Suzanne Pleshette was an American actress, on
stageTheatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
,
screenA film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television.
After beginning her career in theatre, she began appearing in films in the early 1960s, such as
Rome AdventureRome Adventure, also known as Lovers Must Learn, is a 1962 romantic drama film, based on Irving Fineman's novel. It was directed by Delmer Daves and stars Troy Donahue, Angie Dickenson, and Suzanne Pleshette.-Plot:...
(1962) and
Alfred HitchcockSir 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...
's
The BirdsThe Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
(1963). She later appeared in various television productions, often in guest roles, and played the role of Emily Hartley on
The Bob Newhart ShowThe Bob Newhart Show is an American situation comedy produced by MTM Enterprises, which aired 142 original episodes on CBS from September 16, , to April 1, . Comedian Bob Newhart portrayed a psychologist having to deal with his patients and fellow office workers...
from 1972 until 1978, receiving
Emmy AwardAn Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nominations for her work.
She continued acting until 2004, and died from respiratory failure as a result of
lung cancerLung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
in 2008.
Early life
Pleshette was born in
Brooklyn HeightsBrooklyn Heights is a culturally diverse neighborhood within the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Originally referred to as 'Brooklyn Village', it has been a prominent area of Brooklyn since 1834. As of 2000, Brooklyn Heights sustained a population of 22,594 people. The neighborhood is part of...
, New York City, of
RussianThe Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
heritage. Her mother, Geraldine (
néeA married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Kaplan), was a dancer and artist who performed under the stage name Geraldine Rivers. Her father, Eugene Pleshette, was a stage manager, network executive and manager of the
Paramount TheaterThe Paramount Theatre is a former movie palace located at 1 University Plaza at the intersection of Flatbush and DeKalb Avenues in downtown Brooklyn, New York. Originally opened in 1928, the building has been owned by Long Island University since 1962...
in Brooklyn. She graduated from Manhattan's
High School of Performing ArtsThe High School of Performing Arts, more formally known as The School of Performing Arts: A Division of the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, informally known as "PA", was a public alternative high school in New York, New York, USA that existed from 1948 through...
and then attended
Syracuse UniversitySyracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
for one semester before transferring to
Finch CollegeFinch College was a baccalaureate women's college located in Manhattan, New York City, New York. It began as a finishing school for wealthy young women and later evolved into a liberal arts college...
.
Acting career
Reviewers described her appearance and demeanor as sardonic and her voice as sultry.
Pleshette began her career as a stage actress. She made her
BroadwayBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut in
Meyer LevinMeyer Levin was a Jewish-American novelist, known for works on the Leopold and Loeb case and the Anne Frank case.-Leopold and Loeb case:...
's 1957 play Compulsion, adapted from his novel inspired by the
Leopold and LoebNathan Freudenthal Leopold, Jr. and Richard Albert Loeb , more commonly known as "Leopold and Loeb", were two wealthy University of Michigan alumni and University of Chicago students who murdered 14-year-old Robert "Bobby" Franks in 1924 and were sentenced to life imprisonment.The duo were...
case. The following year she was in the debut of The Cold Wind and the Warm by
S. N. BehrmanSamuel Nathaniel Behrman was an American playwright and screenwriter, who also worked for the New York Times.-Early Years:...
at the
Shubert TheatreThe Shubert Theatre is a 1600-seat theatre located at 247 College Street in New Haven, Connecticut. Originally opened in 1914, it was designed by Albert Swazey, a New York architect and built by the H.E. Murdock Construction Company...
in New Haven, Connecticut, directed by
Harold ClurmanHarold Edgar Clurman was a visionary American theatre director and drama critic, "one of the most influential in the United States". He was most notable as one of the three founders of the New York City's Group Theatre...
and produced by
Robert WhiteheadRobert Whitehead was a theatre producer.His first production was Medea, starring Judith Anderson and John Gielgud, and he won the Critics' Circle Award five times,...
. In 1959 she was featured in the comedy Golden Fleecing starring
Constance FordConstance Ford was an American actress and model. She is best known for her long-running role as Ada Hobson on the daytime soap opera Another World.-Career:...
and
Tom PostonThomas Gordon "Tom" Poston was an American television and film actor. He starred on television in a career that began in 1950...
. (Poston would eventually would become her third husband.) That same year, she was one of two finalists for the role of Louise/Gypsy in the original production of Gypsy. During the run of The Cold Wind and the Warm she spent mornings taking
stripteaseA striptease is an erotic or exotic dance in which the performer gradually undresses, either partly or completely, in a seductive and sexually suggestive manner...
lessons from
Jerome RobbinsJerome Robbins was an American theater producer, director, and choreographer known primarily for Broadway Theater and Ballet/Dance, but who also occasionally directed films and directed/produced for television. His work has included everything from classical ballet to contemporary musical theater...
for the role in Gypsy. In his autobiography, the play's author Arthur Laurents states, "It came down to between Suzanne Pleshette and
Sandra ChurchSandra Church is an American actress in films and theatre, primarily known for her performance as Gypsy Rose Lee in the 1959 musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.- Early life :Church was born and raised in San...
. Suzanne was the better actress, but Sandra was the better singer. We went with Sandra." In February 1961, she replaced
Anne BancroftAnne Bancroft was an American actress associated with the Method acting school, which she had studied under Lee Strasberg....
opposite 14-year-old
Patty DukeAnna Marie "Patty" Duke is an American actress of stage, film, and television. First becoming famous as a child star, winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at age 16, and later starring in her eponymous sitcom for three years, she progressed to more mature roles upon playing Neely...
in
The Miracle WorkerThe Miracle Worker is a cycle of 20th century dramatic works derived from Helen Keller's autobiography The Story of My Life. Each of the various dramas describes the relationship between Keller—a deafblind and initially almost feral child—and Anne Sullivan, the teacher who introduced her to...
which debuted to rave reviews.
Pleshette's first screen role was in the episode "Night Rescue" (December 5, 1957) of the CBS
adventureAn adventure is defined as an exciting or unusual experience; it may also be a bold, usually risky undertaking, with an uncertain outcome. The term is often used to refer to activities with some potential for physical danger, such as skydiving, mountain climbing and or participating in extreme sports...
/
dramaDrama 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...
television series,
HarbourmasterHarbormaster is an American adventure/drama series that premiered on September 26, 1957 on CBS. In January 1958, the series was renamed Adventure at Scott Island and began airing on ABC. Harbormaster was a Ziv production .-Synopsis:The series stars Barry Sullivan as ship's captain and crime chaser...
, starring
Barry SullivanBarry Sullivan was an American movie actor who appeared in over 100 movies from the 1930s to the 1980s.Born in New York City, Sullivan fell into acting when in college playing semi-pro football...
and
Paul BurkePaul Burke was an American actor best known for his lead roles in two 1960s ABC television series, Naked City and Twelve O'Clock High...
. Her other early screen credits include
The Geisha BoyThe Geisha Boy is a 1958 American comedy film starring Jerry Lewis. Filmed from June 16 to August 7, 1958, it was released on December 23, 1958 by Paramount Pictures. This film marked the film debut of Suzanne Pleshette.-Plot:...
,
Rome AdventureRome Adventure, also known as Lovers Must Learn, is a 1962 romantic drama film, based on Irving Fineman's novel. It was directed by Delmer Daves and stars Troy Donahue, Angie Dickenson, and Suzanne Pleshette.-Plot:...
,
Fate Is the HunterFate Is the Hunter is a 1964 film about the crash of an airliner and the subsequent investigation released by 20th Century Fox. It was nominally based on the bestselling 1961 book of the same name by Ernest K. Gann, but the author was so disappointed with the result that he asked to have his name...
, and
Youngblood HawkeYoungblood Hawke is a novel by American writer Herman Wouk about the rise and fall of a young writer. It is based on the life of Thomas Wolfe.-Plot summary:...
, but she was most recognized at that time for her role of schoolteacher Annie Hayworth opposite
Tippi HedrenNathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren is an American actress and former fashion model with a career spanning six decades. She is primarily known for her roles in two Alfred Hitchcock films, The Birds and Marnie, and her extensive efforts in animal rescue at Shambala Preserve, an wildlife habitat which she...
in
Alfred HitchcockSir 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...
's classic suspense film
The BirdsThe Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
.
She later worked with
Steve McQueenTerrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
in the 1966
westernThe Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
drama film
Nevada SmithNevada Smith is a 1966 American Western film starring Steve McQueen and made by Embassy Pictures and Solar Productions, in association with and released by Paramount Pictures. The movie was produced and directed by Henry Hathaway with Joseph E...
, was nominated for a Laurel Award for her starring performance in the comedy
If It's Tuesday, This Must Be BelgiumIf It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium is a 1969 romantic comedy film made by Wolper Pictures and released by United Artists. It was directed by Mel Stuart, filmed on location throughout Europe, and features many cameo appearances from various stars....
opposite
Ian McShaneIan David McShane is an English actor, director, producer, voice artist, and comedian.Despite appearing in numerous films, McShane is best known for his television roles, particularly the BBC's Lovejoy and HBO's Western drama Deadwood...
, and co-starred with
James GarnerJames Garner is an American film and television actor, one of the first Hollywood actors to excel in both media. He has starred in several television series spanning a career of more than five decades...
in a pair of films, the drama
Mister BuddwingMister Buddwing is a 1966 American film drama starring James Garner, directed by Delbert Mann.It is the story of a well-dressed man who finds himself on a bench in Central Park with no idea of who he is...
and the western comedy Support Your Local Gunfighter.
Pleshette provided the voices of Yubaba and Zeniba in the
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
dub of Japanese director
Hayao Miyazakiis a Japanese manga artist and prominent film director and animator of many popular anime feature films. Through a career that has spanned nearly fifty years, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a maker of animated feature films and, along with Isao Takahata, co-founded Studio Ghibli,...
's Academy Award-winning film
Spirited Awayis a 2001 Japanese animated fantasy-adventure film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and produced by Studio Ghibli. The film tells the story of Chihiro Ogino, a sullen ten-year-old girl who, while moving to a new neighborhood and after her parents are transformed into pigs by the witch Yubaba,...
and the voice of Zira in Disney's
The Lion King II: Simba's PrideThe Lion King II: Simba's Pride is a 1998 American direct-to-video animated film released by Walt Disney Home Video on October 27, 1998. The film is the sequel to the 1994 Disney animated film The Lion King...
.
Television work
Her early television appearances included
Playhouse 90Playhouse 90 is an American television anthology series that was telecast on CBS from 1956 to 1960 for a total of 133 episodes. It originated from CBS Television City in Los Angeles, California...
, Have Gun – Will Travel,
One Step Beyond-Television:* Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond, an American anthology television series 1959-1961, hosted by John Newland* One Step Beyond , a program broadcast by Discovery Channel...
,
Alfred Hitchcock PresentsAlfred Hitchcock Presents is an American television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock. The series featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. By the premiere of the show on October 2, 1955, Hitchcock had been directing films for over three decades...
,
ChanningChanning is an American drama series that aired on American Broadcasting Company from September 18, 1963 to April 8, 1964...
,
Ben CaseyBen Casey is an American medical drama series which ran on ABC from 1961 to 1966. The show was known for its opening titles, which consisted of a hand drawing the symbols "♂, ♀, *, †, ∞" on a chalkboard, as cast member Sam Jaffe intoned, "Man, woman, birth, death, infinity." Neurosurgeon Joseph...
,
Naked CityNaked City is a police drama series which aired from 1958 to 1963 on the ABC television network. It was inspired by the 1948 motion picture of the same name, and mimics its dramatic "semi-documentary" format....
,
Wagon TrainWagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
, and
Dr. KildareDr. James Kildare is a fictional character, the primary character in a series of American theatrical films in the late 1930s and early 1940s, an early 1950s radio series, a 1960s television series of the same name and a comic book based on the TV show, and a short-lived 1970s television series...
, for which she was nominated for her first
Emmy AwardAn Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
. She guest-starred more than once as different characters in each of these 1960s TV series:
Route 66Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America. The show ran weekly on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It starred Martin Milner as Tod Stiles and, for two and a half seasons, George Maharis as Buz Murdock. Maharis was ill for much of the third season, during which time Tod...
,
The FugitiveThe Fugitive is an American drama series produced by QM Productions and United Artists Television that aired on ABC from 1963 to 1967. David Janssen stars as Richard Kimble, a doctor from the fictional town of Stafford, Indiana, who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder and given the death...
,
The InvadersThe Invaders, a Quinn Martin Production , is an ABC science fiction television program created by Larry Cohen that ran in the United States for two seasons, from January 10, 1967 to March 26, 1968...
,
The F.B.I.The F.B.I. is an American television series that was broadcast on ABC from 1965 to 1974. It was sponsored by the Ford Motor Company, and the characters almost always drove Ford vehicles in the series - indeed, this was a key point of Mad magazine's July 1971 satire of the series .-Synopsis:Produced...
, and
The Name of the Game"The Name of the Game" is a 1977 song by Swedish pop group ABBA, and was released as the first single from the group's fifth studio album, The Album...
.
Pleshette was one of the stars of the popular CBS sitcom
The Bob Newhart ShowThe Bob Newhart Show is an American situation comedy produced by MTM Enterprises, which aired 142 original episodes on CBS from September 16, , to April 1, . Comedian Bob Newhart portrayed a psychologist having to deal with his patients and fellow office workers...
(1972–1978) for all six seasons, and was nominated twice for the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. She reprised her role of Emily Hartley in the memorable final episode of a subsequent comedy series,
NewhartNewhart is a television situation comedy starring comedian Bob Newhart and actress Mary Frann as an author and wife who owned and operated an inn located in a small, rural Vermont town that was home to many eccentric characters. The show aired on the CBS network from October 25, 1982 to May 21, 1990...
, in which viewers discovered that the entire series had been her husband Bob's dream when he awakens next to Pleshette in the bedroom set from the earlier series.
Her 1984
situation comedyA situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
, Suzanne Pleshette is Maggie Briggs, was canceled after seven episodes. In 1989, she played the role of Christine Broderick in the NBC drama, Nightingales, which only lasted one season. In 1990, Pleshette portrayed
ManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
hotelA hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
ier
Leona HelmsleyLeona Mindy Roberts Helmsley was an American businesswoman and real estate entrepreneur. She was a flamboyant personality and had a reputation for tyrannical behavior that earned her the nickname Queen of Mean...
in the television movie Leona Helmsley: The Queen of Mean, which garnered her Emmy and
Golden Globe AwardThe Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
nominations. In addition, she starred opposite
Hal LindenHal Linden is an American stage and television actor and television director, best known for his role in the television comedy series Barney Miller and as presenter on the ABC educational series Animals, Animals, Animals....
in the 1994 sitcom
The Boys Are BackThe Boys Are Back is a short-lived television sitcom that was shown on the American network CBS in 1994. It starred Suzanne Pleshette and Hal Linden as parents Jackie and Fred Hansen. The show was broadcast on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern time....
.
She had a recurring role in
Good Morning, MiamiGood Morning, Miami is a sitcom which ran from 2002 to 2004 on NBC. Created by David Kohan and Max Mutchnick, the show focused on the personal and professional life of Jake, the executive producer of the lowest-rated morning show in the country, based in Miami.Though unsuccessful and unacclaimed,...
, as
Mark Feuerstein-Career:Feuerstein got his break-through on television as a recurring character on the daytime soap opera Loving. When director Nancy Meyers was casting What Women Want, her daughter recognized Feuerstein from Practical Magic and insisted that her mother cast him...
's grandmother Claire Arnold and played the mother of
Katey SagalCatherine Louise "Katey" Sagal is an American actress and singer-songwriter. She first achieved widespread fame as Peggy Bundy on the long-running Fox comedy series Married.....
's character in the ABC sitcom
8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter8 Simple Rules is an American sitcom that originally aired on ABC from September 17, 2002, to April 15, 2005, with 76 episodes produced over three seasons. It is based on the self-improvement book of the same name. The show starred John Ritter until his death on September 11, 2003...
following
John RitterJonathan Southworth "John" Ritter was an American actor, voice over artist and comedian perhaps best known for having played Jack Tripper and Paul Hennessy in the ABC sitcoms Three's Company and 8 Simple Rules, respectively...
's death, and appeared as the estranged mother of
Megan MullallyMegan Mullally is an American actress and singer.After working in the theatre in Chicago, Mullally moved to Los Angeles in 1985 and began to appear in supporting roles in film and television productions. She made her Broadway debut in Grease in 1994 and she has since appeared in several Broadway...
's character
Karen WalkerKaren Walker is a fictional character on the American television sitcom Will & Grace . She was portrayed by actress and singer Megan Mullally...
in three episodes of
Will & GraceWill & Grace was an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 21, 1998 to May 18, 2006 for a total of eight seasons. Will & Grace remains the most successful television series with gay principal characters...
. The role would prove to be her last.
Tonight Show with Johnny Carson
A native New Yorker, Suzanne Pleshette had already experienced a full career on stage and screen by 1971 when TV producers saw her on
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny CarsonThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is a talk show hosted by Johnny Carson under the Tonight Show franchise from 1962 to 1992. It originally aired during late-night....
, and they noticed a certain chemistry between Suzanne and another guest,
Bob NewhartGeorge Robert Newhart , known professionally as Bob Newhart, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Noted for his deadpan and slightly stammering delivery, Newhart came to prominence in the 1960s when his album of comedic monologues The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart was a worldwide...
. She was soon cast as wife to Newhart’s character, and the series ran for six seasons from 1972 to 1978 as part of CBS television's Saturday night lineup. Pleshette's down-to-earth but elegant manner was caught during an anecdote that Carson was relating to her about working with a farm tractor in
NebraskaNebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. When he asked her, "Have you ever ridden on a tractor?" she replied smoothly, "Johnny, I've never even been in a
ChevroletChevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
."
Personal life
Pleshette's 1964 marriage to her Rome Adventure and
A Distant TrumpetA Distant Trumpet is a 1964 American Western film, the last directed by Raoul Walsh. It stars Troy Donahue, Suzanne Pleshette and Diane McBain....
co-star
Troy DonahueTroy Donahue was an American actor, who was active between the late 1950s and late 1990s.-Life and career:...
ended acrimoniously after just eight months. Her second husband was
TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
oilman Tom Gallagher, to whom she was wed from 1968 until his death from
lung cancerLung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
on January 21, 2000. She suffered a miscarriage during her marriage to Gallagher, and the couple were childless. Asked about children in an October 2000 interview, Pleshette stated: "I certainly would have liked to have had Tommy’s children. But my nurturing instincts are fulfilled in other ways. I have a large extended family; I'm the mother on every set. So if this is my particular karma, that's fine." In 2001, she married Bob Newhart's former Newhart co-star
Tom PostonThomas Gordon "Tom" Poston was an American television and film actor. He starred on television in a career that began in 1950...
. They were married until his death from respiratory failure in Los Angeles on April 30, 2007.
She was the cousin of the actor
John PleshetteJohn Pleshette is an American actor, perhaps best known for being an original cast member of the long-running primetime television drama Knots Landing playing Richard Avery...
.
Illness and death
On August 11, 2006, her agent Joel Dean announced that Pleshette was being treated for
lung cancerLung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
at
Cedars-Sinai Medical CenterOriginally established as Kaspare Cohn Hospital in 1902, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, tertiary 958-bed hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre located in Los Angeles, California, US. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over...
. On August 14, 2006, New York Newsday reported that Dean claimed the cancer was the size of "a grain of sand" when it was found during a routine
X-rayX-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
, that the cancer was "caught very much in time," that she was receiving
chemotherapyChemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
as an outpatient, and that Pleshette was "in good spirits." She was later hospitalized for a pulmonary infection and developed pneumonia, causing her to be hospitalized for an extended period. She arrived at a Bob Newhart Show cast reunion in September 2007 in a wheelchair, causing concern about her health, although she insisted that she was "cancer free" (she was seated in a regular chair during the actual telecast). During an interview in
USA TodayUSA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
given at the time of the reunion, Pleshette stated that she had been released four days earlier from the hospital where, as part of her cancer treatment, a part of one of her lungs had been removed.
Pleshette died in the early evening of January 19, 2008, of respiratory failure at her Los Angeles home. She was 70 years old, twelve days short of her 71st birthday. She received her star on the
Hollywood Walk of FameThe 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...
for Television on January 31, 2008. On the January 22 edition of
Entertainment TonightEntertainment Tonight is a daily tabloid television entertainment television news show that is syndicated by CBS Television Distribution throughout the United States, Canada and in many countries around the world. Linda Bell Blue is currently the program's executive producer...
, her former co-star and longtime friend
Marcia WallaceMarcia Karen Wallace is an American character actress, comedienne and game show panelist, primarily known for her roles in television situation comedies...
announced she would be attending the ceremony on Pleshette's behalf. Pleshette received the walk's 2,355th star. Bob Newhart,
Arte JohnsonArthur Stanton Eric "Arte" Johnson is an American comic actor. Johnson was a regular on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. His best-remembered "character" was that of a German soldier with the catchphrase: "Verrrry interesting, but...['stupid', 'not very funny', and other variations]".-Early life:Johnson...
, and Marcia Wallace spoke at the star's unveiling, which had been planned before Pleshette's death.
Tina SinatraChristina "Tina" Sinatra is the youngest child of Frank Sinatra and his first wife, Nancy Barbato Sinatra. Christina's parents divorced when she was three years old...
accepted the star on Pleshette's behalf. Others in attendance included Rod Taylor,
Peter FalkPeter Michael Falk was an American actor, best known for his role as Lieutenant Columbo in the television series Columbo...
,
Dick Van DykeRichard Wayne "Dick" Van Dyke is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer with a career spanning six decades. He is the older brother of Jerry Van Dyke, and father of Barry Van Dyke...
and
Tippi HedrenNathalie Kay "Tippi" Hedren is an American actress and former fashion model with a career spanning six decades. She is primarily known for her roles in two Alfred Hitchcock films, The Birds and Marnie, and her extensive efforts in animal rescue at Shambala Preserve, an wildlife habitat which she...
, her co-star from
The BirdsThe Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
.
Her remains were interred at
Hillside Memorial Park CemeteryThe Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary is a Jewish cemetery located at 6001 West Centinela Avenue, in Culver City, California, USA. Many Jewish people from the entertainment industry are buried here.-Notable interments:*Irving Aaronson, composer...
in
Culver City, CaliforniaCulver City is a city in western Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 38,883, up from 38,816 at the 2000 census. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Culver...
.
Feature films
| Year |
Film |
Role |
Notes |
| 1958 |
The Geisha Boy The Geisha Boy is a 1958 American comedy film starring Jerry Lewis. Filmed from June 16 to August 7, 1958, it was released on December 23, 1958 by Paramount Pictures. This film marked the film debut of Suzanne Pleshette.-Plot:...
|
Sgt. Betty Pearson |
First feature film In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
|
| 1962 |
Rome Adventure Rome Adventure, also known as Lovers Must Learn, is a 1962 romantic drama film, based on Irving Fineman's novel. It was directed by Delmer Daves and stars Troy Donahue, Angie Dickenson, and Suzanne Pleshette.-Plot:...
|
Prudence Bell |
|
| 40 Pounds of Trouble 40 Pounds of Trouble is a 1962 film directed by Norman Jewison that marks his directorial debut. The film was shot on location at Disneyland and Lake Tahoe. It is a retelling of Damon Runyon's story Little Miss Marker.-Principal cast:...
|
Chris Lockwood |
|
| 1963 |
The BirdsThe Birds is a 1963 horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock based on the 1952 short story "The Birds" by Daphne du Maurier. It depicts Bodega Bay, California which is, suddenly and for unexplained reasons, the subject of a series of widespread and violent bird attacks over the course of a few...
|
Annie Hayworth |
Supporting role in an Alfred HitchcockSir 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...
film
Won — Laurel Award – Top New Female PersonalityThe Laurel Awards were cinema awards to honor pictures, actors, actresses, directors and composers. This award was created by Motion Picture Exhibitor magazine, and ran from 1958 to 1968, then 1970 and 1971....
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress |
| Wall of Noise |
Laura Rubio |
|
| 1964 |
A Distant Trumpet A Distant Trumpet is a 1964 American Western film, the last directed by Raoul Walsh. It stars Troy Donahue, Suzanne Pleshette and Diane McBain....
|
Kitty Mainwarring |
|
| Youngblood Hawke Youngblood Hawke is a novel by American writer Herman Wouk about the rise and fall of a young writer. It is based on the life of Thomas Wolfe.-Plot summary:...
|
Jeanne Greene |
|
| Fate Is the Hunter Fate Is the Hunter is a 1964 film about the crash of an airliner and the subsequent investigation released by 20th Century Fox. It was nominally based on the bestselling 1961 book of the same name by Ernest K. Gann, but the author was so disappointed with the result that he asked to have his name...
|
Martha Webster |
|
| 1965 |
A Rage to Live A Rage to Live is a 1965 American drama film directed by Walter Grauman and starring Suzanne Pleshette as a woman whose passions wreak havoc on her life. The screenplay by John T. Kelley is based on the 1949 novel of the same name by John O'Hara.-Plot:...
|
Grace Caldwell Tate |
|
| 1966 |
The Ugly Dachshund The Ugly Dachshund is a 1966 Walt Disney Productions feature film starring Dean Jones and Suzanne Pleshette in a story about a Great Dane who believes he's a dachshund. Based on a 1938 novel by Gladys Bronwyn Stern, the film was written by Albert Aley and directed by Norman Tokar...
|
Fran Garrison |
|
| Nevada Smith Nevada Smith is a 1966 American Western film starring Steve McQueen and made by Embassy Pictures and Solar Productions, in association with and released by Paramount Pictures. The movie was produced and directed by Henry Hathaway with Joseph E...
|
Pilar |
|
| Mister Buddwing Mister Buddwing is a 1966 American film drama starring James Garner, directed by Delbert Mann.It is the story of a well-dressed man who finds himself on a bench in Central Park with no idea of who he is...
|
Fiddle Corwin |
|
| 1967 |
The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin is a 1967 Technicolor drama film directed by James Neilson, based on the novel By the Great Horn Spoon by Sid Fleischman, starring Roddy McDowall, Suzanne Pleshette and Karl Malden. Roddy McDowall plays Griffin, the very proper butler of Bostonian Jack Flagg...
|
Arabella Flagg |
|
| 1968 |
Blackbeard's Ghost Blackbeard's Ghost is a 1968 live-action fantasy comedy Disney film starring Peter Ustinov, Dean Jones, and Suzanne Pleshette, directed by Robert Stevenson. It is based upon the novel of the same name by Ben Stahl and was shot in Walt Disney Studios. The Disney Channel aired this film until the...
|
Jo-Anne Baker |
|
| The Power The Power is a 1968 film based on the science fiction novel The Power by Frank M. Robinson. It stars George Hamilton and Suzanne Pleshette.-Plot:...
|
Prof. Margery Lansing |
|
| 1969 |
Target: Harry Target: Harry is a 1969 thriller film directed by Roger Corman....
|
Diane Reed |
|
| If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium is a 1969 romantic comedy film made by Wolper Pictures and released by United Artists. It was directed by Mel Stuart, filmed on location throughout Europe, and features many cameo appearances from various stars....
|
Samantha Perkins |
Nominated — Laurel Award – Female
Comedy PerformanceThe Laurel Awards were cinema awards to honor pictures, actors, actresses, directors and composers. This award was created by Motion Picture Exhibitor magazine, and ran from 1958 to 1968, then 1970 and 1971....
|
| 1970 |
Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came? |
Ramona |
|
| 1971 |
Support Your Local Gunfighter |
Patience |
|
| 1976 |
The Shaggy D.A. The Shaggy D.A. is a 1976 film sequel to 1959's The Shaggy Dog by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait, based on the original film and inspired by the long out-of-print Felix Salten novel, The Hound of Florence.It starred Dean Jones as the adult...
|
Betty Daniels |
|
| 1979 |
Hot Stuff Hot Stuff is a 1979 comedy film that starred Dom DeLuise, Suzanne Pleshette, Jerry Reed and Ossie Davis. Along with acting in the title, Dom DeLuise also directed the movie...
|
Louise Webster |
|
| 1980 |
Oh, God! Book II Oh, God! Book II is a 1980 comedy film which is a sequel to the 1977 film, Oh, God!. It stars George Burns, Suzanne Pleshette, David Birney and Louanne Sirota.-Synopsis:...
|
Paula Richards |
|
| 1989 |
The Queen of mean |
Leona Helmsley |
|
| 1998 |
The Lion King II: Simba's PrideThe Lion King II: Simba's Pride is a 1998 American direct-to-video animated film released by Walt Disney Home Video on October 27, 1998. The film is the sequel to the 1994 Disney animated film The Lion King...
|
Zira (voice) |
Nominated — Annie Award – Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting |
| 2001 |
Spirited Away is a 2001 Japanese animated fantasy-adventure film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and produced by Studio Ghibli. The film tells the story of Chihiro Ogino, a sullen ten-year-old girl who, while moving to a new neighborhood and after her parents are transformed into pigs by the witch Yubaba,...
|
Yubaba / Zeniba (voice) |
|
Television films
| Year |
Film |
Role |
Notes |
| 1959 |
Summer of Decision |
Susan |
First television movie A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
|
| 1967 |
Wings of Fire |
Kitty Sanborn |
|
| 1968 |
Flesh and Blood |
Nona |
|
| 1970 |
Along Came a Spider |
Anne Banning / Janet Furie |
|
| Hunters Are for Killing |
Barbara Soline |
|
| 1971 |
River of Gold |
Anna |
|
| In Broad Daylight |
Kate Todd |
|
| 1975 |
The Legend of Valentino |
June Mathis |
|
| 1976 |
Law and Order |
Karen Day |
|
| Richie Brockelman: The Missing 24 Hours |
Elizabeth Morton |
|
| 1978 |
Kate Bliss and the Ticker Tape Kid |
Kate Bliss |
|
| 1979 |
Flesh & Blood |
Kate Fallon |
|
| 1980 |
If Things Were Different |
Janet Langford |
|
| 1981 |
The Star Maker |
Margot Murray |
|
| 1982 |
Help Wanted: Male |
Laura Bingham |
|
| Fantasies |
Carla Webber |
|
| 1983 |
Dixie: Changing Habits |
Dixie Cabot |
|
| One Cooks, the Other Doesn't |
Joanne Boone |
|
| 1984 |
For Love or Money |
Joanna Piper |
|
| 1985 |
Bridges to Cross |
Tracy Bridges |
|
| The Belarus File |
Dana Sutton |
|
| 1987 |
A Stranger Waits |
Kate Bennington |
|
| 1988 |
Alone in the Neon Jungle |
Capt. Janet Hamilton |
|
| 1990 |
Leona Helmsley: The Queen of Mean |
Leona Helmsley |
Based on the life of hotel magnate Leona HelmsleyLeona Mindy Roberts Helmsley was an American businesswoman and real estate entrepreneur. She was a flamboyant personality and had a reputation for tyrannical behavior that earned her the nickname Queen of Mean...
Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1992 |
Battling for Baby |
Marie Peters |
|
| 1993 |
A Twist of the Knife |
Dr. Rachel Walters |
|
Television series
- Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
- One Step Beyond, "Delusion" (1959)
- Route 66
Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America. The show ran weekly on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It starred Martin Milner as Tod Stiles and, for two and a half seasons, George Maharis as Buz Murdock. Maharis was ill for much of the third season, during which time Tod...
, "The Strengthening Angels" (1960)
- Target: The Corruptors!
Target: The Corruptors! is a 35-episode crime drama starring Stephen McNally as newspaper reporter Paul Marino, which aired on ABC from September 29, 1961 to June 8, 1962. The character Jack Flood, Marino's undercover agent, was portrayed by Robert Harland...
(1962)
- The Invaders
The Invaders, a Quinn Martin Production , is an ABC science fiction television program created by Larry Cohen that ran in the United States for two seasons, from January 10, 1967 to March 26, 1968...
, "The Mutation" (1967), "The Pursued" (1968)
- It Takes a Thief, "A Sour Note" (1968)
- Columbo (1971)
- The Bob Newhart Show
The Bob Newhart Show is an American situation comedy produced by MTM Enterprises, which aired 142 original episodes on CBS from September 16, , to April 1, . Comedian Bob Newhart portrayed a psychologist having to deal with his patients and fellow office workers...
(1972–1978)
- Kojak
Kojak is an American television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, bald New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theo Kojak. It aired from October 24, 1973, to March 18, 1978, on CBS. It took the time slot of the popular Cannon series, which was moved one hour earlier...
, "The Belarus File" (1985)
- Nightingales (1989)
- Newhart
Newhart is a television situation comedy starring comedian Bob Newhart and actress Mary Frann as an author and wife who owned and operated an inn located in a small, rural Vermont town that was home to many eccentric characters. The show aired on the CBS network from October 25, 1982 to May 21, 1990...
, "The Last Newhart" (1990)
- The Boys Are Back (1994)
- Good Morning, Miami
Good Morning, Miami is a sitcom which ran from 2002 to 2004 on NBC. Created by David Kohan and Max Mutchnick, the show focused on the personal and professional life of Jake, the executive producer of the lowest-rated morning show in the country, based in Miami.Though unsuccessful and unacclaimed,...
(2002–2003)
- 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter
8 Simple Rules is an American sitcom that originally aired on ABC from September 17, 2002, to April 15, 2005, with 76 episodes produced over three seasons. It is based on the self-improvement book of the same name. The show starred John Ritter until his death on September 11, 2003...
(2003)
- Will and Grace (2002–2004)
External links