Natalie Schafer | |
|---|---|
 Schafer in 1942 | |
| Born | November 5, 1900 |
| Died | April 10, 1991 (aged 90) Beverly Hills, California |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1927–1990 |
| Known for | Gilligan's Island Rescue from Gilligan's Island The Castaways on Gilligan's Island The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island |
| Spouse | |
| Partner | Maurice Hill |
Natalie Schafer (November 5, 1900 – April 10, 1991) was an American actress, best known today for her role as Lovey Howell on the sitcom Gilligan's Island (1964–1967).
 | This section needs additional citations for verification .(May 2018) |
Natalie Schafer was born on November 5, 1900, in Red Bank, New Jersey. [3] the eldest of the three children of Jennie (née Tim; family name originally Tein) [4] and Charles Emanual Schafer, [5] both of German-Jewish descent. [4]
Schafer began her career as an actress on Broadway before moving to Los Angeles in 1941 to work in films. She appeared on Broadway in 17 plays between 1927 and 1959, often playing supporting roles. Most of those appearances were in short-run plays, with the exceptions of Lady in the Dark (1941–42), The Doughgirls (1942–44), and Romanoff and Juliet (1957–58). She was seen in a revival of Six Characters in Search of an Author , directed by Sir Tyrone Guthrie (1955–56). She also appeared in stock and regional productions, including the off-Broadway production The Killing of Sister George with Claire Trevor in the title role.[ citation needed ] She also guest-starred in TV productions beginning in the 1950s, such as an episode (“The Shy Ballerina”) of Sherlock Holmes , and in "The Charm School" episode of I Love Lucy , both in 1954.
Schafer performed in many films, usually portraying sophisticates. On TV, her roles included "Lovey Howell" on Gilligan's Island from 1964–67. She reprised her role in three made-for-television spin-off films after the show ended: Rescue from Gilligan's Island (1978), The Castaways on Gilligan's Island (1979), and The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island (1981). She also voiced Lovey Howell on the animated spinoffs, The New Adventures of Gilligan from 1974–77 and Gilligan's Planet from 1982–83.
In 1969, Schafer appeared in The Survivors—a high-profile prime time soap opera aired by the ABC television network. Despite the presence of movie stars like Lana Turner, Kevin McCarthy and George Hamilton, the show was a ratings failure and lasted only one season. [6] For the 1971–1972 television season, Schafer joined the cast of the CBS daytime serial, Search for Tomorrow , portraying Helen Collins, mother of Wade and Clay Collins. Immediately following that role, she played Augusta Roulland on another daytime soap, Love of Life . Her final performance was in the 1990 made-for-television horror film I'm Dangerous Tonight .
She guest-starred as well on many other television series, including Goodyear Playhouse / Philco Playhouse ("The Sisters", with Grace Kelly, 1951), I Love Lucy (1954), Producers' Showcase ("The Petrified Forest", 1955), Guestward, Ho! (1960), The Beverly Hillbillies (1964), Mayberry RFD (1970), Mannix (1972), The Brady Bunch (1974), Phyllis (1976), Three's Company (1978), and The Love Boat (1979). [7]
Schafer was married to actor Louis Calhern from 1933 to 1942; they had no children. [8] Schafer and Calhern appeared together in the 1956 film Forever, Darling . [9]
Schafer was secretive about her age. She reportedly never revealed her true year of birth to her husband during their marriage. For many years, her birth year was generally given as 1912. Few people believed this; yet her actual year of birth of 1900 (which was not discovered until after her death) surprised even her intimate friends. She was reportedly also a breast cancer survivor, which she withheld from her fans and friends. [10]
At the time of her death, a family spokesman stated that Schafer's survivors included her longtime companion Maurice Hill. [11]
Schafer died of liver cancer in her Beverly Hills home at the age of 90. She was cremated; her ashes were scattered into the Pacific Ocean, off San Pedro's Point Fermin Light. She bequeathed between $1.5 million and $2 million to the Lillian Booth Actors Home to renovate the hospital's outpatient wing, which was renamed the Natalie Schafer Wing in 1993. [12] [13]
Gilligan's Island is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson, and Dawn Wells. It aired for three seasons on the CBS network from September 26, 1964, to April 17, 1967. The series follows the comic adventures of seven castaways as they try to survive on an island where they are shipwrecked. Most episodes revolve around the dissimilar castaways' conflicts and their unsuccessful attempts to escape their plight, with the ship's first mate, Gilligan, usually being responsible for the failures.
Carl Henry Vogt, known by his stage name Louis Calhern, was an American actor. Described as a “star leading man of the theater and a star character actor of the screen,” he appeared in over 100 roles on the Broadway stage and in films and television, between 1923 and 1956. He was nominated for the Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for portraying U.S. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in the 1950 film The Magnificent Yankee.
James Gilmore Backus was an American actor. Among his most famous roles were Thurston Howell III on the 1960s sitcom Gilligan's Island, the father of James Dean's character in Rebel Without a Cause, the voice of the near-sighted cartoon character Mr. Magoo, the rich Hubert Updike III on the radio version of The Alan Young Show, and Joan Davis' character's husband on TV's I Married Joan. He also starred in his own show of one season, The Jim Backus Show, also known as Hot Off the Wire.
Dame Frances Margaret Anderson, known professionally as Judith Anderson, was an Australian actress who had a successful career in stage, film and television.
Thurston Howell III is a character on the CBS television sitcom Gilligan's Island, which ran from 1964 to 1967, and later in syndication.
Lillian Randolph was an American actress and singer, a veteran of radio, film, and television. She worked in entertainment from the 1930s until shortly before her death. She appeared in hundreds of radio shows, motion pictures, short subjects, and television shows.
Lovey Howell, is a fictional character from the 1964 television show Gilligan's Island played by Natalie Schafer. The character is a rich socialite married to millionaire businessman Thurston Howell III.
Rosemary Shirley DeCamp was an American radio, film, and television actress.
Spring Dell Byington was an American actress. Her career included a seven-year run on radio and television as the star of December Bride. She was a MGM contract player who appeared in films from the 1930s to the 1960s.
Gilligan's Planet is an American Saturday morning animated series produced by Filmation and MGM/UA Television which aired during the 1982–1983 season on CBS. It was the second animated spin-off of the sitcom Gilligan's Island.
Gilligan's Wake (ISBN 0-312-29123-X) is a 2003 novel, loosely based on the 1960s CBS sitcom Gilligan's Island, written by Esquire film and television critic Tom Carson. The title is derived from the title of the TV show and Finnegans Wake, the final work of Irish novelist James Joyce. The novel was published subsequently as a paperback in 2004 (ISBN 0-312-31114-1).
Rescue from Gilligan's Island is a 1978 made-for-television comedy film that continues the adventures of the shipwrecked castaways from the 1964–67 sitcom Gilligan's Island, starring Bob Denver and Alan Hale Jr., and featuring all the original cast except Tina Louise. The film first aired on NBC as a two-part special on October 14 and October 21, 1978. The film has the characters finally being rescued after 15 years on the island. The film was directed by Leslie H. Martinson.
Norma Varden Shackleton, known professionally as Norma Varden, was an English-American actress with a long film career.
The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island is a 1981 made-for-television comedy film. It is the third of three movies that reunited the cast of the 1964–1967 sitcom Gilligan's Island. The film aired on NBC on May 15, 1981.
Ruth Clifford was an American actress of leading roles in silent films whose career lasted from that era into the television era.
Forever, Darling is a 1956 American fantasy romantic comedy film directed by Alexander Hall, written by Helen Deutsch, and starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, and James Mason. In the film, Ball stars as a wife who tries to save her struggling marriage to a chemical engineer (Arnaz) with the help of her guardian angel (Mason). Louis Calhern and Natalie Schafer co-star in supporting roles.
The Lillian Booth Actors Home of The Actors Fund is an American assisted-living facility, in Englewood, New Jersey. It is operated by the Actors Fund, a nonprofit umbrella charitable organization that assists American entertainment and performing arts professionals.
Surviving Gilligan's Island: The Incredibly True Story of the Longest Three-Hour Tour in History is a 2001 American made-for-television docudrama film based on the 1964–1967 television sitcom Gilligan's Island.
Louise Lorimer was an American actress who played character roles on Broadway, in films, and on television in a career lasting over six decades.
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