Elaine Taylor (actress)

Last updated

Elaine Taylor
Elaine Taylor (cropped).jpg
Taylor in 1985
Born
Elaine Regina Taylor

(1943-10-17) 17 October 1943 (age 80)
Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England
Alma mater Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts
OccupationActress
Years active1950s–1990s
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1970;died 2021)​
Relatives Amanda Plummer (stepdaughter)

Elaine Regina Taylor Plummer (born 17 October 1943) is an English former actress, best known as a leading lady in comedy films of the late 1960s and early 1970s. [1] She is the widow of Canadian actor Christopher Plummer, to whom she was married for 50 years.

Contents

Early life

Elaine Regina Taylor was born in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. With the encouragement of her mother, Frances, she took dancing lessons as a child. In 1950, she had her hair styled by hairdresser Raymond Bessone for the part of Will O'the Wisp. Taylor later studied at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts and joined the London Festival Ballet. [2]

Career

Early television and radio roles

In the mid-1960s, Taylor appeared in episodes of British television series such as The Benny Hill Show (1965), The Lance Percival Show (1966), in which she sang as well as taking part in comedy sketches, The Old Campaigner (1967), which featured Terry-Thomas as a womanising plastics salesman, [3] and Mr Rose , starring William Mervyn as a retired senior policeman (1968). Her appearance with Benny Hill on 18 December 1965 included a gender-reversal parody of the 1956 film Baby Doll that Hill repeated in 1974 with Diana Darvey. Taylor is thought also to have been the announcer of a sketch in which Hill first performed his song "Those Days" in imitation of Sonny and Cher. [4] She worked again with Hill in the third series of his BBC radio show Benny Hill Time, which started on the Light Programme on 27 February 1966 and featured, among others, Patricia Hayes and Peter Vernon. [5]

Transition to film

Taylor was a "Bond girl" (with, among others, Jacqueline Bisset, Barbara Bouchet and Alexandra Bastedo) as Peg in Casino Royale (1967) and played on stage with Tommy Steele in Half a Sixpence and in the 1967 film version. She was cast in the role of the "mod" Victoria Ponsonby in the comedy film Diamonds for Breakfast (1968), considered by Leslie Halliwell to be a "yawning comedy caper yarn embellished with sex and slapstick", [6] that also featured Marcello Mastroianni, in his first English language film, and Rita Tushingham. Around the same time, Taylor played Shirley Blair, pregnant fiancée of Tom Taggart (Christian Roberts), in Hammer's adaptation of Bill MacIlwraith's play The Anniversary (also 1968), a "high camp" black comedy [7] starring Bette Davis and Sheila Hancock. Tom Chantrell's famous poster for The Anniversary featured a front-on still of Taylor in brassiere and panties below the slogan (attributed to Davies' character) "I Spy with my little eye/Something beginning with SEX … and I mean to put a stop to it". [8]

Later career

Following her appearance as Cloris in the film Lock Up Your Daughters (1969), Taylor appeared in two more films, Michael Winner's The Games and the Warren Mitchell comedy All the Way Up (both 1970). She also starred in an episode of ITC's Jason King ("A Royal Flush", 1972) and The Organization (also 1972) in which she appeared in all seven episodes as secretary Veronica. This was produced by Yorkshire Television and written by Philip Mackie. She was cast in television dramas for the BBC, including Trelawny of the Wells (as Rose Trelawny, 1972) and Kingsley Amis' Doctor Watson and the Darkwater Hall Mystery (as Emily, Lady Fairfax alongside Edward Fox's Dr. Watson, 1974). In the mid-1980s she returned to television in America in The George McKenna Story (1986) and Sharing Richard (1988), and co-produced the 1987 film Love Potion. Taylor's last known appearance was in California-set true-crime television film Till Death Us Do Part (1992).

Personal life

In 1969, Taylor met Christopher Plummer, best known at the time for his role as Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music (1965), while they were both filming Lock Up Your Daughters in Kilkenny, Ireland. Plummer was almost 14 years older, [9] twice divorced, and had recently been partnering Richard Harris' ex-wife Elizabeth Rees-Williams. [10] Taylor's usually "mousy" hair, which was tinted red on location, is said to have appealed to Plummer. [11] For her part, Taylor agreed to meet him again in London provided that he reduced his consumption of alcohol. [12]

Taylor and Plummer were married in Montreal, Quebec on 2 October 1970. [13] The officiant, the Reverend Philip Moreton, had married Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in 1964. The two remained married for over 50 years, until Plummer's death in February 2021. [14]

In the 1970s, Plummer and Taylor moved to a rambling English style estate at Weston, Connecticut. [15] Taylor has no children of her own; her stepdaughter is the actress Amanda Plummer (born 1957), Plummer's daughter from his first marriage to Tammy Grimes. A few months after their marriage, Alan Bennett remarked wryly to Kenneth Tynan that Plummer was "his own worst enemy—but only just," [16] while Plummer's own autobiography almost forty years later was entitled In Spite of Myself.

In 2012, Plummer identified "the key to lasting marriage" as "stay[ing] out of each other's hair" and reflected that while he and Taylor quarrelled a lot, they "always end up in laughter which saves the day". [17] More generally, he described Taylor's positive influence on his life:

a combination of Edith Cavell and Julia Child ... a nurse and a cook. I feel guilty sometimes that I denied her a wonderful life, that she's wasted it on some terrible old ham. She could have married a duke or a prince! And she knows it. But being British, you see, she never complains. She's very well trained. [15]

Other interests

Taylor is a gourmet French cook and she and Plummer renovated or designed houses in West Hollywood, Grasse and London before settling in Weston. [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Graduate</i> 1967 romantic comedy drama film by Mike Nichols

The Graduate is a 1967 American independent romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from Williams College. The film tells the story of 21-year-old Benjamin Braddock, a recent college graduate with no well-defined aim in life who is seduced by an older married woman, Mrs. Robinson, but then falls for her daughter, Elaine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Nichols</span> American film and theatre director (1931–2014)

Mike Nichols was an American film and theatre director. He worked across a range of genres and had an aptitude for getting the best out of actors regardless of their experience. He is one of 19 people to have won all four of the major American entertainment awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony (EGOT). His other honors included three BAFTA Awards, the Lincoln Center Gala Tribute in 1999, the National Medal of Arts in 2001, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2003 and the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2010. His films received a total of 42 Academy Award nominations, and seven wins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raquel Welch</span> American actress (1940–2023)

Jo Raquel Welch was an American actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benny Hill</span> English comedy actor (1924–1992)

Alfred Hawthorne "Benny" Hill was an English comedian. He is remembered for his television programme, The Benny Hill Show, an amalgam of slapstick, burlesque and double entendre in a format that included live comedy and filmed segments, with Hill at the focus of almost every segment.

Madeline Smith is an English actress. After working as a model in the late 1960s, she went on to appear in many television series and stage productions, plus comedy and horror films, in the 1970s and 1980s.

Suzanne Danielle, née Morris is an English former film and television actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Van</span> American actor and dancer (1928–1980)

Robert Jack Stein, known by his legalized stage name Bobby Van, was a musical actor and dancer, best known for his career on Broadway, in films and television from the 1950s through the 1970s. He was also a game show host and panelist.

Elizabeth Joan Winch, known professionally as Liz Fraser, was a British film actress, best known for being cast in provocative comedy roles.

"A Star Is Born Again" is the thirteenth episode of the fourteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 2, 2003. The episode owes much of its plot to Notting Hill (1999). While that film is about an actress finding happiness with the owner of an independent bookstore, the episode features Hollywood movie star Sara Sloane falling for Ned Flanders after visiting the Leftorium. The episode title doubles as a reference to the film A Star Is Born and being born again, meaning a person who has converted to Christianity, particularly in American evangelism.

Paula Wilcox is an English actress. She played Chrissy Plummer in the ITV sitcom Man About The House from 1973 to 1976, and also had roles in TV shows such as The Lovers, Miss Jones and Son, The Queen’s Nose, The Smoking Room, Emmerdale, Mount Pleasant, Boomers, Upstart Crow and Girlfriends.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Clark</span> Canadian actress

Susan Clark is a Canadian actress and producer. She made her big screen debut in the 1967 drama film Banning and the following year played the female lead in the crime thriller Coogan's Bluff. She later starred in films Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969), Colossus: The Forbin Project (1971), Valdez Is Coming (1971), Skin Game (1971), Showdown (1973), The Midnight Man (1974), Airport 1975 (1975), Night Moves (1975), The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975), Murder by Decree (1979), Promises in the Dark (1979) and Porky's (1981).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elaine Dundy</span> American writer and actress

Elaine Rita Dundy was an American novelist, biographer, journalist, actress and playwright.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chiara Mastroianni</span> French actress and singer (born 1972)

Chiara Charlotte Mastroianni is a French actress and singer. She is the daughter of actors Marcello Mastroianni and Catherine Deneuve.

Linda Hayden is an English film and television actress. She is best known for her roles in 1970s British horror films and sex comedies.

Elaine Joyce is an American actress.

<i>The Anniversary</i> (1968 film) 1968 British film

The Anniversary is a 1968 British black comedy film directed by Roy Ward Baker for Hammer Films and Seven Arts and starring Bette Davis. The screenplay, by Jimmy Sangster, was adapted from Bill MacIlwraith's 1966 play.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Chantrell</span> English artist

Thomas William Chantrell was a British illustrator and cinema poster artist.

<i>Lock Up Your Daughters</i> (1969 film) 1969 British film by Peter Coe

Lock Up Your Daughters! is a 1969 British comedy film directed by Peter Coe and starring Christopher Plummer, Susannah York and Glynis Johns. It is an adaptation of the 1959 stage musical of the same name set in 18th-century Britain, which in turn is based on the 1730 comedy, Rape upon Rape, by Henry Fielding It lacks all the songs from the original stage production. It was one of a number of British costume films released in the wake of the success of the Tom Jones (1963).

<i>All the Way Up</i> (film) 1970 British film by James MacTaggart

All The Way Up is a 1970 British comedy film directed by James MacTaggart and starring Warren Mitchell, Pat Heywood, Kenneth Cranham, Richard Briers, Adrienne Posta and Elaine Taylor. It is based on the 1962 play Semi-Detached by David Turner.

<i>The Curse</i> (American TV series) American dark comedy television series

The Curse is an American satirical black comedy thriller television series created and written by Nathan Fielder and Benny Safdie, and starring Emma Stone, Fielder, and Safdie. It was filmed from June to October 2022 and premiered on streaming and on-demand for all Showtime and Paramount+ with Showtime subscribers on November 10, 2023, before making its on-air debut on Showtime on November 12. Its first three episodes premiered at the New York Film Festival on October 12, 2023. The first season concluded on January 12, 2024, receiving critical acclaim.

References

  1. ↑ Halliwell's Filmgoer's Companion (8th ed., 1985)
  2. 1 2 "Elaine Taylor Plummer – biography". Pcez.com. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  3. ↑ The Independent, 19 February 2001: obituary of Reginald Marsh. The casting of Terry-Thomas, then a considerable international star, was considered quite a coup for Robin Nash who directed the pilot episode for the BBC: Times obituary of Robin Nash, 9 July 2011.
  4. ↑ "Benny's Place • Benny Hill: The Lost Years DVD Review – Bonus Benny!". www.runstop.de. Archived from the original on 25 March 2016. Retrieved 27 June 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ↑ Andy Foster & Steve Furst (1996) Radio Comedy 1938–1968
  6. ↑ Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed, 1989)
  7. ↑ Time Out Film Guide (ed Tom Milne, 1989). The Sunday Express considered The Anniversary "undoubtedly sick", but "very funny too": see sleeves notes of Optimum Releasing's DVD (2007).
  8. ↑ The Times Saturday Review, 23 October 2010; Marcus Hearn (2010) The Art of Hammer: Posters from the Archive of Hammer Films. Towards the end of the film, Shirley, who, after removing her skirt and top, has slumped playfully onto a bed in front of her fiancé, is horrified to find a glass eye, the assumption being that her prospective mother-in-law (Davies) has placed it there in an attempt to shock her into a miscarriage.
  9. ↑ Who's Who (annually), entry for Christopher Plummer (born 13 December 1929)
  10. ↑ Nicholas Wapshott (1991) Rex Harrison. Elizabeth Harris became Rex Harrison's fifth wife in 1971 and in 2003 married the former British Cabinet Minister Jonathan Aitken.
  11. ↑ People Weekly, 15 March 1982
  12. ↑ Christopher Plummer (2008) In Spite of Myself: A Memoir
  13. ↑ "The Marriage of Christopher Plummer and Elaine Taylor". Marriage.about.com. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  14. ↑ Iorfida, Chris (5 February 2021). "Christopher Plummer, 'Sound of Music' star and oldest actor to win an Oscar, dead at 91". CBC News . Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  15. 1 2 The New York Times , 22 February 2004
  16. ↑ Kenneth Tynan, diary, 27 March 1971: The Diaries of Kenneth Tynan (ed. John Lahr, 2001).
  17. ↑ Times Magazine, 25 February 2012
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.