Matthew Garber brother Fergus Garber was born when Matthew portrayed Michael Banks in 1964. Fergus was just thirteen when he lost his older sibling.
The late British child actor Matthew is most notable for his appearance in the 1964 musical fantasy film Mary Poppins. He played in only two other films, The Gnome-Mobile and The Three Lives of Thomasina.
Garber appeared alongside British actress Karen Dotrice in all three movies he played. Moreover, all his portrayals were in films by Walt Disney Pictures. In 1963, he was noticed by Karen’s father, Roy Dotrice, who was searching for a potential child actor.
He recommended Matthew to the Disney company’s casting department, where his “artful dodges, like squinting, screwing up his nose, and brushing his hair back with one hand” would make him stand out.
Unfortunately, the young actor caught hepatitis while in India, and the disease had spread by the time he was repatriated to the United Kingdom. On June 13, 1977, Matthew passed away at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, London.
Matthew Garber Brother
Matthew Garber brother Fergus Garber accepted the Disney Legend in 2004 on his behalf. Fergus was 13 when he lost Matthew to hepatitis.
Fergus was never informed whether any memorial was erected in memory of Matthew. The actor was awarded for living up to the Disney principles of skill, imagination, discipline, magic, and craftsmanship.
He was able to win the hearts of the audiences with his uninhibited, fresh, and infectious personality in a short time.
The actor’s remains were cremated on June 16 at St. Marylebone Crematorium, East Finchley, London. Sadly, Fergus had to go through another heartwrenching phase after his parents passed away within a decade following Fergus’s demise.
There were claims that the Mary Poppins star contracted hepatitis by using drugs in India; however, Fergus denied such claims and said it probably came from having infected meat. Later the condition led to hemorrhagic necrotizing pancreatitis.
Facts To Know About Fergus Garber
- Fergus was born in 1964, when Matthew portrayed Michael Banks in Marry Poppins. He is fifty-eight years old.
- His parents, L.L. Garber and Margot Garber, were theatrical actors; however, neither was particularly famous.
- Fergus was raised alongside Matthew in Stepney, London.
- His brother studied at St Pauk’s Primary School in Winchmore Hill and later attended Highgate School in Highgate, North London.
- Fergus’s father’s name was recorded as Louis Leonard Garber by the school Matthew had attended.
- In the 1967 Disney press release, Matthew was considered a spirited and bright boy. It also noted Matthew’s enjoyment of pulling practical jokes, playing sports, and reading mythology, poetry, and adventure books.
- Matthew denied claims his older sibling contracted hepatitis by using drugs. He said that it had probably come from consuming infected meat.
- The actor accepted the Disney Legend award on behalf of Fergus in 2004.