Jane Kean
Encyclopedia
Jane Kean is an American
actress.
circuit throughout the 1940s and '50s, and the two appeared on Broadway
as sisters in the short-lived 1955 musical Ankles Aweigh
.
She studied acting with Sanford Meisner
at the Neighborhood Playhouse
. Additional theatre credits include Call Me Mister
and Carnival!
. She had a small part in Take Me Along
which starred Jackie Gleason
, who would remember her a few years later when casting his weekly hour television program.
Television
audiences remember Kean for her role of Trixie Norton in a series of hour-long Honeymooners episodes—in color and with music—on The Jackie Gleason Show
from 1966–70. She succeeded Joyce Randolph
, who had played the role in earlier sketches and on the 1955–56 sitcom The Honeymooners
.
Other credits include The Phil Silvers Show
, Make Room for Daddy, The Lucy Show
, Love, American Style
, The Love Boat
, The Facts of Life
and Dallas
. Her feature films include Pete's Dragon
.
Her memoir
is entitled A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to The Honeymooners . . . I Had a Life.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress.
Career
Jane Kean and her older sister, Betty (December 15, 1914 — September 29, 1986), formed a comedy duo that worked the nightclubNightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
circuit throughout the 1940s and '50s, and the two appeared on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
as sisters in the short-lived 1955 musical Ankles Aweigh
Ankles Aweigh
Ankles Aweigh is a musical with a book by Guy Bolton and Eddie Davis, lyrics by Dan Shapiro, and music by Sammy Fain.The plot centers on Hollywood starlet Wynne, who violates a clause in her contract by marrying Navy flyer Bill while filming a movie in Sicily...
.
She studied acting with Sanford Meisner
Sanford Meisner
Sanford Meisner , also known as Sandy, was an American actor and acting teacher who developed a form of Method acting that is now known as the Meisner technique....
at the Neighborhood Playhouse
Neighborhood Playhouse
The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre is an actor training school at 340 East 54th Street in New York City, generally associated with the Meisner technique of Sanford Meisner.-History:...
. Additional theatre credits include Call Me Mister
Call Me Mister
Call Me Mister is a revue with sketches by Arnold Auerbach and words and music by Harold Rome. The title refers to returning soldiers who expected to be addressed as civilians instead of by their military rank....
and Carnival!
Carnival!
Carnival is a 1961 musical with the book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Bob Merrill. The musical is based on the 1953 film Lili.-Background:...
. She had a small part in Take Me Along
Take Me Along
Take Me Along is a musical based on the Eugene O'Neill play Ah, Wilderness, with music and lyrics by Bob Merrill and book by Joseph Stein and Robert Russell.-Background:...
which starred Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason
Jackie Gleason was an American comedian, actor and musician. He was known for his brash visual and verbal comedy style, especially by his character Ralph Kramden on The Honeymooners, a situation-comedy television series. His most noted film roles were as Minnesota Fats in the drama film The...
, who would remember her a few years later when casting his weekly hour television program.
Television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
audiences remember Kean for her role of Trixie Norton in a series of hour-long Honeymooners episodes—in color and with music—on The Jackie Gleason Show
The Jackie Gleason Show
The Jackie Gleason Show is the name of a series of popular American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970.-Cavalcade of Stars:...
from 1966–70. She succeeded Joyce Randolph
Joyce Randolph
Joyce Randolph is an American actress, best known for playing Trixie Norton on The Honeymooners.-Early life and career:...
, who had played the role in earlier sketches and on the 1955–56 sitcom The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
.
Other credits include The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show is a comedy television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959 for 142 episodes, plus a 1959 special. The series starred Phil Silvers as Master Sergeant Ernest G...
, Make Room for Daddy, The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS from 1962 until 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to I Love Lucy. A significant change in cast and premise for the 1965-66 season divides the program into two distinct eras; aside from Ball, only Gale Gordon, who joined the program...
, Love, American Style
Love, American Style
Love, American Style is an hour-long TV anthology produced by Paramount Television and originally aired between September 1969 and January 1974...
, The Love Boat
The Love Boat
The Love Boat is an American television series set on a cruise ship, which aired on the ABC Television Network from September 24,1977, until May 24,1986.The show starred Gavin MacLeod as the ship's captain...
, The Facts of Life
The Facts of Life (TV series)
The Facts of Life is an American sitcom that originally ran on the NBC television network from August 24, 1979 to May 7, 1988. A spin-off of the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, the series' premise focused on Edna Garrett as she becomes a housemother at the fictional Eastland School, a prestigious...
and Dallas
Dallas (TV series)
Dallas is an American serial drama/prime time soap opera that revolves around the Ewings, a wealthy Texas family in the oil and cattle-ranching industries. Throughout the series, Larry Hagman stars as greedy, scheming oil baron J. R. Ewing...
. Her feature films include Pete's Dragon
Pete's Dragon
Pete's Dragon is a 1977 live-action/animated musical film from Walt Disney Productions and the first Disney film to be recorded in the Dolby Stereo sound system...
.
Her memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
is entitled A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to The Honeymooners . . . I Had a Life.
Further reading
- Kean, Jane (2004). A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Honeymooners ... I Had a Life. Albany: BearManor Media ISBN 0-9714570-9-3