Audrey Christie

Audrey Christie
Born(1912-06-27)June 27, 1912[a]
Chicago, Illinois, US
DiedDecember 19, 1989(1989-12-19) (aged 77)
West Hollywood, California, US
OccupationActress
Years active1929–1982
SpouseGuy Robertson (divorced) Donald Briggs (1959–1986, his death)[1]
Children2

Audrey Christie (June 27, 1912[a] – December 19[b], 1989) was an American actress, singer and dancer.

Early life

Christie was born in Chicago, Illinois. She attended a fine arts school in Chicago, but she quit at age 15 after finding success as a performer with the Six Chicago Steppers.[3]

Career

Originally, Christie worked as a singer and dancer, starting as a teenager in vaudeville shows,[2] but she later acted in dramatic roles as well.[1] Early roles on Broadway included Follow Thru (1929), Sailor, Beware! (1933), The Women (1936), I Married an Angel (1938),[2] and Without Love (1942). She had a lead role in The Desk Set (1956).

She performed in the films Keeper of the Flame (1943), Deadline – U.S.A. (1952), Carousel (1956), Splendor in the Grass (1961), The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964), Harlow (1965), Frankie and Johnny (1966), The Ballad of Josie (1967), Mame (1974), and Harper Valley PTA (1978).

Christie acted in several episodes of the anthology TV series Studio One and another TV series, Fair Exchange.[2] During the 1964–1965 television season, she had a recurring role on the situation comedy The Cara Williams Show. In 1975, she appeared on the sitcom Maude, playing the role of Maude’s overbearing mother. And on TV's Barney Miller appeared in two episode, 'The Courtesans' as a "Madame", and in the episode 'Old Love' as an overbearing stage mother.

She won a Donaldson Award for her performance in the play The Voice of the Turtle.[1]

Personal life and death

She was married to Guy Robertson, also a performer, and they had a daughter.[3]

Her second marriage was to actor Donald Briggs,[3] who predeceased her. They had a son[3] and three grandchildren.[1]

Christie died of emphysema on December 19,[b] 1989, at her home in West Hollywood, California.[1]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1943 Keeper of the Flame Jane Harding
1952 Deadline – U.S.A. Mrs. Willebrandt
1956 Carousel Mrs. Mullin
1961 Splendor in the Grass Frieda Loomis
1964 The Unsinkable Molly Brown Mrs. Gladys McGraw
1965 Harlow Thelma
1966 Frankie and Johnny Peg
1967 The Ballad of Josie Annabelle Pettijohn
1974 Mame Mrs. Upson
1975 Maude Mother "Florence" Chadbourne
1978 Harper Valley PTA Flora Simpson Reilly

Notes

  1. ^ a b Some sources cite 1910 as Christie's year of birth.
  2. ^ a b The Los Angeles Times reported her death date as December 20.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Audrey Christie, 79 - Singer and Dancer Became an Actress". The New York Times. 1989-12-29. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  2. ^ a b c d "Audrey Christie; Broadway, Film, TV Actress". Los Angeles Times. December 28, 1989. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d Kimbrough, Mary (April 2, 1959). "Muny Opera Revisited by Audrey Christie". St. Louis Dispatch. Retrieved May 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.