Marian Waldman
Encyclopedia
Marian Ann Waldman was a Canadian
actress. She was also a veteran stage actress for Toronto for many decades of her career.
, Ontario
, Canada
to a professor mother and a physician father. Waldman was an Ashkenazi Jew. She began her career as a stage actress while working around the Toronto area, during the 1950s, first as a choir girl, and later with a dramatic repertoire.
Marian's close friends and relatives had been known to call her "Pookie," as a term of endearment. In addition to her career as an actress, Waldman also enjoyed reading, traveling, various events around Toronto, astrology
, and parties.
Knowledge of her personal life is rather limited, perhaps due to lack of sufficient information. Hopefully, a relative/close friend can provide more for this beloved character actress.
.
Most film fans will remember Waldman for her celebrated role as a foul-mouthed, but also endearing, closet drunkard housemother, Mrs. Mac (Mrs. MacHenry) from the 1974 holiday horror classic, Black Christmas
. According to IMDb.com, the role was apparently offered to Bette Davis
, whom eventually turned it down. The role provided much needed comedic relief to the original slasher
.
In 2006, fellow Black Christmas cast mate, Andrea Martin
reprised the role of Mrs. Mac in the remake Black Christmas
.
Waldman's final on-screen appearance was in John Huston
's 1980 film, Phobia
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
actress. She was also a veteran stage actress for Toronto for many decades of her career.
Biography
Waldman was born in TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
to a professor mother and a physician father. Waldman was an Ashkenazi Jew. She began her career as a stage actress while working around the Toronto area, during the 1950s, first as a choir girl, and later with a dramatic repertoire.
Marian's close friends and relatives had been known to call her "Pookie," as a term of endearment. In addition to her career as an actress, Waldman also enjoyed reading, traveling, various events around Toronto, astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
, and parties.
Knowledge of her personal life is rather limited, perhaps due to lack of sufficient information. Hopefully, a relative/close friend can provide more for this beloved character actress.
Career
After a successful run in live theatre, Waldman later became a film actress in the early 1970s, as well as an occasional television screenwriterScreenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
.
Most film fans will remember Waldman for her celebrated role as a foul-mouthed, but also endearing, closet drunkard housemother, Mrs. Mac (Mrs. MacHenry) from the 1974 holiday horror classic, Black Christmas
Black Christmas (1974 film)
Black Christmas is a 1974 Canadian slasher film directed by Bob Clark and written by A. Roy Moore, and largely based on a series of murders that took place in Quebec, Canada around Christmas time. The film's score is by Carl Zittrer. It was distributed by Ambassador Film Distributors in Canada and...
. According to IMDb.com, the role was apparently offered to Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
, whom eventually turned it down. The role provided much needed comedic relief to the original slasher
Slasher
Slasher may refer to:* Slasher film, a subgenre of the horror film* Slasher , a scrub-clearing implement* Slasher , a 2004 documentary film* John Reis, an American musician, known by the pseudonym Slasher...
.
In 2006, fellow Black Christmas cast mate, Andrea Martin
Andrea Martin
Andrea Louise Martin is an American and Canadian actress and comedienne. She has appeared in films such as My Big Fat Greek Wedding, on stage in productions such as My Favorite Year, Fiddler on the Roof and Candide, and in the television series, SCTV.-Personal life:Martin, the oldest of three...
reprised the role of Mrs. Mac in the remake Black Christmas
Black Christmas (2006 film)
Black Christmas is 2006 American Slasher film and a remake of the 1974 horror slasher film of the same name. It was written and directed by Glen Morgan and stars Katie Cassidy, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Lacey Chabert, Crystal Lowe, Michelle Trachtenberg , Oliver Hudson, Kristen Cloke, and Andrea...
.
Death
Marian died on July 5, 1985, in her native Toronto, due to unknown causes.Waldman's final on-screen appearance was in John Huston
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics: The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge...
's 1980 film, Phobia
Phobia (film)
Phobia is a thriller film released in 1980. The film stars Paul Michael Glaser from TV's Starsky and Hutch. It was directed by John Huston for Paramount Pictures.- Synopsis :...
.
Filmography
- When Michael CallsWhen Michael CallsWhen Michael Calls is a Thriller-drama television movie directed by Philip Leacock and starred Elizabeth Ashley, Ben Gazzara and Michael Douglas.-Plot:...
(1971) (Television Movie) - Class of '44Class of '44Class Of '44 is the 1973 sequel to Summer of '42.The film is a slice-of-life style autobiography of sorts, depicting Herman Raucher's first year in college, where he falls in love with Julie under the shadow of the growing threat of WW II...
(1973) - The StarlostThe StarlostThe Starlost is a Canadian-produced science fiction television series devised by writer Harlan Ellison and broadcast in 1973 on CTV in Canada and syndicated to local stations in the United States. The show's setting is a huge generational colony spacecraft called The Ark, which has gone off-course...
(1973) (as writer) (Television Series) - DerangedDerangedDeranged is a Canadian/American horror film made in 1974 and directed by Alan Ormsby and Jeff Gillen. It is also known by the title Deranged: The Confessions of a Necrophile in the USA...
(1974) - Black ChristmasBlack Christmas (1974 film)Black Christmas is a 1974 Canadian slasher film directed by Bob Clark and written by A. Roy Moore, and largely based on a series of murders that took place in Quebec, Canada around Christmas time. The film's score is by Carl Zittrer. It was distributed by Ambassador Film Distributors in Canada and...
(1974) - A Cosmic ChristmasA Cosmic ChristmasA Cosmic Christmas is the first television special produced by the Canadian animation company, Nelvana. It premiered on December 4, 1977 in Canada on CBC Television.-Plot:...
(1977) (Television Short) - High HopesHigh Hopes (1978 TV Series)High Hopes was a Canadian television soap opera that was shown on both Canadian and United States television, starring actor Bruce Gray.The series was produced by Y&R Associates, Ltd, in conjunction with DCA Productions, Incorporated, and was filmed in Toronto. It was shown on CBC Television, in...
(1978) (as writer) (Television Series) - PhobiaPhobia (film)Phobia is a thriller film released in 1980. The film stars Paul Michael Glaser from TV's Starsky and Hutch. It was directed by John Huston for Paramount Pictures.- Synopsis :...
(1980)