Marilyn Cooper
Encyclopedia
Marilyn Cooper was an American actress, known primarily for her work on the Broadway
stage.
, Cooper made her Broadway
debut in 1956 in the chorus of Mr. Wonderful
. Next she was in the chorus of a revival of Brigadoon.
In 1957, she played Rosalia, a Sharks girl who wants to go back to Puerto Rico ("Puerto Rico, you lovely island"), in the original Broadway production of West Side Story. In 1959, she went on to create the ensemble role of Agnes, the leader of the Hollywood Blondes, in the original Broadway production Gypsy. Before leaving the show, she briefly understudied the title role of Louise and played the part for one performance without having had an opportunity to rehearse Act 2. In 1962, she graduated to a leading role, playing the ingenue in I Can Get It for You Wholesale
, opposite Elliott Gould
and Sheree North
(the show marked Barbra Streisand
's Broadway debut at age 19).
Cooper enjoyed a long career in New York, appearing on Broadway in Hallelujah, Baby!
; Golden Rainbow
(understudying and going on for Eydie Gorme
); Mame (succeeding Jane Connell as Agnes Gooch towards the end of the original Broadway run); Two by Two
, starring Danny Kaye
and Madeline Kahn
; the 1971 revival of On the Town as Lucy Schmeeler, the blind date; and in Michael Bennett
's Ballroom
, starring Dorothy Loudon
.
In 1981, Cooper created the supporting role of Jan Donovan, Sam Craig's ex-wife, in the Lauren Bacall
vehicle Woman of the Year
. Although she sang only one song, she effectively stole the show and won critical and popular acclaim, a Tony Award
and a Drama Desk Award
for performance by a featured actress in a musical. Cooper toured the United States with Bacall in the national tour of Woman of the Year
that followed its successful Broadway run. She also reprised her role of Jan Donovan in the national touring production of Woman of the Year
, starring Barbara Eden
, from April 3, 1984 until September 16, 1984. In 1985, Cooper appeared in Neil Simon
's female version of The Odd Couple
. The following season she had a memorable vocal cameo as a radio actress in Simon
's Broadway Bound
.
Cooper can be heard on the original Broadway cast recordings of West Side Story
, I Can Get It for You Wholesale
, Two by Two
, and
Woman of the Year
. Additionally she appeared in
Fiorello!
, One Touch of Venus
, and Do Re Mi
at New York City Center
's "Encores!" series.
Cooper's television appearances include Alice
, where she was reunited with Linda Lavin
, singing "It's All in the Game", Kate and Allie, Cheers
, Law & Order
, The Nanny
and Caroline in the City
. She also had a featured role with Tony Roberts
and Kelly Bishop
in the short-lived television series, The Thorns
.
, following a long illness.
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...
stage.
Biography
Born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Cooper made her 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...
debut in 1956 in the chorus of Mr. Wonderful
Mr. Wonderful (musical)
Mr. Wonderful is a musical with a book by Joseph Stein and Will Glickman, and music and lyrics by Jerry Bock, Larry Holofcener, and George David Weiss....
. Next she was in the chorus of a revival of Brigadoon.
In 1957, she played Rosalia, a Sharks girl who wants to go back to Puerto Rico ("Puerto Rico, you lovely island"), in the original Broadway production of West Side Story. In 1959, she went on to create the ensemble role of Agnes, the leader of the Hollywood Blondes, in the original Broadway production Gypsy. Before leaving the show, she briefly understudied the title role of Louise and played the part for one performance without having had an opportunity to rehearse Act 2. In 1962, she graduated to a leading role, playing the ingenue in I Can Get It for You Wholesale
I Can Get It for You Wholesale
I Can Get It for You Wholesale is a musical with music and lyrics by Harold Rome and a book by Jerome Weidman based on his 1937 novel of the same title. It marked the Broadway debut of 19-year-old Barbra Streisand, who was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in...
, opposite Elliott Gould
Elliott Gould
Elliott Gould is an American actor. He began acting in Hollywood films during the 1960s, and has remained prolific ever since. Some of his most notable films include M*A*S*H and Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, for which he received an Oscar nomination...
and Sheree North
Sheree North
Sheree North was an American actress, singer, and dancer. She was known for being 20th Century Fox's answer to Marilyn Monroe from 1954 to 1956...
(the show marked Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
's Broadway debut at age 19).
Cooper enjoyed a long career in New York, appearing on Broadway in Hallelujah, Baby!
Hallelujah, Baby!
Hallelujah, Baby! is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden, and a book by Arthur Laurents. The show is "a musical chronicle of the African American struggle for equality during the [first half of the] 20th century."...
; Golden Rainbow
Golden Rainbow
Golden Rainbow is the title of a Broadway musical that opened in 1968. It starred Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé for its entire run until it closed in early 1969....
(understudying and going on for Eydie Gorme
Eydie Gormé
Eydie Gormé is an American singer, specializing, with her husband, Steve Lawrence, in traditional pop music, in the form of ballads and breezy swing. She has earned numerous awards, including the Grammy and the Emmy...
); Mame (succeeding Jane Connell as Agnes Gooch towards the end of the original Broadway run); Two by Two
Two by Two
Two by Two, two by two or the abbreviated 2×2 or 2by2 may refer to:* Dimensional lumber, specifically a timber measuring 2 by 2 inches of any given length* Two-wheel drive, a designation of motor vehicle...
, starring Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye was a celebrated American actor, singer, dancer, and comedian...
and Madeline Kahn
Madeline Kahn
Madeline Kahn was an American actress. Kahn was known primarily for her comedic roles in films such as Paper Moon, Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, What's Up, Doc?, and Clue.-Early life:...
; the 1971 revival of On the Town as Lucy Schmeeler, the blind date; and in Michael Bennett
Michael Bennett
Michael Bennett was an American musical theater director, writer, choreographer, and dancer. He won seven Tony Awards for his choreography and direction of Broadway shows and was nominated for an additional eleven....
's Ballroom
Ballroom
A ballroom is a large room inside a building, the designated purpose of which is holding formal dances called balls. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions contain one or more ballrooms...
, starring Dorothy Loudon
Dorothy Loudon
Dorothy Loudon was an American comedy actress and singer. She won the 1977 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical for her portrayal of Miss Hannigan in Annie.-Early life and career:Loudon was born in...
.
In 1981, Cooper created the supporting role of Jan Donovan, Sam Craig's ex-wife, in the Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
vehicle Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year is a romantic comedy film. The movie is about an emancipated woman, chosen "Woman of the Year", and her colleague-turned-husband and their efforts to negotiate a path to marital bliss....
. Although she sang only one song, she effectively stole the show and won critical and popular acclaim, a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
and a Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
for performance by a featured actress in a musical. Cooper toured the United States with Bacall in the national tour of Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year is a romantic comedy film. The movie is about an emancipated woman, chosen "Woman of the Year", and her colleague-turned-husband and their efforts to negotiate a path to marital bliss....
that followed its successful Broadway run. She also reprised her role of Jan Donovan in the national touring production of Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year is a romantic comedy film. The movie is about an emancipated woman, chosen "Woman of the Year", and her colleague-turned-husband and their efforts to negotiate a path to marital bliss....
, starring Barbara Eden
Barbara Eden
Barbara Eden is an American film and television actress and singer who is best known for her starring role in the sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.-Early years:...
, from April 3, 1984 until September 16, 1984. In 1985, Cooper appeared in Neil Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's female version of The Odd Couple
The Odd Couple
The Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, followed by a successful film and television series, as well as other derivative works and spin offs, many featuring one or more of the same actors. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates, one neat and uptight, the other more easygoing and...
. The following season she had a memorable vocal cameo as a radio actress in Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
's Broadway Bound
Broadway Bound
Broadway Bound is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon. It is the last chapter in his Eugene trilogy, following Brighton Beach Memoirs and Biloxi Blues....
.
Cooper can be heard on the original Broadway cast recordings of West Side Story
West Side Story (Original Broadway Cast)
West Side Story is the 1957 recording of a Broadway production of the musical West Side Story. Recorded 3 days after the show opened at the Winter Garden Theatre, the recording was released in October 1957 in both mono and stereo formats. In 1962, the album reached #5 on Billboard's "Pop Album"...
, I Can Get It for You Wholesale
I Can Get It for You Wholesale
I Can Get It for You Wholesale is a musical with music and lyrics by Harold Rome and a book by Jerome Weidman based on his 1937 novel of the same title. It marked the Broadway debut of 19-year-old Barbra Streisand, who was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in...
, Two by Two
Two by Two
Two by Two, two by two or the abbreviated 2×2 or 2by2 may refer to:* Dimensional lumber, specifically a timber measuring 2 by 2 inches of any given length* Two-wheel drive, a designation of motor vehicle...
, and
Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year
Woman of the Year is a romantic comedy film. The movie is about an emancipated woman, chosen "Woman of the Year", and her colleague-turned-husband and their efforts to negotiate a path to marital bliss....
. Additionally she appeared in
Fiorello!
Fiorello!
Fiorello! is a musical about New York City mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia, a reform Republican who took on Tammany Hall. The book is by Jerome Weidman and George Abbott, drawn substantially from the 1955 volume Life With Fiorello by Ernest Cuneo, with lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and music by Jerry Bock...
, One Touch of Venus
One Touch of Venus
One Touch of Venus is a musical with music written by Kurt Weill, lyrics by Ogden Nash, and book by S. J. Perelman and Nash, based on the novella The Tinted Venus by Thomas Anstey Guthrie, and very loosely spoofing the Pygmalion myth. The show satirizes contemporary American suburban values,...
, and Do Re Mi
Do Re Mi (musical)
Do Re Mi is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and a book by Garson Kanin, who also directed the original 1960 Broadway production. The plot centers on a minor-league con man who decides to go straight by going into the business of juke boxes and music...
at New York City Center
New York City Center
New York City Center is a 2,750-seat Moorish Revival theater located at 131 West 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in Manhattan, New York City. It is one block south of Carnegie Hall...
's "Encores!" series.
Cooper's television appearances include Alice
Alice (TV series)
Alice is an American sitcom television series that ran from August 31, 1976 to July 2, 1985 on CBS. The series was based on the 1974 film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. The show stars Linda Lavin in the title role, a widow who moves with her young son to start her life over again, and finds a job...
, where she was reunited with Linda Lavin
Linda Lavin
Linda Lavin is an American singer and actress. She is best known for playing the title character in the sitcom Alice and for her Broadway performances.After acting as a child, Lavin joined the Compass Players in the late 1950s...
, singing "It's All in the Game", Kate and Allie, Cheers
Cheers
Cheers is an American situation comedy television series that ran for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993. It was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television for NBC, and was created by the team of James Burrows, Glen Charles, and Les Charles...
, Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
, The Nanny
The Nanny
Nanny may refer to:* Nanny, a child's caregiver* A grandmother * A Cajun word for godmother * A female goat* Nanny , a 1981–83 British drama series starring Wendy Craig* Nanny of the Maroons...
and Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City
Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran from September 21, 1995 to April 26, 1999 on the NBC television network. It starred Lea Thompson as cartoonist Caroline Duffy. The series premiered in the two-hour Thursday night block led by Friends.-Premise:Caroline Duffy is a...
. She also had a featured role with Tony Roberts
Tony Roberts (actor)
David Anthony "Tony" Roberts is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in several Woody Allen movies, usually cast as Allen's best friend.-Early life:...
and Kelly Bishop
Kelly Bishop
Carole "Kelly" Bishop is an American actress and dancer, best-known for her roles as matriarch Emily Gilmore on the series Gilmore Girls, and as the mother of Jennifer Grey's character in the film Dirty Dancing...
in the short-lived television series, The Thorns
The Thorns
The Thorns are an American acoustic rock band formed in 2002 as a project of Matthew Sweet, Pete Droge, and Shawn Mullins.The band toured the United States and Europe throughout 2003, in support of their eponymous debut album.-Discography:...
.
Death
Marilyn Cooper died on April 22, 2009 at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New JerseyEnglewood, New Jersey
Englewood is a city located in Bergen County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 27,147.Englewood was incorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of...
, following a long illness.
Broadway credits
- GreaseGrease (musical)Grease is a 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical is named for the 1950s United States working-class youth subculture known as the greasers. The musical, set in 1959 at fictional Rydell High School , follows ten working-class teenagers as they navigate the complexities of love,...
(1994, revival) - Cafe Crown (1989, revival)
- Broadway BoundBroadway BoundBroadway Bound is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon. It is the last chapter in his Eugene trilogy, following Brighton Beach Memoirs and Biloxi Blues....
(1986) - The Odd CoupleThe Odd CoupleThe Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, followed by a successful film and television series, as well as other derivative works and spin offs, many featuring one or more of the same actors. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates, one neat and uptight, the other more easygoing and...
(1985, revival, female version) - Woman of the YearWoman of the YearWoman of the Year is a romantic comedy film. The movie is about an emancipated woman, chosen "Woman of the Year", and her colleague-turned-husband and their efforts to negotiate a path to marital bliss....
(1981) - BallroomBallroom (musical)Ballroom is a musical with a book by Jerome Kass and music by Billy Goldenberg and lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman.Based on Kass' teleplay for the 1975 Emmy Award-winning television drama Queen of the Stardust Ballroom, the plot focuses on lonely widow Bea Asher, who becomes romantically...
(1978) - WorkingWorking (musical)Working is a musical with a book by Stephen Schwartz and Nina Faso, music by Schwartz, Craig Carnelia, Micki Grant, Mary Rodgers, and James Taylor, and lyrics by Schwartz, Carnelia, Grant, Taylor, and Susan Birkenhead....
(1978) - On the Town (1971, revival)
- Two by TwoTwo by Two (musical)Two By Two is a Broadway musical with a book by Peter Stone, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and music by Richard Rodgers.Based on Clifford Odets's play The Flowering Peach, it tells the story of Noah's preparations for the Great Flood and its aftermath....
(1970) - Mame (joined cast in December 1969)
- Golden RainbowGolden RainbowGolden Rainbow is the title of a Broadway musical that opened in 1968. It starred Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé for its entire run until it closed in early 1969....
(1968) - Hallelujah, Baby!Hallelujah, Baby!Hallelujah, Baby! is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden, and a book by Arthur Laurents. The show is "a musical chronicle of the African American struggle for equality during the [first half of the] 20th century."...
(1967) - West Side Story (1964 revival)
- I Can Get It for You WholesaleI Can Get It for You WholesaleI Can Get It for You Wholesale is a musical with music and lyrics by Harold Rome and a book by Jerome Weidman based on his 1937 novel of the same title. It marked the Broadway debut of 19-year-old Barbra Streisand, who was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in...
(1961) - Gypsy (1959)
- West Side Story (1957)
- Brigadoon (1957, revival)
- Mr. WonderfulMr. WonderfulMr. Wonderful may refer to:*Mr. Wonderful by Fleetwood Mac*"Mr. Wonderful" written in 1955*Mr. Wonderful , starring Sammy Davis, Jr.*Mr. Wonderful , a 1993 film directed by Anthony Minghella...
(1956)