In Memoriam

Before she became the cold and calculating Livia Soprano on HBO's "The Sopranos" Nancy Marchand always played, in her own words, "the tasteful lady." She started out on the stage but quickly made the jump to television. Her first television break was in 1953 on "The Philco Television Playhouse." She would go onto to guest star on many programs including "Studio One", "Playhouse 90", "The Defenders", "Cheers", "Spenser: For Hire", "Law & Order", "Night Court", "Coach", and "Homicide: Life on the Street." Nancy was no stranger to daytime television either...she had recurring roles on "The Edge of Night", "Another World", and "Love of Life." In 1977, she was cast as newspaper publisher Margaret Pynchon on the drama "Lou Grant" starring Edward Asner. She stayed with the program until it went off the air in 1982. Nancy wa...

I can't even hear his name without laughing. Tim Moore has a very successful career in vaudeville and on Broadway but it was at age 63 starting playing a role that would make him famous. In 1951, the highly popular "Amos N' Andy Show" made the jump from radio to television. The series stars and creators were Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, two white men. Because the characters were all African-American a casting call was necessary. Actors Alvin Childress and Spencer Williams, Jr. signed on to play the lead roles with actors Johnny Lee, Ernestine Wade, Amanda Randolph, and Lillian Randolph reprising their roles from the radio series. Tim Moore was given the job of playing George "Kingfish" Stevens...and what a role that was. I know that we are in 2008 now and that such a series could never be produced in this day and age. But I hope that everyone is adult enough to take it for what it was meant for and that was to make people laugh. White, black I don...

I don't think I enjoy watching a duo on television argue more than Redd Foxx and LaWanda Page as Fred Sanford and Aunt Esther Anderson. Page began her career as a performer appearing as a dancer and chorus girl on the club circuit and in one of her acts she was billed as "The Bronze Goddess" because she used her finger tips to control fire. In 1972, her childhood friend Redd Foxx began his run as Fred Sanford on the NBC show "Sanford and Son." When it came to time select an actress to play Fred's bible thumping sister-in-law Aunt Esther, Foxx chose LaWanda Page immediately. Fred and Esther's verbal wars became legendary on the show and often generated most of its humor. Fred had no problem saying things like "I could stick your face in some dough and make some gorilla cookies" or "I could throw some tracing paper over your head and draw a moose face." But Esther also had no problem giving it right back to him by responding with thin...

Anne Baxter...where do I begin? Between 1940 and 1980 she appeared in 52 films. She was on hand to appear in some of the greatest including The Razor's Edge, All About Eve, The Ten Commandments, and The Blue Gardenia. Her television resume isn't to bad either. Like many of her colleagues she appeared in episodes of "Playhouse 90", "Lux Playhouse", "The DuPont Show with June Allyson", "Wagon Train" and "General Electric Theater." She also guest starred on "Dr. Kildare", "My Three Sons", "The F.B.I.", "The Virginian", "The Big Valley", "Marcus Welby, M.D.", "Ironside", "Cannon", "Banacek", "Mannix", and "The Love Boat." For me she will always be three people...Eve in All About Eve of course and Zelda the Great & Olga, Queen of the Cossacks on the 1960's version of "Batman." The thing I loved about her t...

Barry Nelson appeared in several films during his time two of the more notable being Shadow of the Thin Man in 1941 and The Shining in 1980. From 1953 to 1955 he played George Cooper in the television version of "My Favorite Husband" opposite Joan Caulfield and then Vanessa Brown as Liz. The series is significant because in its radio version it starred Lucille Ball as Liz Cooper when she was just a heartbeat away from becoming Lucy Ricardo. On October 21, 1954 he became the screen's first flesh and blood James Bond. On the anthology series "Climax!" the story "Casino Royale" was seen for the first time. Barry would go on to do several other television guest appearances including "The Ford Theatre Hour", "Suspense", "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "The DuPont Show with June Allyson", "Ben Casey", "Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre", "The Twilight Zone", "Dr. Kildare", ...

Jane Greer was a very little and soft spoken actress. Between 1945 and 1996 she appeared in 28 films. On television she guest starred on numerous shows including "Celebrity Playhouse", "The Ford Television Theatre", "Playhouse 90", "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "Bonanza", "Burke's Law", "Quincy, M.E." and "Saturday Night Live." The reason she graces this blog is because of her marvelous performances on "Falcon Crest" and "Murder, She Wrote." On "Falcon Crest" she played Charlotte Pershing, the long lost birth mother of Maggie Gioberti (Susan Sullivan). As part of Angela Channing's (Jane Wyman) plan to run the Giobert's out of town she brings Charlotte to town all the while knowing that she is a recovering compulsive gambler. Angela brings her to the track and it is all down hill from there. Charlotte begins to steal the expensive jewelry that her daughter inherited...

In all honesty I don't know much about this lady that left us today. I know that I always liked saying her name. Between 1943 and 1978 she appeared in 38 films. She was known for her dancing skills and she appeared with the likes of Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. Some of her more remembered films are The Harvey Girls and Singin' in the Rain. On television she guest starred on "Arthur Godfrey and His Friends", "Medical Center", "Hawaii Five-O", "The Love Boat", "Fantasy Island", "Murder, She Wrote", "Burke's Law", and "Frasier." Out of all those appearances I only saw her guest appearance on "Murder, She Wrote" in which she played the lover of actor Mel Ferrer's character. Ironically, Mel Ferrer left us just fourteen days ago.

I know what you are all thinking...Mrs. Howell from "Gilligan's Island." That's very true, she was Mrs. Howell on "Gilligan's Island" but I have never watched an episode of the show from beginning to end in my entire life. I will say that she was a wonderful actress and Jim Backus was a wonderful actor so I am sure they were perfect as "the millionaire and his wife" despite the fact that she was thirteen years older than he was in real life. In addition to Broadway Schafer appeared in close to thirty films and guest starred on such shows as "Climax!", "Letter to Loretta", "Playhouse 90", "The Beverly Hillbillies", "77 Sunset Strip", "Mayberry R.F.D.", "Mannix", "Vega$", "Phyllis", "Three's Company" and "The Brady Bunch." The reason I am mentioning her is because for me she will always be Miss Phoebe Emerson, owner of Miss Emerson...

Donna Reed This lady was the very embodiment of what it meant to be a leading lady on the silver screen. She was blessed to appeared in so many epic productions, four of them being Shadow of the Thin Man, The Picture of Dorian Gray, It's a Wonderful Life, and From Here to Eternity. The actress was rewarded with an Oscar for her performance in From Here to Eternity. On television she could be spotted in a guest appearance on "General Electric Theater" and of course she headed up the cast of "The Donna Reed Show" from 1958 until 1966. As Donna Stone she redefined the role of TV mom and housewife by standing up for what she believed in and becoming a role model for women everywhere. As the 1980's approached Reed made a guest appearance on "The Love Boat." In 1984, it became known that Barbara Bel Geddes would be vacating her post as Miss Ellie Ewing on the prime time hit "Dallas." 63-year-old Reed signed a one year contract to play t...

Mel Ferrer, first husband to screen icon Audrey Hepburn. This suave star appeared in several films during his lengthy career but it was his performance in 1953's Lili opposite Leslie Caron that everyone remembers. On television he guest starred on such shows as "Police Story", "Baretta", "Ellery Queen", "Hawaii Five-O", "Dallas", "Fantasy Island", "Hotel", "Murder, She Wrote", and "Christine Cromwell." For me he will ALWAYS be Phillip Erikson from the 1980's prime time hit "Falcon Crest." He was on for only three seasons but he definitely made a mark. Erikson was the crooked but well mannered lawyer to ruthless matriach Angela Channing (Jane Wyman). You never knew where he stood...one minute he was in love with her the next he was plotting with her worst enemy Richard Channing (David Selby) to bring her down. It was shocking for me when Angela accepted his marriage propo...

I have heard some of his colleague's refer to Jim Davis as a "total professional" and that statement certainly shows in every performance I've ever seen him give. On the silver screen he appeared in such movies as "The President's Lady", "The Day Time Ended", and "The Bottom of the Bottle" to name a few. As far as that small medium called television goes, that's a different story. Davis, much like other actors and actresses of his day soon found themselves guest starring on shows like "Fireside Theatre", "Playhouse 90", "The Millionaire", "Rescue 8", "Lassie", "Gunsmoke", "The Donna Reed Show", "Wagon Train", "Perry Mason", "Rawhide", "Bonanza", "Death Valley Days", "The Virginian", "The F.B.I.", "Cannon", and "Police Story." BUT....BUT.............1977 was the year ...

Elizabeth Patterson was another marvelous character actress. She made her first film appearance in 1926 in the film The Boy Friend. Patterson continued in films and between 1926 and 1960 she appeared in 103 films. Her final film role was in 1960's Tall Story. The actress was 85 years old at the time. On television she guest starred on such shows as "The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre", "Studio One", "Stage 7", "Playhouse 90", "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "77 Sunset Strip" and "Climax!." She appeared in two 1955 episodes of the "Adventures of Superman." In the episode "Olsen's Millions" she plays millionaire Mrs. Peabody who mistakenly believes Jimmy Olsen has saved her cat's life and rewards him with one million dollars. Her final television appearance was on "The Barbara Stanwyck Show" in 1961. After that the 86-year-old actress retired. On "I Love Lucy" she entered the...

Kathryn Card began her career on the stage and soon radio followed. She made her first film appearance in 1945's Kiss and Tell which starred Shirley Temple. 38 more films would follow between 1945 and 1964. Her final film The Unsinkable Molly Brown starring Debbie Reynolds was released three months after Card had passed away. One thing worth mentioning is that Card played the school principal in the 1960 movie Please Don't Eat the Daisies which was later adapted into a television series of the same name in 1965. Her television appearances included "The Long Ranger", "Fireside Theatre", "Climax!", "Alfred Hitchcock Presents", "Letter to Loretta", "Mr. Adams and Eve", "Playhouse 90", "Our Miss Brooks", "The Eve Arden Show", "Perry Mason", "Philip Marlowe", "Dennis the Menace", "Wagon Train", "Westinghouse Playhouse", "Rawhide", ...

Barbara Bel Geddes was a magnificent lady! In 1955, she originated the role of Maggie the Cat in the stage production of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof." Some of her films include I Remember Mama and Vertigo. On television she appeared in four episodes of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents." Bel Geddes appeared in one of the series most famous and best remembered stories. In the episode "Lamb to the Slaughter" which originally aired on April 13, 1958, Bel Geddes appears as Mary Maloney, a housewife who comes home to find out that her husband is leaving her. In a fit of rage she strikes him over the head with a frozen leg of lamb and kills him. Mary then prepares an alibi for herself. Eventually the police are called and after a long investigation they still can not find the murder weapon. That is when Mary offers to fix them a nice roast leg of lamb. Let's face it though, Barbara Bel Geddes will always be remembered for her role as Eleanor "Miss Ellie" Sout...

The great Vivian Vance........ Right now and fifty years from now she will be remembered as Lucille Ball's closest on-screen pal. Before she joined the "Lucy" family Vance had an long career on the stage. It was her performance in "The Voice of the Turtle" that prompted Desi Arnaz and producer Jess Oppenheimer to offer her the role of Ethel Mertz on "I Love Lucy." In Vance's own words "I thought it was just another job so I took it." Another job? Hardly! For nine marvelous years and almost 200 television episodes she was Ethel Mertz. If she were alive today she probably would cringe after hearing that but it is true. When she joined Lucille Ball on "The Lucy Show" in 1962 her character's name was now Vivian Bagley but it was still the same old routine and chemistry. Vance left "The Lucy Show" in 1965 after three seasons but would later visit in three episodes before the show ended in 1968. In December of that sa...

The final half of "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" has left us. Dick Martin was no stranger to variety shows. During his long career he and he comedy partner Dan Rowan appeared on popular shows such as "The Bob Hope Show", "The Perry Como Show", "The Dinah Shore Chevy Show", "Toast of the Town", "The Andy Williams Show", "The Mike Douglas Show", "The Merv Griffin Show", "The Carol Burnett Show", and "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" He was a staple on the popular "Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts" he and Dan Rowan eventually being the guests of honor in 1974. On the game show circut he appeared on "Match Game", "Password Plus", and "Super Password." In a 1988 episode of "Super Password" he appeared with Lucille Ball in what would end up being her final game show appearance before her death the following year. As far as acting go...

I am going to be perfectly honest here. I have never seen Lois Maxwell perform in anything. The reason she is being remembered on this blog is because she appeared in more James Bond films than anyone second only to actor Desmond Llewelyn. She appeared in 14, he in 18. Maxwell began her career in the 1946 Warner film A Matter of Life and Death. On television she appeared on such shows as "Stingray", "Ghost Squad", "Adventures of Rainbow Country", and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents." She first appeared as Miss Moneypenny in 1962's Dr. No...between 1962 and 1985 she appeared in thirteen more films as the iconic secretary her final being A View to Kill. Her final screen appearance was in the film The Fourth Angel which was released in 2001. RIP Miss Moneypenny...you served us well.

This lady is truly what they mean when they use the words "character actress." During her marvelous career she appeared on "The $10,000 Pyramid", "Studio One", "The United States Steel Hour", "The Twilight Zone", "Route 66", "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour", "Dr. Kildare", "The Fugitive", "Bonanza", "Gunsmoke", "The Virginian", "The F.B.I.", "Cannon", "Barnaby Jones", "Hawaii Five-O", "The Love Boat", "Hotel", "The Facts of Life", "In the Heat of the Night", "The Flash", "Full House", "Coach", "The Cosby Mysteries", "General Hospital", "Spider-Man", "Baywatch Nights", and "Crossing Jordan" In 1948 she was a semi-finalist in the Miss America Pagent. In 1955 she was Barbara Bel Geddes' understudy for the role o...

Bob LeMond was a wonderful radio personality. He lent his voice to such timeless classics as "The Red Skelton Show", "Our Miss Brooks", "My Friend Irma" and "Life with Luigi." On television he announced for programs like "Leave it to Beaver" and "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet." Starting in 1948 he became the annoucner for Lucille Ball's radio sitcom "My Favorite Husband." At the close of each program Lucy could be heard saying "Bob LeMond!" To which he would reply "Yes Lucille" and then the two of them would act out the sketch for a Jell-O commerical (Jell-O was the sponsor at the time). He remained with the program until it ended in March of 1951. He also narrated the original pilot for the "I Love Lucy" show. An unsung hero during the golden age of radio and television, he will be fondly remembered.

Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird...it's a plane...it's...it's.... When those immortal words were first spoken on television on September 19, 1952 kids all across America wrapped their red capes around their necks and leaped off their beds. In addition to putting on the red cape and blue tights George Reeves appeared in 67 films between 1939 and 1956. Some of his more notable film appearances were in "Gone with the Winds", "The Blue Gardenia", "From Here to Eternity", "The Kansan" (as Jesse James), "The Adventures of Sir Galahad" (as Sir Galahad) and "So Proudly We Hail!" On television he appeared on "Suspense", "Kraft Television Theatre", "The Clock", "Actor's Studio", "The Silver Theatre", "Believe it or Not", "The Trap", "Starlight Theatre", "The Web", "Lights Out", "Fireside Theatre" and ...

Even though he appeared in such epics productions as "The Ten Commandments", "Ben-Hur", and "Planet of the Apes" I will always remember him as the ruthless Jason Colby on the "Dynasty" spin-off "The Colbys." Even though it was on for only two seasons it will still full of scandlous action. Heston did incredibly well when it came to battling estranged wife Sable (Stephanie Beacham) and mortal enemy Zachary Powers (Ricardo Montalban). Audiences were shocked to find out that nephew Jeffery (John James) was actually Jason's son, the result of an affair with sister-in-law Francesca (Katharine Ross). In addition to his wife's sister he also bedded her cousin, Alexis Carrington Colby (Joan Collins). It should also be mentioned that Alexis was also his sister-in-law as well, the widow of his late brother Cecil. It was after that one night stand with Alexis that Jason learned that his twins Miles (Maxwell Caulfield) and Monica (Tracy Sc...

Mary Jane Croft is someone who has not been given the recognition and admiration she deserves. Before she became known as Lucy Carmichael's bubbly pal on "The Lucy Show" in 1965, she was one of Hollywood's hardest working character actresses. Croft's voice could be heard on radio programs like "My Favorite Husband", "Our Miss Brooks", "The Beulah Show", "The Mel Blanc Show", "Joan Davis Time", The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes", "Those We Love", "Open House", "Blondie", "Twelve Players", "The Adventures of Sam Spade", and "Jane Edicott, Girl Reporter." On January 30, 1949 she performed opposite Robert Montgomery in "The Screen Director's Guild" production of Alfred Hitchcock's "Mr. & Mrs. Smith." Montgomery reprised his role of Mr. Smith from the film version and Croft portrayed Mrs. Smith, replacing actress Carole Lomb...