Colleen Dewhurst

PartnerKen Marsolais (1975–1991; her death)Children2, including Campbell ScottAwards11th President of the Actors' Equity AssociationIn office
1985 – 1991 (died in the office)Preceded byEllen BurstynSucceeded byRon Silver

Colleen Rose Dewhurst (June 3, 1924 – August 22, 1991) was a Canadian-American actress mostly known for theatre roles. She was a renowned interpreter of the works of Eugene O'Neill on the stage, and her career also encompassed film, early dramas on live television, and performances in Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival. One of her last roles was playing Marilla Cuthbert in the Kevin Sullivan television adaptations of the Anne of Green Gables series and her reprisal of the role in the subsequent TV series Road to Avonlea. In the United States, Dewhurst won two Tony Awards and four Emmy Awards for her stage and television work. In addition to other Canadian honors over the years, Dewhurst won two Gemini Awards (the former Canadian equivalent of an Emmy Award) for her portrayal of Marilla Cuthbert; once in 1986 and again in 1988. It is arguably her best known role because of the Kevin Sullivan produced series’ continuing popularity and also the initial co-production by the CBC; allowing for rebroadcasts over the years on it, and also on PBS in the United States. The initial broadcast alone was seen by millions of viewers.^[1]

Early life

Dewhurst was born June 3, 1924, in Montreal, Quebec, the only child of Frances Marie (nee Woods) and Ferdinand Augustus "Fred" Dewhurst. Fred Dewhurst was the owner of a chain of confectionery stores and had been a celebrated athlete in Canada, where he had played football with the Ottawa Rough Riders.^[2] The family became naturalized as U.S. citizens before 1940. Colleen Dewhurst's mother was a Christian Scientist, a faith Colleen also embraced.^[3]

The Dewhursts moved to Massachusetts in 1928 or 1929, staying in the Boston area neighborhoods of Dorchester, Auburndale, and West Newton. Later they moved to New York City and then to Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin. Dewhurst attended Whitefish Bay High School for her first two years of high school, moved to Shorewood High School for her junior year, and graduated from Riverside High School in Milwaukee in 1942. About this time her parents separated. Dewhurst attended Milwaukee-Downer College for two years, then moved to New York City to pursue an acting career.^[4]

Career

One of her more significant stage roles was in the 1974 Broadway revival of O'Neill's A Moon for the Misbegotten as Josie Hogan, for which she won a Tony Award. She previously won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in 1961 for All the Way Home. She later played Katharina in a 1956 production of Taming of the Shrew for Joseph Papp. She (as recounted in her posthumous obituary in collaboration with Tom Viola) wrote:

With Brooks Atkinson's blessing, our world changed overnight. Suddenly in our audience of neighbors in T-shirts and jeans appeared men in white shirts, jackets and ties and ladies in summer dresses. We were in a hit that would have a positive effect on my career, as well as Joe's, but I missed the shouting.^[5]

She played Shakespeare's Cleopatra and Lady Macbeth for Papp and years later, Gertrude in a production of Hamlet at the Delacorte Theatre in Central Park.

She appeared in the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode Night Fever in 1965 and with Ingrid Bergman in More Stately Mansions on Broadway in 1967. José Quintero directed her in O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night and Mourning Becomes Electra. She appeared in Edward Albee's adaptation of Carson McCullers' Ballad of the Sad Cafe and as Martha in a Broadway revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, with Ben Gazzara which Albee directed.

She appeared in 1962 as Joanne Novak in the episode "I Don't Belong in a White-Painted House" in the medical drama The Eleventh Hour, starring Wendell Corey and Jack Ging. Dewhurst appeared opposite her then husband, Scott, in a 1971 television adaptation of Arthur Miller's The Price, on Hallmark Hall of Fame, and an anthology series. There is another television recording of them together when she played Elizabeth Proctor to the unfaithful John in Miller's The Crucible (with Tuesday Weld). In 1977, Woody Allen cast her in his film Annie Hall as Annie's mother.

In her autobiography, Dewhurst wrote: "I had moved so quickly from one Off-Broadway production to the next that I was known, at one point, as the 'Queen of Off-Broadway'. This title was not due to my brilliance, but, rather, because most of the plays I was in closed after a run of anywhere from one night to two weeks. I would then move immediately into another."^[5]

In 1972 she played a madam, Mrs. Kate Collingwood, in The Cowboys (1972), which starred John Wayne. Dewhurst also appeared with Wayne in the 1974 film McQ. She was the first actress to share a love scene with Wayne in bed. In 1985, she played the role of Marilla Cuthbert in Kevin Sullivan's adaptation of Lucy Maud Montgomery's novel Anne of Green Gables and reprised the role in 1987's Anne of Avonlea (also known as Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel) and in several episodes of Kevin Sullivan's Road to Avonlea.

Dewhurst was on hiatus from Road to Avonlea when she died in 1991. Sullivan Productions was unaware she was terminally ill, so her portrayal of Marilla ended posthumously. This was accomplished by shooting new scenes with actress Patricia Hamilton acting as a body double for Dewhurst and by recycling parts of scenes from Anne of Green Gables, Road to Avonlea, and using Dewhurst's death scene as Hepzibah in Sullivan's production of Lantern Hill. The latter was a 1990 television film based on L.M. Montgomery's Jane of Lantern Hill.

During 1989 and 1990, she appeared in a supporting role on the television series Murphy Brown playing Avery Brown, the feisty mother of Candice Bergen's title character; this role earned her two Emmy Awards, the second being awarded posthumously. Dewhurst won a total of two Tony Awards and four Emmy Awards for her stage and television work. Season 4, Episode 6 entitled "Full Circle" was the Murphy Brown episode filmed shortly after her death and dedicated to her memory.

In a review of Dewhurst's final film role as Ruth in Bed and Breakfast (1991), Emanuel Levy wrote “Bed and Breakfast is the kind of small, intimate picture that actors revere. The stunningly sensual Dewhurst, in one of her last screen roles, dominates every scene she is in, making the lusty and down-to-earth Ruth at once credible and enchanting.“

Dewhurst was president of the Actors' Equity Association from 1985 until her death. She was the first national president to die in the office.

Personal life and final years

Colleen Dewhurst was married to James Vickery from 1947 to 1960. She married and divorced George C. Scott twice. They had two sons, Alexander Scott and actor Campbell Scott; she co-starred with Campbell in Dying Young (1991), one of her later film roles as she died in August 1991.^{[citation needed]}

During the last years of her life she lived on a farm in South Salem, New York, with her partner Ken Marsolais. They also had a summer home on Prince Edward Island, Canada.^{[citation needed]}

Maureen Stapleton wrote about Dewhurst:

Colleen looked like a warrior, so people assumed she was the earth mother. But in real life Colleen was not to be let out without a keeper. She couldn't stop herself from taking care of people, which she then did with more care than she took care of herself. Her generosity of spirit was overwhelming and her smile so dazzling that you couldn't pull the ... reins in on her even if you desperately wanted to and knew damn well that somebody should.^[5]

Dewhurst's Christian Science beliefs^[6] led to her refusal to accept any kind of surgical treatment. She died of cervical cancer at the age 67 at her South Salem home in 1991. She was cremated and her ashes were given to family and friends; no public service was planned.^{[citation needed]}

Awards

Over the course of her 45-year career, Dewhurst won the 1974 Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre, two Tony Awards, two Obie Awards, and two Gemini Awards. In 1989, she won the Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for her role in Hitting Home. Of her 13 Emmy Award nominations, she won four. She was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 1981.^[7]

• 1961: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play - All the Way Home
• 1974: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - A Moon for the Misbegotten
• 1986: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Miniseries or a Movie - Between Two Women
• 1989: Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series - Murphy Brown: "Mama Said"
• 1989: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie - Those She Left Behind
• 1991: Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series - Murphy Brown: "Bob and Murphy and Ted and Avery"

Nominations

This television-related list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (February 2010)

• 1962: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actress - Focus
• 1968: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Drama - The Crucible
• 1971: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - The Price
• 1976: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama or Comedy Special - A Moon For the Misbegotten
• 1979: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie - Silent Victory: The Kitty O'Neil Story
• 1981: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie - The Women's Room
• 1990: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie - Lantern Hill
• 1990: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress – Drama Series - Road to Avonlea
• 1991: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress – Drama Series - Road to Avonlea
• 1962: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - Great Day In the Morning
• 1964: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - The Ballad of the Sad Cafe
• 1968: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - More Stately Mansions
• 1972: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - All Over
• 1973: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - Mourning Becomes Electra
• 1977: Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Filmography

Films and television films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	The Nun's Story	Archangel Gabriel (Sanatorium)
1960	Man on a String	Helen Benson
1961	The Foxes		television film
1962	Focus
1966	A Fine Madness	Dr. Vera Kropotkin
1967	The Crucible	Elizabeth Proctor	television film (adaptation of the play The Crucible)
1971	The Price	Esther Franz	television film
	The Last Run	Monique
1972	The Cowboys	Kate
	The Hands of Cormac Joyce	Molly Joyce	television film
1973	Legend in Granite	Marie Lombardi
1974	Parker Addison, Philosopher	Hostess
	The Music School
	McQ	Myra
	The Story of Jacob and Joseph	Rebekah	television film
1975	A Moon for the Misbegotten	Josie Hogan	television film (adaptation of the play A Moon for the Misbegotten)
1977	Annie Hall	Mrs. Hall
1978	The Third Walker	Kate Maclean
	Ice Castles	Beulah Smith
1979	Silent Victory: The Kitty O'Neil Story	Mrs. O'Neil	television film
	When a Stranger Calls	Tracy Fuller
	And Baby Makes Six	Anna Kramer	television film
	Mary and Joseph: A Story of Faith	Elizabeth
1980	Death Penalty	Elaine Lipton
	Escape	Lily Levinson
	Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones	Mrs. Myrtle Kennedy	miniseries
	The Women's Room	Val	television film (based on the book The Women's Room)
	A Perfect Match	Meg Larson	television film
	Baby Comes Home	Anna Kramer
	Final Assignment	Dr. Valentine Ulanova
	Tribute	Gladys Petrelli
1981	A Few Days in Weasel Creek	Aunt Cora	television film
1982	Split Cherry Tree	Mother
	Between Two Brothers		television film
1983	Sometimes I Wonder	Grandma
	The Dead Zone	Henrietta Dodd
1984	You Can't Take It with You	Grand Duchess Olga Katrina	television film (adaptation of the play You Can't Take It with You)
	The Glitter Dome	Lorna Dillman	television film
1985	Anne of Green Gables	Marilla Cuthbert
1986	Between Two Women	Barbara Petherton
	Johnny Bull	Marie Kovacs
	As Is	Hospice Worker
	The Boy Who Could Fly	Mrs. Sherman
	Sword of Gideon	Golda Meir	television film
1987	Hitting Home	Judge
	Bigfoot	Gladys Samco
	Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel	Marilla Cuthbert
1988	Woman in the Wind
1989	Those She Left Behind	Margaret Page	television film
	Termini Station	Molly Dushane
1990	The Exorcist III	Pazuzu	Voice, Uncredited
	Kaleidoscope	Margaret	television film
	Lantern Hill	Elizabeth
1991	Dying Young	Estelle Whittier
	Bed & Breakfast	Ruth Wellesly	final film role

Television work (excluding television films)

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1957	Studio One		teleplay: First Prize for Murder
1958	Kraft Television Theatre		teleplay: Presumption of Innocence
	Decoy	Taffy	episode: "Deadly Corridor"
	DuPont Show of the Month		teleplay: The Count of Monte Cristo
1959		Aldonza/Dulcinea	teleplay: I, Don Quixote
	Play of the Week	Mordeen Saul / Woman	teleplays: Burning Bright; Medea
	The United States Steel Hour	Vera Brandon	teleplay: The Hours Before Dawn
1961	Play of the Week		teleplays: No Exit; The Indifferent Lover
	Ben Casey	Phyllis Anders	episode: "I Remember a Lemon Tree"
1962	The Eleventh Hour	Joanne Novak	episode: "I Don't Belong in a White-Painted House"
	The Virginian	Celia Ames	episode: "The Executioners"
	The Nurses	Grace Milo	episode: "Fly, Shadow"
1963	The United States Steel Hour	Francie Broderick	teleplay: Night Run to the West
	DuPont Show of the Month	Karen Holt	teleplay: Something to Hide
1964	East Side/West Side	Shirley	episode: "Nothing but the Half Truth"
1965	Dr. Kildare	Eleanor Markham	episode: "All Brides Should Be Beautiful"
	The Alfred Hitchcock Hour	Nurse Ellen Hatch	episode: "Night Fever"
1966	The F.B.I.	Amy Doucette	episode: "The Baby Sitter"
	The Big Valley	Annie Morton	episode: "A Day of Terror"
1971	ITV Sunday Night Theatre	Mrs. Franz	teleplay: The Price
	Hallmark Hall of Fame
1972		Molly Joyce	teleplay: The Hands of Cormac Joyce
1973	Wide World Mystery	Margery Landing	episode: "A Prowler in the Heart"
1979	Studs Lonigan	Mary Lonigan	miniseries
1982	Quincy, M.E.	Dr. Barbara Ludow	episode: "For Love of Joshua"
	The Blue and the Gray	Maggie Geyser	miniseries
1983	Great Performances	Red Queen	teleplay: Alice in Wonderland
1984	Finder of Lost Loves	Rachel Green	episode: "Echoes"
	The Love Boat	Maud	episode: "Welcome Aboard: Part 1 and 2"
1985	A.D.	Antonia	miniseries
1988	The Twilight Zone	Hallie Parker	episode: "There Was an Old Woman"
1989	Moonlighting	Betty Russell	episode: "Take My Wife, for Example"
1989–1990	Murphy Brown	Avery Brown Sr.	3 episodes: -"Brown Like Me: Part 1 and Part II" (1989) -"Mama Said" (1989) -"Bob & Murphy & Ted & Avery (1990)
1990–1992	Road to Avonlea	Marilla Cuthbert	4 episodes: "Of Corsets and Secrets and True, True Love", "The Materializing of Duncan McTavish", "The Quarantine at Alexander Abraham's" and "Old Friends New Wounds (Marilla's Death)"

Theatre

Year	Play	Role
1952	Desire Under the Elms	Neighbor
1956	Tamburlaine the Great	Virgin of Memphis / Turkish Concubine
1957–1958	The Country Wife	Mrs. Squeamish
1960	Caligula	Caesonia
1960–1961	All the Way Home	Mary Follet
1962	Great Day in the Morning	Phoebe Flaherty
1963–1964	The Ballad of the Sad Café	Miss Amelia Evans
1967–1968	More Stately Mansions	Sara
1970	The Good Woman of Setzuan	Shen Te
1971	All Over	The Mistress
1972	Mourning Becomes Electra	Christine Mannon
1973–1974	A Moon for the Misbegotten	Josie Hogan
1976	Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?	Martha
1977–1978	An Almost Perfect Person	Irene Porter
1982	The Queen and the Rebels	Argia
1983–1984	You Can't Take It with You	Olga
1982	Long Day's Journey into Night	Mary Cavan Tyrone
	Ah, Wilderness!	Essie Miller
1989–1990	Love Letters	Melissa Gardner

Bibliography

• Dewhurst, Colleen; Viola, Tom (1997). Colleen Dewhurst - Her Autobiography. Scribner. ISBN 978-0-684-80701-0.

References

External links

• Colleen Dewhurst at the Internet Broadway Database
• Colleen Dewhurst at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Colleen Dewhurst at IMDb