Marie Windsor
Encyclopedia
Marie Windsor. Born as Emily Marie Bertelson in Marysvale, Piute County, Utah
, Windsor was an actress known as "The Queen of the Bs" because she appeared in so many film noirs and B-movies like Cat-Women of the Moon
(1953). However, other actresses, such as Fay Wray
, Lucille Ball
, and others have garnered the title as well.
, trained for the stage under Maria Ouspenskaya
, and after several years as a telephone operator, a stage and radio actress, and a bit and extra player in films, she began playing feature and lead parts in 1947.
The 5'9" actress's first memorable role was opposite John Garfield
in Force of Evil
playing seductress Edna Tucker. Windsor also had large roles in film noirs including The Sniper, The Narrow Margin
, City That Never Sleeps
and Stanley Kubrick
's heist movie The Killing playing Elisha Cook Jr.
's scheming wife.
Later she moved on to television, appearing on such shows as Maverick
(in episodes "The Quick and the Dead" with James Garner
and "Epitaph for a Gambler" with Jack Kelly
), Bat Masterson
(in "The Fighter") opposite Gene Barry
, The Incredible Hulk
, General Hospital
, Murder, She Wrote
, Rawhide
("Incident on the Edge of Madness"), and Salem's Lot.
After her acting career she became a painter and sculptor. She died of undisclosed causes on the day before her 81st birthday.
She was one of the 500 stars nominated to become one of the 50 greatest American screen legends as part of the American Film Institute
's 100 years.
She married twice, first briefly to bandleader Ted Steele, and later to Jack Hupp, a member of the 1936 U.S. Olympic basketball team. Hupp, with whom Windsor had a son, was posthumously inducted into the University of Southern California
(USC) Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007. The couple is interred in Marysvale, Utah.
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, Windsor was an actress known as "The Queen of the Bs" because she appeared in so many film noirs and B-movies like Cat-Women of the Moon
Cat-Women of the Moon
Cat-Women of the Moon is a 1953 Science fiction 3-D film directed by Arthur Hilton. It stars Sonny Tufts, Victor Jory and Marie Windsor. The musical score was composed by Elmer Bernstein....
(1953). However, other actresses, such as Fay Wray
Fay Wray
Fay Wray was a Canadian-American actress most noted for playing the female lead in King Kong...
, Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
, and others have garnered the title as well.
Career
Windsor, a former Miss UtahMiss Utah
The Miss Utah competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Utah in the Miss America pageant. Utah has twice won the Miss America crown.- Winners :- External links :**...
, trained for the stage under Maria Ouspenskaya
Maria Ouspenskaya
Maria Alekseyevna Ouspenskaya was a Russian actress and acting teacher. She achieved success as a stage actress as a young woman in Russia, and as an elderly woman in Hollywood films.-Life and career:...
, and after several years as a telephone operator, a stage and radio actress, and a bit and extra player in films, she began playing feature and lead parts in 1947.
The 5'9" actress's first memorable role was opposite John Garfield
John Garfield
John Garfield was an American actor adept at playing brooding, rebellious, working-class character roles. He grew up in poverty in Depression-era New York City and in the early 1930s became an important member of the Group Theater. In 1937 he moved to Hollywood, eventually becoming one of Warner...
in Force of Evil
Force of Evil
Force of Evil is a 1948 film noir directed by Abraham Polonsky who had already achieved a name for himself as a scriptwriter, most notably for the gritty boxing film Body and Soul . Like Body and Soul, the film starred John Garfield...
playing seductress Edna Tucker. Windsor also had large roles in film noirs including The Sniper, The Narrow Margin
The Narrow Margin
The Narrow Margin is a 1952 American film noir directed by Richard Fleischer and written by Earl Felton, based on an unpublished story written by Martin Goldsmith and Jack Leonard. Writers Goldsmith and Leonard were nominated for an Academy Award for their story.The picture stars Charles McGraw,...
, City That Never Sleeps
City That Never Sleeps
City That Never Sleeps is a film noir produced and directed by John H. Auer with cinematography by John L. Russell.-Plot:Johnny Kelly is a Chicago cop from a long line of police officers. He's grown tired of the job and his married life. He plans on leaving his wife for exotic dancer Sally...
and Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
's heist movie The Killing playing Elisha Cook Jr.
Elisha Cook Jr.
Elisha Vanslyck Cook, Jr. was an American character actor who made a career out of playing cowardly villains and weedy neurotics in dozens of films...
's scheming wife.
Later she moved on to television, appearing on such shows as Maverick
Maverick (TV series)
Maverick is a western television series with comedic overtones created by Roy Huggins. The show ran from September 22, 1957 to July 8, 1962 on ABC and stars James Garner as Bret Maverick, a cagey, articulate cardsharp. Eight episodes into the first season, he was joined by Jack Kelly as his brother...
(in episodes "The Quick and the Dead" with James Garner
James Garner
James Garner is an American film and television actor, one of the first Hollywood actors to excel in both media. He has starred in several television series spanning a career of more than five decades...
and "Epitaph for a Gambler" with Jack Kelly
Jack Kelly (actor)
Jack Kelly was an American film and television actor most noted for the role of "Bart Maverick" in the TV series Maverick, which ran on ABC from 1957 to 1962...
), Bat Masterson
Bat Masterson (TV series)
Bat Masterson is an American Western television series which showed a fictionalized account of the life of real-life marshal/gambler/dandy Bat Masterson. The title character was played by Gene Barry and the half-hour black and white shows ran on NBC from 1958 to 1961...
(in "The Fighter") opposite Gene Barry
Gene Barry
Gene Barry was an American stage, screen, and television actor. Barry is best remembered for his leading roles in the films The Atomic City and The War of The Worlds and for his portrayal of the title character in the TV series Bat Masterson, among many roles.-Personal life:Barry was born...
, The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk (1977 TV series)
The Incredible Hulk is an American television series based on the Marvel comic book character of the same name created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. The pilot episodes were a pair of TV movies on the CBS network beginning on November 4, 1977; the series soon followed, airing from March 10, 1978 to...
, General Hospital
General Hospital
General Hospital is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns....
, Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
, Rawhide
Rawhide (TV series)
Rawhide is an American Western series that aired for eight seasons on the CBS network on Friday nights, from January 9, 1959 to September 3, 1965, before moving to Tuesday nights from September 14, 1965 until January 4, 1966, with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes...
("Incident on the Edge of Madness"), and Salem's Lot.
After her acting career she became a painter and sculptor. She died of undisclosed causes on the day before her 81st birthday.
She was one of the 500 stars nominated to become one of the 50 greatest American screen legends as part of the American Film Institute
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
's 100 years.
She married twice, first briefly to bandleader Ted Steele, and later to Jack Hupp, a member of the 1936 U.S. Olympic basketball team. Hupp, with whom Windsor had a son, was posthumously inducted into the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(USC) Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007. The couple is interred in Marysvale, Utah.
Filmography
- All American Co-Ed (1941)
- Playmates (1941)
- Eyes in the Night (1942)
- The Big Street (1942)
- Smart Alecks (1942)
- The Lady or the Tiger? (1942)
- Call Out the Marines (1942)
- Four Jacks and a Jill (1942)
- Three Hearts for Julia (1943)
- Chatterbox (1943)
- Follow the Leader (1944)
- I Love My Wife, But! (1947)
- The Unfinished Dance (1947)
- Song of the Thin ManSong of the Thin ManSong of the Thin Man is a 1947 comedy-crime film directed by Edward Buzzell, the last of the six Thin Man films. Like the others, it stars William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles, characters created by Dashiell Hammett. Nick Jr. is played by Dean Stockwell...
(1947) - The HuckstersThe HuckstersThe Hucksters is a 1947 MGM film directed by Jack Conway and starring Clark Gable that marked the debut of Deborah Kerr in an American film. It also featured Sydney Greenstreet, Adolphe Menjou, Keenan Wynn, Edward Arnold and Ava Gardner...
(1947) - The Romance of Rosy RidgeThe Romance of Rosy RidgeThe Romance of Rosy Ridge is a 1947 drama film about a rural community still bitterly divided in the aftermath of the American Civil War. It stars Van Johnson, Thomas Mitchell, and Janet Leigh in her film debut...
(1947) - Living in a Big WayLiving in a Big WayLiving in a Big Way is an American musical comedy film starring Gene Kelly and Marie McDonald as a couple who marry during World War II after only knowing each other a short time.- Synopsis :...
(1947) - Force of EvilForce of EvilForce of Evil is a 1948 film noir directed by Abraham Polonsky who had already achieved a name for himself as a scriptwriter, most notably for the gritty boxing film Body and Soul . Like Body and Soul, the film starred John Garfield...
(1948) - The Three MusketeersThe Three Musketeers (1948 film)The Three Musketeers is a Technicolor adventure film adaptation of the classic novel The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, père which starred Gene Kelly and Lana Turner...
(1948) - The PirateThe PirateThe Pirate is a 1948 American musical feature film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. With songs by Cole Porter, it stars Judy Garland and Gene Kelly with co-stars Walter Slezak, Gladys Cooper, Reginald Owen, and George Zucco.-Plot:...
(1948) - On an Island with You (1948)
- The Fighting KentuckianThe Fighting KentuckianThe Fighting Kentuckian American comedy action film starring John Wayne and Oliver Hardy. The movie was written and directed by George Waggner and made by Republic Pictures...
(1949) - HellfireHellfire (film)Hellfire is a 1949 western film about a gambler who changes his ways after a preacher sacrifices himself to save his life.-Cast:*Bill Elliott as Zeb Smith*Marie Windsor as Doll Brown, also known as Mary Carson*Forrest Tucker as Bucky McLean...
(1949) - The Beautiful Blonde from Bashful BendThe Beautiful Blonde from Bashful BendThe Beautiful Blonde from Bashful Bend is a 1949 romantic comedy Western film starring Betty Grable and featuring Cesar Romero and Rudy Vallee...
(1949) - Outpost in MoroccoOutpost in MoroccoOutpost in Morocco is a 1949 Drama directed by Robert Florey, starring George Raft and Marie Windsor. Paul Gerard , a Moroccan Spahi officer and his French Foreign Legion garrison, holds off attacks from the native tribes of the Emir of Bel-Rashad , the father of Cara , the woman he loves.As a...
(1949) - Double Deal (1950)
- FrenchieFrenchieFrenchie is a 1950 American film of the western genre, directed by Louis King and starring Shelley Winters, Joel McCrea and Marie Windsor.The plot is loosely based on the western Destry Rides Again.-Plot:...
(1950) - The Showdown (1950)
- Dakota Lil (1950)
- Two Dollar Bettor (1951)
- Hurricane Island (1951)
- Little Big Horn (1951)
- The Jungle (1952)
- The SniperThe Sniper (1952 film)The Sniper is a black-and-white film noir, directed by Edward Dmytryk, written by Harry Brown, and based on a story by Edna Anhalt and Edward Anhalt. The film features Adolphe Menjou, Arthur Franz, Gerald Mohr, Marie Windsor, among others....
(1952) - The Narrow MarginThe Narrow MarginThe Narrow Margin is a 1952 American film noir directed by Richard Fleischer and written by Earl Felton, based on an unpublished story written by Martin Goldsmith and Jack Leonard. Writers Goldsmith and Leonard were nominated for an Academy Award for their story.The picture stars Charles McGraw,...
(1952) - Outlaw Women (1952)
- Japanese War BrideJapanese War BrideJapanese War Bride is a 1952 motion picture drama directed by King Vidor. The film marked the American debut of Shirley Yamaguchi in the title role.-Synopsis:...
(1952)
- The Eddie Cantor Story (1953)
- Cat-Women of the MoonCat-Women of the MoonCat-Women of the Moon is a 1953 Science fiction 3-D film directed by Arthur Hilton. It stars Sonny Tufts, Victor Jory and Marie Windsor. The musical score was composed by Elmer Bernstein....
(1953) - City That Never SleepsCity That Never SleepsCity That Never Sleeps is a film noir produced and directed by John H. Auer with cinematography by John L. Russell.-Plot:Johnny Kelly is a Chicago cop from a long line of police officers. He's grown tired of the job and his married life. He plans on leaving his wife for exotic dancer Sally...
(1953) - So This Is Love (1953)
- Trouble Along the WayTrouble Along the WayTrouble Along the Way was a 1953 film starring John Wayne and Donna Reed, with a supporting cast including Charles Coburn and Marie Windsor. The movie was directed by Michael Curtiz, director of Casablanca. The black-and-white comedy was released by Warner Bros...
(1953) - The Tall Texan (1953)
- The Bounty Hunter (1954)
- Hell's Half AcreHell's Half Acre (film)Hell's Half Acre is a 1954 film noir set in Hawaii.The film is directed and produced by John H. Auer and stars Wendell Corey, Evelyn Keyes and Elsa Lanchester. -Plot:...
(1954) - Abbott and Costello Meet the MummyAbbott and Costello Meet the MummyAbbott and Costello Meet the Mummy is a 1955 film directed by Charles Lamont and starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. It is also the 28th and final Abbott and Costello film produced by Universal Pictures.-Plot:...
(1955) - The Silver Star (1955)
- Swamp WomenSwamp WomenSwamp Women was one of the first films directed by Roger Corman. This adventure/crime/horror film follows undercover police officer Lee Hampton who joins three female convicts and escapes from prison. The escape is part of a larger plot to uncover a cache of diamonds hidden deep within the swamps...
(1955) - No Man's Woman (1955)
- Two-Gun Lady (1956)
- The Killing (1956)
- The Story of Mankind (1957)
- The Parson and the Outlaw (1957)
- The Girl in Black Stockings (1957)
- The Unholy WifeThe Unholy WifeThe Unholy Wife is a color film noir drama film produced and directed by John Farrow at RKO Radio Pictures and released by Universal Pictures as RKO was in its final stages of closing down...
(1957) - Island Woman (1958)
- Day of the Bad Man (1958)
- Paradise Alley (1962)
- Critic's ChoiceCritic's Choice (1963 film)Critic's Choice is a 1963 film comedy directed by Don Weis. Based on the 1960 Broadway play of the same name by Ira Levin, the movie starred Bob Hope and Lucille Ball and included Rip Torn, Marilyn Maxwell, Jim Backus, Marie Windsor and Jerome Cowan in the cast.This was the last of four films that...
(1963) - The Day Mars Invaded EarthThe Day Mars Invaded EarthThe Day Mars Invaded Earth is a science fiction film, made by API, released in 1963 by Twentieth Century Fox and directed and produced by Maury Dexter...
(1963) - Bedtime StoryBedtime Story (film)Bedtime Story is a 1964 comedy film made by Pennebaker Productions, The Lankershim Company and Universal Pictures. It was directed by Ralph Levy and produced by Stanley Shapiro with Robert Arthur as executive producer from a screenplay by Stanley Shapiro and Paul Henning. The music score was by...
(1964) - Mail Order BrideMail Order Bride (1964 film)Mail Order Bride is a 1964 western film starring Buddy Ebsen, Keir Dullea and Lois Nettleton. An old man who pressures the wild son of a dead friend into marrying a mail-order bride in an attempt to settle him down.-Cast:*Buddy Ebsen as Will Lane...
(1964) - Chamber of Horrors (1966)
- The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1969)
- Support Your Local Gunfighter (1971)
- One More Train to Rob (1971)
- The Outfit (1973)
- Cahill U.S. MarshalCahill U.S. MarshalCahill U.S. Marshal is a 1973 American Western film in Technicolor. It stars John Wayne as a driven lawman in a black hat. The movie was directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and filmed on location in Durango, Mexico.-Plot:...
(1973) - Hearts of the West (1975)
- Freaky FridayFreaky Friday (1976 film)Freaky Friday is a 1976 American comedy film starring Jodie Foster as Annabel Andrews and Barbara Harris as her mother.The film is based on the novel of the same name by Mary Rodgers, in which mother and daughter switch bodies and get a taste of each others' lives. The cause of the switch is left...
(1976) - Lovely But Deadly (1981)
- Commando Squad (1987)
- Stanley Kubrick: A Life in PicturesStanley Kubrick: A Life in PicturesStanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures is a 2001 documentary about the life and work of Stanley Kubrick, famed film director, made by his long-time assistant and brother-in-law Jan Harlan...
(2001)
Television
- The Public DefenderThe Public Defender (TV series)The Public Defender is a half-hour 69-episode television dramatic series starring Reed Hadley as Bart Matthews, an attorney for the indigent. The series aired on CBS from March 11, 1954 to June 23, 1955, a season and a half.-Premise:...
, as Melody Scanlon in "The Ring" (1954) - Stories of the CenturyStories of the CenturyStories of the Century is a Western television series that ran in syndication through Republic Pictures between January 23, 1954, and March 11, 1955.-Synopsis:...
, as Belle StarrBelle StarrMyra Maybelle Shirley Reed Starr , better known as Belle Starr, was a notorious American outlaw.-Early life:...
in the series premiere episode (1954) - Bat MastersonBat Masterson (TV series)Bat Masterson is an American Western television series which showed a fictionalized account of the life of real-life marshal/gambler/dandy Bat Masterson. The title character was played by Gene Barry and the half-hour black and white shows ran on NBC from 1958 to 1961...
, as saloon owner Polly Landers in the episode "The Fighter" (1958) - Perry MasonPerry Mason (TV series)Perry Mason is an American legal drama produced by Paisano Productions that ran from September 1957 to May 1966 on CBS. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a fictional Los Angeles defense attorney who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner...
, in the episode "The Case of the Daring Decoy" (1958) - RawhideRawhide (TV series)Rawhide is an American Western series that aired for eight seasons on the CBS network on Friday nights, from January 9, 1959 to September 3, 1965, before moving to Tuesday nights from September 14, 1965 until January 4, 1966, with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes...
, in the episode "Incident on the Edge of Madness" (1959) - Wild Women (1970) (TV)
- Perry MasonPerry Mason (TV series)Perry Mason is an American legal drama produced by Paisano Productions that ran from September 1957 to May 1966 on CBS. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a fictional Los Angeles defense attorney who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner...
, in the episode "The Case of the Tarnished Trademark" (1962) - ManhunterThe ManhunterThe Manhunter is an American crime drama that was part of CBS' lineup for the 1974 - 1975 television season. The series was produced by Quinn Martin and starred Ken Howard as Dave Barret, a 1930s-era private investigator from Idaho...
(1974) (TV) - Salem's LotSalem's Lot (1979 TV mini-series)Salem's Lot is a 1979 American television adaptation of the novel of the same name by Stephen King...
(1979) (TV) - Lou GrantLou GrantLou Grant is a fictional character played by Edward Asner in two television series produced by MTM Enterprises for CBS. The first was Mary Tyler Moore , in which the character was the news director at the fictional television station WJM-TV...
(2 episodes, 1979 and 1980) (TV) - The Perfect Woman (1981) (TV)
- J.O.E. and the Colonel (1985) (TV)
- Tales from the DarksideTales from the DarksideTales from the Darkside is an anthology horror TV series produced by George A. Romero; it originally aired from 1983 to 1988. Similar to Amazing Stories, The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, The Outer Limits, and Tales From The Crypt, each episode was an individual short story that ended with a plot...
(1986) (TV) - Commando Squad (1987) (TV)
- Supercarrier (1988) (TV)
- Adam 12 (1990) (TV)
- Murder She Wrote (2 episodes, 1987 and 1991) (TV)
- Gunsmoke, in the episode "Trafton" (1971)
Further reading
- Oderman, Stuart, Talking to the Piano Player 2. BearManor Media, 2009. ISBN #1-59393-320-7.
External links
- Marie Windsor interview with The Perfect Vision magazine at Modern Times Classic Film Pages
- Literature on Marie Windsor