Singer also competed in table tennis, tennis, football, and baseball.[8]

Acting career

Singer was a teenage radio and television actor.[9] In radio, he appeared in a number of shows, between 1944 and 1955.[3] He played on the TV situation comedy Beulah for two seasons, starting in 1952, playing the role of Donnie Henderson.[10] He starred on the television show Blondie and Dagwood in the 1950s.[9][10] He played Alexander Bumstead, the son of Blondie and Dagwood Bumstead.[10] He also acted in the television sitcoms Leave it to Beaver, My Three Sons, My Little Margie, and The Life of Riley, and the TV series Annie Oakley.[10]

American handball career

Singer won his first handball national and world singles championships in 1965, and his last in 1988.[11][12] He won 16 United States, Canadian, and world titles in singles (including the 1967 Open Singles World Championship, and the 1968 USHA four-wall men's singles championship) and doubles (including the 1978 and 1979 men's doubles championships).[13][14][15]

In 1971, on behalf of the United States government, Singer toured Germany and England with handballer Jimmy Jacobs, giving clinics and exhibitions to Air Force personnel.[11] When he retired from competition in 1988, Singer was ranked the #5 all-time professional tournament winner.[11]

Singer was inducted into the Southern California Handball Association Hall of Fame in 1984, and into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1991.[11][16] He was also inducted into the United States Handball Association Hall of Fame in 1994.[17][18]

Personal life

Singer is a tax consultant in Southern California.[19] He and his ex-wife Sunny have two children together.

References

  1. ^ Kumar, Ashok (1999). Handball. Discovery Publishing House; DPH Sports Series. ISBN 9788171414574 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ California Yearbook, California Almanac Company, p. 216, 1975.
  3. ^ a b "Stuffy Singer; Old Time Radio Star". www.rusc.com.
  4. ^ "Success vs Stuffy Singer". The Los Angeles Times. April 20, 1969. p. 662.
  5. ^ "1957 Fairfax High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com.
  6. ^ a b Jesse H. Silver and Elli Wohlgelernter. "Sports". Encyclopaedia Judaica (2nd ed.).
  7. ^ Vernon C. Tharp (July 30, 1962). "16th National YMCA Junior Handball Championships". The Journal of Physical Education. Physical Directors' Society of the Young Men's Christian Associations of North America. p. 82 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ Putnam, Pat (December 1, 1969). "Just Like a Green Bay Tree". Sports Illustrated.
  9. ^ a b John Reid (July 29, 2010). "National handball champ at 70". San Jose Mercury News.
  10. ^ a b c d Beverly Washburn (January 2016). "Hollywood Memories; Blondie", The Vegas Voice, p. 6.
  11. ^ a b c d "Simon "Stuffy" Singer; Handball - 1991". Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
  12. ^ "Stuffy Singer". www.ushandball.org.
  13. ^ "USHA & AAU 4 Wall National Championship Titles". wphlive.tv. July 2, 2014.
  14. ^ Norris McWhirter (1982). "Handball (Court)," Guinness Book of Sports Records, Winners & Champions, p. 170, Sterling Publishing Company.
  15. ^ Franklin Foer, Marc Tracy (2012). Jewish Jocks; An Unorthodox Hall of Fame, Grand Central Publishing, ISBN 9781455516117.
  16. ^ "SCHA Handball Hall of Fame 1983 - 2018". www.handball.org.
  17. ^ Geoff Capell. "Jim Triplett". Northern California Handball Association.
  18. ^ "Hall of Fame Players". www.ushandball.org.
  19. ^ Samuel Clemens (March 15, 2023). "Stuffy Singer: Actor, Athlete, and Accountant". Quad-City Times. Quad-City Times. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
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