Elizabeth Montgomery

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Elizabeth Montgomery Image:Sampinup.jpg
Elizabeth Montgomery Born Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery
April 15, 1933(1933-04-15)
Hollywood, California, USADied May 18, 1995(aged 62)
Los Angeles, California, USASpouse(s) Robert Foxworth(1993-1995)
William Asher(1963-1973)
Gig Young(1956-1963)
Frederick Gallatin Cammann (1954-1955)

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 famous roles as Samantha Stephens in Bewitched, as Ellen Harrod in A Case of Rape and as Lizzie Borden in The Legend of Lizzie Borden.

1 Biography
2 Posthumous
3 Award nominations
4 Selected filmography
5 Audio
6 References
7 External links

Biography

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.

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, The Twilight Zone, 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. Kazan in his autobiography says that although Montgomery tested well in the role, she had an air of "finishing school" that troubled him.[citation needed]

She was also 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.

Bewitched

Montgomery played the central role of Samantha Stephens with Dick York (and later with Dick Sargent), in the ABC situation comedy Bewitched. 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. 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.

The series and Montgomery's portrayal of Samantha were paid homage in the 2005 movie, Bewitched, starring Will Ferrell and Nicole Kidman.

After Bewitched

Although Montgomery enjoyed enormous success with the show, she felt typecast and pigeonholed when she sought other roles after the show's run ended. Montgomery refused to do Samantha's famous nose twitch for fans after Bewitched went off the air, and was reluctant to discuss the show.

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:

She received 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 turned heads when she played a police detective having an interracial affair with her partner, played by OJ Simpson in A Killing Affair.
She also 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 of Batman: The Animated Series entitled "Showdown," in which she played a barmaid.
She also had a long run as a guest performer on the game show Password, and host Allen Ludden referred to her as the best Password player ever on the show.
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, Carol Burnett, and Barbara Eden, to follow.

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 Bewitched producer William Asher from 1963 to 1973, with whom she 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 and Adam Stephens. 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]

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 strongly liberal political views, being an outspoken champion of women's rights and gay rights throughout her life. She narrated a series of political documentaries in the late 1980s and early 1990s, including Coverup: Behind the Iran Contra Affair (1988) and the Academy Award winning The Panama Deception (1992).

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, but 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, at age 62, only eight weeks after her diagnosis.[3]

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.

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.
In June 2005, a statue of Montgomery as Samantha Stephens was erected in Salem, Massachusetts.[4]
A star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame was presented in honor of Montgomery's work in television on January 4, 2008.[5] The location of star is 6533 Hollywood Blvd.

Award nominations

Year Group Award Film or Series Result 1961 Emmy AwardOutstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role The UntouchablesNominated 1966 Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy SeriesBewitched 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 RapeNominated 1975 Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actress in a Special Program - Drama or Comedy The Legend of Lizzie BordenNominated 1978 Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series The Awakening Land Nominated 1965 Golden Globe AwardBest 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 1971 Golden Globe Award Best Actress, Comedy/MusicalBewitched Nominated

Selected filmography

Year Title Role Other notes 1951-1956 Robert Montgomery PresentsVarious roles TV, 27 episodes 1954-1957 Kraft Television TheatreVarious roles TV, 7 episodes 1955 The Court-Martial of Billy MitchellMargaret Lansdowne 1955-1958 Studio OneVarious roles TV, 3 episodes 1958 Alfred Hitchcock PresentsKaren TV, 1 episode 1960 The UntouchablesRusty Heller TV, 1 episode, received an Emmy Award nomination 1961 The Twilight ZoneThe Woman TV, 1 episode 1963 Johnny Cool Darien "Dare" Guiness Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? Mellisa Morris 1964-1972 Bewitched Samantha Stephens TV, 254 episodes 1965 How to Stuff a Wild BikiniBwana's Daughter, The Witches Witch Uncredited 1966 The FlintstonesSamantha Stephens TV, 1 episode, Voice 1972 The Victim Kate Wainwright Television movie1973 Mrs. Sundance Etta PlaceTelevision movie 1974 A Case of RapeEllen Harrod Television movie, received an Emmy Award nomination 1975 The Legend of Lizzie Borden Lizzie BordenTelevision movie, received an Emmy Award nomination 1976 Dark Victory Katherine Merrill Television movie 1977 A Killing Affair Vikki Eaton Television movie 1978 The Awakening Land Sayward Luckett Wheeler Miniseries, received an Emmy Award nomination 1979 Jennifer: A Woman's Story Jennifer Prince Television movie Act of Violence Catherine McSweeney Television movie 1980 Belle Starr Belle StarrTelevision 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 1988 Coverup: Behind the Iran Contra Affair Narrator Documentary film1990 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 The Panama DeceptionNarrator Documentary film 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 SeriesBarmaid TV, 1 episode, Voice

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.

References

^ Mansour, David (2005). From Abba to Zoom: A Pop Culture Encyclopedia of the Late 20th Century. Andrews McMeel Publishing, 38. ISBN 0-740-75118-2.
^ R. E. Lee. Elizabeth Montgomery Biography. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
^ Gliatto, Tom. "That Magic Feeling", People, June 5, 1995. Retrieved on 2008-05-13.
^ History-minded not under spell of 'Bewitched' statue. The Associated Press (June 18, 2005). Retrieved on 2008-03-21.
^ Hollywood star is unveiled posthumously for TV's 'Bewitched' star Elizabeth Montgomery. The Associated Press (January 5, 2008). Retrieved on 2008-03-21.

External links

v • d • e BewitchedMain cast Elizabeth Montgomery • Dick York• Dick Sargent• Agnes Moorehead• David White• Alice Pearce• Sandra Gould• George Tobias
Irene Vernon• Kasey Rogers• Marion Lorne• Diane Murphy• Erin MurphyRecurring cast Maurice Evans• Alice Ghostley• Bernard Fox• Paul Lynde• Mabel Albertson• Robert F. Simon • Roy RobertsSpin-offs Tabitha and Adam and the Clown Family • Tabitha• Bewitched (film)International remakes Meri Biwi Wonderful• Oku-sama wa Mahō Shōjo: Bewitched Agnes• Hechizada (Argentinian series (2007)) Similar shows I Dream of Jeannie• My Favorite Martian• The Ghost & Mrs. Muir

PersondataNAME Montgomery, Elizabeth ALTERNATIVE NAMES Montgomery, Elizabeth Victoria SHORT DESCRIPTION Actress DATE OF BIRTH 15 April 1933PLACE OF BIRTH Los Angeles, CaliforniaDATE OF DEATH 18 May 1995PLACE OF DEATH Beverly Hills, California