Ruth Roman
Encyclopedia
Ruth Roman was an American actress. One of her most memorable roles was in the Alfred Hitchcock
1951 thriller Strangers on a Train
.
of Lynn
, Massachusetts
and was of Russian
and Polish
descent. As a girl, she pursued her desire to become an actress by enrolling in the prestigious Bishop Lee Dramatic School in Boston. Following completion of her studies Roman headed to Hollywood where she obtained bit parts in several films before being cast in the title role in the thirteen-episode serial
Jungle Queen
(1945). Married three times, she had one son, Richard, with her first husband, Mortimer Hall. She died at the age of seventy-six in her sleep at her Laguna Beach
, California
home.
as First Class passengers for their return trip home to the United States. On the night of July 25, Ruth's life took an unexpected turn as she found herself and her young son in the middle of an unfolding disaster when the Andrea Doria collided with the Swedish passenger liner MS Stockholm. Ruth was in the Belvedere Lounge when the collision happened and immediately took off her high heels and scrambled back to her cabin barefoot to retrieve her sleeping son. Several hours later she and the other passengers were being evacuated from the sinking liner. Dickie was lowered first into a waiting lifeboat, and before she could follow the lifeboat departed. Ruth stepped into the next boat and was eventually rescued along with 750 other survivors from the Andrea Doria by the French passenger liner SS Ile de France
. Dickie was rescued by the Stockholm and was reunited with his mother in New York.
film, Champion. In one of her most memorable roles, Roman costarred with Farley Granger
and Robert Walker
in the Alfred Hitchcock
thriller Strangers on a Train
(1951).In the 1950 film Three Secrets
, she played a distraught mother waiting to learn whether or not her child survived an airplane crash. In 1959 she won the Sarah Siddons Award
for her work in Chicago theatre
. Although she never achieved the level of success as a leading lady that many predicted, Roman nevertheless worked regularly in film well into the 1960s after which she began making appearances on television shows, including a recurring role in NBC
's 1965-1966 The Long Hot Summer
and for the 1986 season of Knots Landing
and on Murder She Wrote, both on CBS. She also guest starred in NBC's Sam Benedict
featuring Edmond O'Brien
, ABC
's The Bing Crosby Show
sitcom and its circus
drama
, The Greatest Show on Earth
starring Jack Palance
, I-Spy
featuring Robert Culp
and Bill Cosby
, and others. She also appeared in the early 1960s in both the NBC medical drama
The Eleventh Hour
and its ABC counterpart, Breaking Point.
Roman was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
at 6672 Hollywood Boulevard. for her contribution to television.
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
1951 thriller Strangers on a Train
Strangers on a Train (film)
Strangers on a Train is an American psychological thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and based on the 1950 novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith. It was shot in the autumn of 1950 and released by Warner Bros. on June 30, 1951. The film stars Farley Granger, Ruth Roman,...
.
Personal life
She was born in the Boston suburbSuburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Lynn
Lynn, Massachusetts
Lynn is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 89,050 at the 2000 census. An old industrial center, Lynn is home to Lynn Beach and Lynn Heritage State Park and is about north of downtown Boston.-17th century:...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and was of Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
and Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
descent. As a girl, she pursued her desire to become an actress by enrolling in the prestigious Bishop Lee Dramatic School in Boston. Following completion of her studies Roman headed to Hollywood where she obtained bit parts in several films before being cast in the title role in the thirteen-episode serial
Serial (film)
Serials, more specifically known as Movie serials, Film serials or Chapter plays, were short subjects originally shown in theaters in conjunction with a feature film. They were related to pulp magazine serialized fiction...
Jungle Queen
Jungle Queen (serial)
Jungle Queen is a Universal movie serial.Material from this serial was re-edited into the feature film Jungle Safari .-Cast:*Edward Norris as Bob Elliot*Eddie Quillan as Chuck Kelly*Douglass Dumbrille as Lang, the Nazi villain...
(1945). Married three times, she had one son, Richard, with her first husband, Mortimer Hall. She died at the age of seventy-six in her sleep at her Laguna Beach
Laguna Beach, California
Laguna Beach is a seaside resort city and artist community located in southern Orange County, California, United States, approximately southwest of the county seat of Santa Ana...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
home.
Andrea Doria Sinking
In July 1956, Ruth was just finishing a trip to Europe with Richard, or "Dickie" as he was called as a child, who was three years old at the time. At the port of Cannes, they boarded the Italian passenger liner SS Andrea DoriaSS Andrea Doria
SS Andrea Doria[p] was an ocean liner for the Italian Line home ported in Genoa, Italy, most famous for its sinking in 1956, when 46 people died. Named after the 16th-century Genoese admiral Andrea Doria, the ship had a gross register tonnage of 29,100 and a capacity of about 1,200 passengers and...
as First Class passengers for their return trip home to the United States. On the night of July 25, Ruth's life took an unexpected turn as she found herself and her young son in the middle of an unfolding disaster when the Andrea Doria collided with the Swedish passenger liner MS Stockholm. Ruth was in the Belvedere Lounge when the collision happened and immediately took off her high heels and scrambled back to her cabin barefoot to retrieve her sleeping son. Several hours later she and the other passengers were being evacuated from the sinking liner. Dickie was lowered first into a waiting lifeboat, and before she could follow the lifeboat departed. Ruth stepped into the next boat and was eventually rescued along with 750 other survivors from the Andrea Doria by the French passenger liner SS Ile de France
SS Ile de France
The SS Ile de France was a French ocean liner built in Saint-Nazaire, France for the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique. The ship was the first major ocean liner built after the conclusion of World War I and was the first liner ever to be decorated entirely with designs associated with the Art Deco...
. Dickie was rescued by the Stockholm and was reunited with his mother in New York.
Career
She also played an important role in the 19491949 in film
The year 1949 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello...
film, Champion. In one of her most memorable roles, Roman costarred with Farley Granger
Farley Granger
Farley Earle Granger was an American actor. In a career spanning several decades, he was perhaps best known for his two collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, Rope in 1948 and Strangers on a Train in 1951.-Early life:...
and Robert Walker
Robert Hudson Walker
Robert Hudson Walker was an American actor. He is probably best known for his role as Bruno Anthony in Alfred Hitchcock's 1951 thriller Strangers on a Train.-Early life:...
in the Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
thriller Strangers on a Train
Strangers on a Train (film)
Strangers on a Train is an American psychological thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and based on the 1950 novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith. It was shot in the autumn of 1950 and released by Warner Bros. on June 30, 1951. The film stars Farley Granger, Ruth Roman,...
(1951).In the 1950 film Three Secrets
Three Secrets
Three Secrets is a 1950 film directed by Robert Wise. It stars Eleanor Parker and Patricia Neal.-Cast:*Eleanor Parker as Susan Adele Connors Chase*Patricia Neal as Phyllis Horn*Ruth Roman as Ann Lawrence*Frank Lovejoy as Bob Duffy...
, she played a distraught mother waiting to learn whether or not her child survived an airplane crash. In 1959 she won the Sarah Siddons Award
Sarah Siddons Award
The Sarah Siddons Society is an American non-profit organization founded in 1952 by prominent Chicago theatre patrons with the goal of promoting excellence in the theatre. The Society presents the Sarah Siddons Award annually to an actor for an outstanding performance in a Chicago theatre production...
for her work in Chicago theatre
Chicago theatre
Chicago theatre refers not only to theatre performed in Chicago, Illinois but also to the movement in that town that saw a number of small, meagerly-funded companies grow to institutions of national and international significance. Chicago had long been a popular destination for tours sent out from...
. Although she never achieved the level of success as a leading lady that many predicted, Roman nevertheless worked regularly in film well into the 1960s after which she began making appearances on television shows, including a recurring role in NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's 1965-1966 The Long Hot Summer
The Long Hot Summer (TV series)
The Long, Hot Summer is an American drama series that was broadcast on ABC-TV for one season from 1965-1966. Created by Dean Riesner, The Long, Hot Summer was based on the novel The Hamlet by William Faulkner, the short story "Barn Burning", and the 1958 film of the same name.-Synopsis:The series...
and for the 1986 season of Knots Landing
Knots Landing
Knots Landing is an American primetime television soap opera that aired from December 27, 1979 to May 13, 1993 on CBS. Set in a fictitious coastal suburb of Los Angeles in California, the show centered on the lives of four married couples living in a cul-de-sac, Seaview Circle...
and on Murder She Wrote, both on CBS. She also guest starred in NBC's Sam Benedict
Sam Benedict
Sam Benedict is an American legal drama that aired on NBC from September 1962 to March 1963. The series was created and executive produced by E. Jack Neuman....
featuring Edmond O'Brien
Edmond O'Brien
Edmond O'Brien was an American actor who is perhaps best remembered for his role in D.O.A. and his Oscar winning role in The Barefoot Contessa...
, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's The Bing Crosby Show
The Bing Crosby Show
The Bing Crosby Show is a 28-episode situation comedy television program starring crooner, film star, iconic phenomenon, and businessman Bing Crosby and actress Beverly Garland as a middle-aged couple, Bing and Ellie Collins, rearing two teenaged daughters during the early 1960s...
sitcom and its circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, The Greatest Show on Earth
The Greatest Show on Earth (TV series)
The Greatest Show on Earth is an American drama series starring Jack Palance about the American circus, which aired on ABC from September 17, 1963, to April 28, 1964...
starring Jack Palance
Jack Palance
Jack Palance , was an American actor. During half a century of film and television appearances, Palance was nominated for three Academy Awards, all as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, winning in 1991 for his role in City Slickers.-Early life:Palance, one of five children, was born Volodymyr...
, I-Spy
I-Spy
The I-SPY books are spotters' guides written for British children, and particularly successful in the 1950s and 1960s in their original form and again when relaunched by Michelin in 2009 after a seven year gap in publishing....
featuring Robert Culp
Robert Culp
Robert Martin Culp was an American actor, scriptwriter, voice actor and director, widely known for his work in television. Culp first earned an international reputation for his role as Kelly Robinson on I Spy , the espionage series in which he and co-star Bill Cosby played a pair of secret agents...
and Bill Cosby
Bill Cosby
William Henry "Bill" Cosby, Jr. is an American comedian, actor, author, television producer, educator, musician and activist. A veteran stand-up performer, he got his start at various clubs, then landed a starring role in the 1960s action show, I Spy. He later starred in his own series, the...
, and others. She also appeared in the early 1960s in both the NBC medical drama
Medical drama
A medical drama is a television program, in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment.In the United States, most medical episodes are one hour long and, more often than not, are set in a hospital. Most current medical Dramatic programming go beyond the...
The Eleventh Hour
The Eleventh Hour (1962 TV series)
The Eleventh Hour is an American medical drama about psychiatry starring Wendell Corey, Jack Ging, and Ralph Bellamy, which aired sixty-two new episodes plus selected rebroadcasts on NBC from October 3, 1962, to September 9, 1964.-Series premise:...
and its ABC counterpart, Breaking Point.
Roman was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
at 6672 Hollywood Boulevard. for her contribution to television.
Partial filmography
- Jungle QueenJungle Queen (serial)Jungle Queen is a Universal movie serial.Material from this serial was re-edited into the feature film Jungle Safari .-Cast:*Edward Norris as Bob Elliot*Eddie Quillan as Chuck Kelly*Douglass Dumbrille as Lang, the Nazi villain...
(1945 serial) - Good SamGood SamGood Sam is a 1948 American romantic comedy-drama film starring Gary Cooper as a Good Samaritan who is helpful to others at the expense of his own family. The film was directed by Leo McCarey and produced by McCarey's production company, Rainbow Productions.-Cast:*Gary Cooper as Samuel R....
(1948) - The WindowThe WindowThe Window is a 1949 American black-and-white suspense film noir, based on the short story "The Boy Cried Murder" by Cornell Woolrich. The film, which was a critical success, was produced by Frederic Ullman, Jr. for $210,000 but earned much more, making it a box office hit for RKO Pictures...
(1949) - ChampionChampion (1949 film)Champion is an American film noir drama based on a short story by Ring Lardner. Filmed in black-and-white, it recounts the struggles of boxer "Midge" Kelly fighting his own demons while working to achieve success in the boxing ring. The drama was directed by Mark Robson, with cinematography by...
(1949) - Beyond the ForestBeyond the ForestBeyond the Forest is a 1949 American film, representative of the film noir genre. It was nominated for an Academy Award for best score.-Plot:...
(1949) - DallasDallas (film)Dallas is a 1950 American Western film starring Gary Cooper, Barbara Payton and Raymond Massey....
(1950) - Three SecretsThree SecretsThree Secrets is a 1950 film directed by Robert Wise. It stars Eleanor Parker and Patricia Neal.-Cast:*Eleanor Parker as Susan Adele Connors Chase*Patricia Neal as Phyllis Horn*Ruth Roman as Ann Lawrence*Frank Lovejoy as Bob Duffy...
(1950) - Colt .45Colt .45 (film)Colt .45 is a 1950 Western movie starring Randolph Scott as a pistol salesman/gunfighter and featuring Ruth Roman, Zachary Scott, Lloyd Bridges, and Alan Hale, Sr.. Sometimes known as Thundercloud, the film served as the loose basis for the television series Colt .45 seven years later. The...
(1950) - Tomorrow Is Another Day (1951)
- Strangers on a TrainStrangers on a Train (film)Strangers on a Train is an American psychological thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and based on the 1950 novel of the same name by Patricia Highsmith. It was shot in the autumn of 1950 and released by Warner Bros. on June 30, 1951. The film stars Farley Granger, Ruth Roman,...
(1951) - StarliftStarliftStarlift is an American musical film released by Warner Brothers in 1951, starring Janice Rule, Dick Wesson, Ron Hagerthy and Ruth Roman. The film was directed by Roy Del Ruth and written by Karl Lamb and John D. Klorer...
(1951) - Lightning Strikes Twice (1951)
- InvitationInvitation (film)Invitation is a 1952 melodrama starring Van Johnson and Dorothy McGuire as a happily married couple, until the wife learns a secret about her husband. The film was based on the short story "R.S.V.P." by Jerome Weidman.-Plot:...
(1952) - Young Man with IdeasYoung Man with IdeasYoung Man with Ideas is a film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and starring Ruth Roman and Glenn Ford. A young small-town lawyer played by Ford moves his family from the country to Los Angeles in the hope of passing the bar in California to ensure that his family can have a more prosperous...
(1952) - Mara Maru (1952)
- Blowing WildBlowing WildBlowing Wild is a 1953 film starring Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck, and Anthony Quinn in a love triangle set in a Latin American oilfield. Ruth Roman also stars and adds to the romantic entanglements....
(1953) - TanganyikaTanganyika (film)Tanganyika is a 1954 action adventure film directed by André De Toth and starring Van Heflin.-Plot synopsis:In 1903 Kenya, tough colonist John Gale is leading a safari to bring in escaped murderer Abel McCracken , who is stirring up the Nukumbi tribe and endangering Gale's holdings...
(1954) - The Far CountryThe Far CountryThe Far Country is a 1954 American western movie directed by Anthony Mann and starring James Stewart in their fourth western collaboration...
(1954) - Down Three Dark StreetsDown Three Dark StreetsDown Three Dark Streets is a 1954 documentary-style film noir, starring Broderick Crawford and directed by Arnold Laven. The screenplay was written by Gordon and Mildred Gordon, based on their novel Case File FBI.-Plot:...
(1954) - Great Day in the MorningGreat Day in the MorningGreat Day In The Morning is a 1956 film. It was directed by Jacques Tourneur and starring Robert Stack and Virginia Mayo, set in 1860s Denver.-Plot and overview:...
(1956) - Rebel In Town (1956)
- The Bottom of the BottleThe Bottom of the BottleThe Bottom of the Bottle is a 1956 American drama film based on the novel written by Georges Simenon during his stay in Nogales, Arizona. The novel was adapted for film by Sydney Boehm and directed by Henry Hathaway.-Plot:...
(1956) - 5 Steps to Danger5 Steps to Danger5 Steps to Danger is a 1957 American Cold War spy film. It was directed by Henry S. Kesler, and starred Ruth Roman and Sterling Hayden as traveling companions ensnared by secrets and enemy agents. Werner Klemperer, Richard Gaines, Charles Davis, and Jeanne Cooper co-starred. It was based on the...
(1957) - Amère victoire (UK title: Bitter VictoryBitter VictoryBitter Victory is a 1957 black and white French-American international co-production film shot in CinemaScope, directed by Nicholas Ray....
) (1957) - Look in Any WindowLook in Any WindowLook in Any Window is a black-and-white film starring Paul Anka, Gigi Perreau, and, in his film debut, Jack Cassidy. The film was directed by William Alland and released by Allied Artists.-Plot:...
(1961) - Love Has Many FacesLove Has Many FacesLove Has Many Faces is a 1965 drama film made by Columbia Pictures. The movie was directed by Alexander Singer, and written by Marguerite Roberts. Nancy Wilson sings the title song whilst Edith Head designed Lana Turner's clothes.-Plot:...
(1965) - The BabyThe Baby (film)The Baby is a 1973 Horror-thriller film, directed by Ted Post and was written by Abe Polsky.It stars Anjanette Comer, Ruth Roman, Marianna Hill, Susanne Zenor, and David Mooney. It tells the story of a social worker who investigates an eccentric family which includes "Baby", a 21-year-old man who...
(1973) - The Killing Kind (1973)
- Day of the AnimalsDay of the AnimalsThe Day of the Animals is a 1977 American horror film thriller directed by William Girdler and based on a story written by Edward L. Montoro...
(1977)