Elizabeth Montgomery
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| Elizabeth Montgomery | |
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| Born | Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery April 15, 1933 Hollywood, California, U.S. |
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| Died | May 18, 1995 (aged 62) Beverly Hills, California, U.S. |
| Years active | 1950–1995 |
| Spouse(s) | Frederick Gallatin Cammann (1954–1955) Gig Young (1956–1963) William Asher (1963–1973) Robert Foxworth (1993–1995) |
| Domestic partner(s) | Robert Foxworth (1973–1993) |
Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1933 – May 18, 1995) was an American film and television actress whose career spanned five decades. She is best remembered for her roles as Samantha Stephens in Bewitched, as Ellen Harrod in A Case of Rape and as Lizzie Borden in The Legend of Lizzie Borden.
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[edit] Youth
Born in Los Angeles, California, Elizabeth Montgomery was the child of actor Robert Montgomery and his wife, Broadway actress Elizabeth Bryan Allen. She had an older sister, Martha Bryan Montgomery, who died before she was born and a brother, Robert Montgomery Jr., who was born in 1936. She attended The Spence School.
[edit] Acting career
[edit] Early career
Montgomery made her television debut in her father's series Robert Montgomery Presents, and her film debut in 1955 in The Court Martial of Billy Mitchell.
Her early career consisted of starring vehicles and appearances in live television dramas and series, such as Studio One, Kraft Television Theater, Johnny Staccato, The Twilight Zone, The Eleventh Hour, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In 1954 she lost out on co-starring with Marlon Brando in the seminal film On the Waterfront directed by Elia Kazan.
She was featured in a role as a socialite with Henry Silva and Sammy Davis, Jr. in the offbeat 1963 gangster film Johnny Cool and, the same year, with Dean Martin and Carol Burnett in the motion picture comedy Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?, directed by Daniel Mann. Nevertheless, Alfred Hitchcock had her in mind to play the sister-in-law of Sean Connery, who sees herself as a rival to the troubled heroine in the movie Marnie, but Montgomery was unavailable owing to her commitment to a new television show: Bewitched.
[edit] Bewitched
Montgomery played the central role of lovable witch Samantha Stephens with Dick York (and later Dick Sargent) as her husband in the ABC situation comedy Bewitched. She also played the role of Samantha's cousin, Serena. The show became a rating success (it was, at the time, the highest rated series ever for the network[1]). It enjoyed an eight-year run from 1964 to 1972 and remains popular through syndication and DVD releases. The show had even been given the 'green light' for a ninth season by the network, but Montgomery, wishing to do other things, backed out. She also provided the voice of Samantha for an episode of The Flintstones.
Montgomery received five Emmy Award and four Golden Globe nominations for her role. At its creative peak, Bewitched was considered one of the most sophisticated sitcoms on the air and cleverly explored contemporary themes and social issues within a fantasy context.
[edit] After Bewitched
Montgomery returned to Samantha-like twitching of her nose and on-screen magic in a series of Japanese television commercials (1980-83) for "Mother" chocolate biscuits and cookies by confectionery conglomerate Lotte Corp. These Japanese commercials provided a lucrative salary for Montgomery while remaining out of sight from non-Japanese fans and Hollywood industry. The commercials were posted on YouTube in 2007.
In the United States, Montgomery spent much of her later career pursuing dramatic roles that took her as far away from the good-natured Samantha as possible. Among her later roles, including performances that brought her Emmy Award nominations for playing a rape victim in A Case of Rape (1974), for her portrayal of Lizzie Borden in William Bast's The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975), and for her role as a strong woman facing hardship in 1820s Ohio in the mini-series The Awakening Land (1978).
In 1977, Montgomery played a police detective having an interracial affair with her partner, played by OJ Simpson in A Killing Affair. She made a chilling villain in the 1985 picture Amos, playing a nurse in a state home who terrorized residents Kirk Douglas and Dorothy McGuire.
One of her final roles was in an episode for Batman: The Animated Series entitled "Showdown," in which she played a barmaid. Her final television movies were the highly-rated Edna Buchanan detective series.
Montgomery was one of the first actresses to broaden their careers from series work with television movies, and she set the precedent for other TV series actresses, such as Farrah Fawcett, Jaclyn Smith, Melissa Gilbert, Lindsay Wagner, Carol Burnett, and Barbara Eden, to follow.
Elizabeth Montomery was also crowned Miss Minisode 2009
[edit] Personal life
Montgomery was first married to New York socialite Frederick Gallatin Cammann in 1954; the marriage lasted barely a year. She was married to actor Gig Young from 1956 to 1963, and then to director-producer William Asher from 1963 until their 1973 divorce. They had three children: William Asher (July 24, 1964), Robert Asher (October 5, 1965) and Rebecca Asher (June 17, 1969). The latter two pregnancies were incorporated into Bewitched as Samantha's pregnancies with Tabitha (primarily Erin Murphy, with twin Diane) and Adam Stephens. In 1971, while filming the eighth season of Bewitched, she fell in love with director Richard Michaels and moved in with him after the season ended. This was another major factor in canceling plans for a ninth season. The relationship lasted two and a half years. After cohabiting for nearly twenty years, she entered her fourth and final marriage, to actor Robert Foxworth, in 1993. She even approached comedian Dennis Miller about taking out a license to marry the couple. She remained married to Foxworth until her death.[2]
[edit] Political activism
In June 1992, Montgomery and her former Bewitched co-star Dick Sargent, who had remained a good friend, were Grand Marshals at the Los Angeles Gay Pride Parade. Montgomery had liberal political views, being an outspoken champion of women's rights and gay rights throughout her life, sharply contrasting with her conservative Republican father, who was once a media advisor to President Dwight Eisenhower.
During Bewitched's run, she was a vocal critic of the Vietnam War. In the late 1980s and early 1990s she narrated a series of political documentaries, including Coverup: Behind the Iran Contra Affair (1988) and the Academy Award winning The Panama Deception (1992).
[edit] Illness and death
Montgomery was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the spring of 1995. She had ignored the flu-like symptoms during the filming of Deadline for Murder: From the Files of Edna Buchanan and acted too late. Unwilling to die in a hospital, and with no hope of recovery, she elected to return to her Beverly Hills home that she shared with Foxworth. She died there, in the company of her children and husband, on May 18, 1995, eight weeks after her diagnosis.[3] Montgomery was 62 years old.
A memorial service was held on June 18, 1995, at the Canon Theatre in Beverly Hills. Herbie Hancock provided the music, and Dominick Dunne spoke about their early days as friends in New York. Other speakers included Robert Foxworth, who read out sympathy cards from fans, her nurse, her brother, daughter, and stepson. She was cremated at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery.
[edit] Posthumous
On April 19, 1998, an event auction/sale of her clothing was held by her family to benefit AIDS Healthcare Foundation of Los Angeles. Erin Murphy, who played Tabitha on the series, modeled the clothing that was auctioned.
In June 2005, a statue of Montgomery as Samantha Stephens was erected in Salem, Massachusetts.[4][5]
A star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame was presented in honor of Montgomery's work in television on January 4, 2008.[6] The location of star is 6533 Hollywood Blvd.
William Clift is developing a biopic film of Montgomery starring Christina Applegate.
[edit] Award nominations
| Year | Group | Award | Film or Series | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role | The Untouchables | Nominated |
| 1966 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1967 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1968 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1969 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1970 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1974 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress - Drama Series | A Case of Rape | Nominated |
| 1975 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Special Program - Drama or Comedy | The Legend of Lizzie Borden | Nominated |
| 1978 | Emmy Award | Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series | The Awakening Land | Nominated |
| 1965 | Golden Globe Award | Best TV Star (Female) | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1967 | Golden Globe Award | Best TV Star (Female) | Bewitched | Nominated |
| 1969 | Golden Globe Award | Best TV Star (Female) | Bewitched | Nominated |
[edit] Selected filmography
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1955 | The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell | Margaret Lansdowne | |
| 1963 | Johnny Cool | Darien "Dare" Guinness | |
| Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? | Mellisa Morris | ||
| 1965 | How to Stuff a Wild Bikini | Bwana's Daughter, The Witches Witch | Uncredited |
| 1988 | Coverup: Behind the Iran Contra Affair | Narrator | Documentary film |
| 1992 | The Panama Deception | Narrator | Documentary film |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1951-1956 | Robert Montgomery Presents | Various roles | 27 episodes |
| 1953-1954 | Armstrong Circle Theatre | Ellen Craig | 2 episodes |
| 1954-1957 | Kraft Television Theatre | Various roles | 7 episodes |
| 1955-1958 | Studio One | Various roles | 3 episodes |
| 1956 | Warner Bros. Presents | Laura Woodruff | 1 episode |
| Climax! | Betsy | 1 episode | |
| 1958 | Playhouse 90 | Mary Brecker | 1 episode |
| DuPont Show of the Month | Miss Kelly | 1 episode | |
| Cimmarron City | Ellen Wilson | 1 episode | |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Karen | 1 episode | |
| 1960 | The Untouchables | Rusty Heller | 1 episode |
| 1961 | The Twilight Zone | The Woman | 1 episode |
| 1964-1972 | Bewitched | Samantha Stephens | 254 episodes |
| 1966 | The Flintstones | Samantha Stephens (Voice) | 1 episode |
| 1972 | The Victim | Kate Wainwright | Television movie |
| 1973 | Mrs. Sundance | Etta Place | Television movie |
| 1974 | A Case of Rape | Ellen Harrod | Television movie |
| 1975 | The Legend of Lizzie Borden | Lizzie Borden | Television movie |
| 1976 | Dark Victory | Katherine Merrill | Television movie |
| 1977 | A Killing Affair | Vikki Eaton | Television movie |
| 1978 | The Awakening Land | Sayward Luckett Wheeler | Miniseries |
| 1979 | Jennifer: A Woman's Story | Jennifer Prince | Television movie |
| Act of Violence | Catherine McSweeney | Television movie | |
| 1980 | Belle Starr | Belle Starr | Television movie |
| 1981 | When the Circus Came to Town | Mary Flynn | Television movie |
| 1982 | The Rules of Marriage | Joan Hagen | Television movie |
| 1983 | Missing Pieces | Sara Scott | Television movie |
| 1984 | Second Sight: A Love Story | Alaxandra McKay | Television movie |
| 1985 | Amos | Daisy Daws | Television movie |
| Between the Darkness and the Dawn | Abigail Foster | Television movie | |
| 1990 | Face to Face | Dr. Diana Firestone | Television movie |
| 1991 | Sins of the Mother | Ruth Coe | Television movie |
| 1992 | With Murder in Mind | Gayle Wolfer | Television movie |
| 1993 | The Black Widow Murders: The Blanche Taylor Moore Story | Blanche Taylor Moore | Television movie |
| 1994 | The Corpse Had a Familiar Face | Edna Buchanan | Television movie |
| 1995 | Deadline for Murder: From the Files of Edna Buchanan | Edna Buchanan | Television movie |
| Batman: The Animated Series | Barmaid (Voice) | 1 episode | |
[edit] Audio
- Craven Street: Ben Franklin in London, a five-part radio drama (1993, Narrator)
- Beauty's Punishment (1994, Narrator)
- Beauty's Release (1994, Narrator)
Two audio books in which Montgomery narrates the work of Anne Rice (writing as A.N. Roquelaure) are available as of 2005[update].
[edit] References
- ^ Mansour, David (2005). From Abba to Zoom: A Pop Culture Encyclopedia of the Late 20th Century. Andrews McMeel Publishing. pp. 38. ISBN 0-740-75118-2.
- ^ R. E. Lee. "There were many references to Patterson, New York made on "Bewitched" throughout the run of the series. The Putnam County, New York town was the site of the Montgomery homestead and where Elizabeth spent childhood summers. In later years, her mother lived in the family farmhouse on Cushman Road where Elizabeth visited her on frequent trips East. Elizabeth Montgomery Biography". http://www.bobsbewitchingdaughter.com/EMbio.html There were many references to Patterson, New York made on "Bewitched" throughout the run of the series. The Putnam County, New York town was the site of the Montgomery homestead and where Elizabeth spent childhood summers. In later years, her mother lived in the family farmhouse on Cushman Road where Elizabeth visited her on frequent trips East.. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
- ^ Gliatto, Tom (1995-06-05). "That Magic Feeling". People. http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20100784,00.html. Retrieved on 2008-05-13.
- ^ "History-minded not under spell of 'Bewitched' statue". The Associated Press. 2005-06-18. http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/intucson/living/061805d1_bewitched. Retrieved on 2008-03-21.
- ^ "A Pictorial Tale of the 'Bewitched' statue of Salem, Massachusetts". palachi.com. 2005. http://palachi.com.
- ^ "Hollywood star is unveiled posthumously for TV's 'Bewitched' star Elizabeth Montgomery". The Associated Press. 2008-01-05. http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/01/05/arts/NA-A-E-MOV-US-Elizabeth-Montgomery.php. Retrieved on 2008-03-21.
[edit] External links
- Elizabeth Montgomery at the Internet Movie Database
- Elizabeth Montgomery at the TCM Movie Database
- Elizabeth Montgomery at TV.com
- Elizabeth Montgomery at Find a Grave
- Elizabeth Montgomery fan web site
- The Bewitching Family Tree of Elizabeth Montgomery - By James Pylant 2004 GenealogyMagazine.com
- YouTube Japanese TV ad for "Mother" cookies
- Elizabeth Montgomery fanlisting & fansite
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