Agnes Robertson Moorehead (December 6, 1900 - April 30, 1974) was an American actress whose career for six decades included working on radio, stage, film and television. For the current audience, he is best known for his role as Endora on the Bewitched television series, but he also has an important role in the film, including Citizen Kane , Magnificent Ambersons i>, All i Heaven Allows Show Boat , and Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte .
Moorehead rarely played a major role, but his skills in character development and reach earned him one Emmy Primetime Award and two Golden Globe awards in addition to four Academy Awards and six Emmy Award nominations. His transition to television won praise for drama and comedy. He can play a variety of types, but often portrays a haughty and arrogant character.
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Agnes Robertson Moorehead was born on December 6, 1900 in Clinton, Massachusetts, the daughter of former singer Mildred McCauley, 1883-1990 and Presbyterian pastor John Henderson Moorehead (1869-1938). He is of British, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh ancestry. Moorehead later claimed that he was born in 1906 to look younger for acting. He remembers that he made his first public show at the age of three, when he read the Lord's Prayer in his father's church. The family moved to St. Louis, Missouri, and his ambition to become a "very strong" actress. Her mother indulged her active imagination, often asking, "Who are you today, Agnes?" while Moorehead and his sister Peggy (born Margaret Ann; 1906-1929) were involved in mimicry. It involves coming to the dining table and imitating their parish's parishioners. They are more driven by an amused reaction. Moorehead rarely talks about his brother after his sudden death at the age of 23.
As a young woman, Moorehead joins the City Opera Company choir. Louis, known as "The Muny". In addition to his interest in acting, he developed a lifelong interest in religion; in later years, actors like Dick Sargent remember that Moorehead arrived on set with "The Bible in one hand and the writing in the other."
Moorehead always said that he graduated from High School in St. Louis in 1918. However, he did not appear in the Central High School yearbook while he appeared in the Soldan High School yearbook. He lives near the Soldan College on Union Boulevard; he did not live near the Upper Secondary School on Grand Avenue and Bell. Although his father did not downplay his acting ambitions, he insisted that he get a formal education. Moorehead earned a bachelor's degree in 1923, majoring in biology at Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio. While there, he also appeared on stage plays. He received an honorary doctorate in literature from Muskingum in 1947, and served for a year on his supervisory board. When his family moved to Reedsburg, Wisconsin, he taught public school for five years in Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin, while he also got a master's degree in English and public speaking at the University of Wisconsin (now University of Wisconsin-Madison). He then pursued graduate studies at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, from which he graduated with honors in 1929. Moorehead received an honorary doctorate from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois.
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Careers
Moorehead's early career was not steady, and although he could find stage work, he was often unemployed. She then remembers going away four days without food, and says that it has taught her "the value of a dollar". He found a job on the radio and was in great demand, often working on several programs in one day. He believes that it offers excellent training and allows him to develop his voice to create various characters. Moorehead meets actress Helen Hayes, who encourages her to enter the film, but her first attempt fails. When he is rejected for not being "the right type", Moorehead returns to the radio.
Mercury Theater
In 1937, Moorehead joined Orson Welles' Mercury Players, as one of his main players with Joseph Cotten. (In an appearance on The Dick Cavett Show on February 19, 1973, he revealed that, in 1922, he happened to meet Welles (fifteen years younger) when he was seven years old at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.) He appeared on the radio adaptation of The Mercury Theater on the Air, and has a regular role contrary to Welles in The Shadow series as Margo Path. In 1939, Welles moved the Mercury Theater to Hollywood, where he began working for RKO Pictures. Some of his radio players joined him, and Moorehead made his film debut as the mother of his own character, Charles Foster Kane, in Citizen Kane (1941), considered by most film critics as one of the best. movies ever made. Moorehead was featured in the second film Welles, The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), and received the New York Film Critics Award and an Academy Award nomination for his performance. He also appeared in Journey Into Fear (1943), a Mercury film production.
Moorehead received positive reviews for her performance at Mrs. Parkington as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress and Academy Award nomination. Moorehead played another powerful role on The Big Street (1942) with Henry Fonda and Lucille Ball, and later appeared in two films that failed to find the audience, Government Girl (1943)) with Olivia de Havilland and The Youngest Profession (1944) with teenager Virginia Weidler.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
In the mid-1940s, Moorehead became a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player, negotiating a $ 6,000-a-week contract with the provision to perform also on radio, an unusual clause at the time. Moorehead explains that MGM usually refuses to let their actors play on the radio as "the actors have no knowledge or taste or judgment to perform at the right show." In 1943-1944, Moorehead described "poor housekeeper, Mrs. Mullet", who always offered her "sweets", in Mutual Radio's The Adventures of Leonidas Witherall; he inaugurated the role on CBS Radio.
Throughout his career, Moorehead skillfully portrays puritan mothers, neurotic spinners, possessive mothers, and cute secretaries. She plays Parthy Hawks, wife of Kap'n Andy and mother of Magnolia, in a 1951 MGM hit remake of Show Boat . She's also on Dark Passage and Since You Went Away. Moorehead was in the production of Broadway Don Juan in Hell in 1951-1952, and Lord Pengo in 1962-1963.
Radio
In his first radio role, Moorehead appeared as a substitute for Dorothy Denvir's role as Min Gump in The Gumps. During the 1940s and 1950s, Moorehead was one of the most requested actresses for radio dramas, especially on the CBS Suspense show. During the 946-episode-run of Suspense, Moorehead plays a role in more episodes than any other actor or actress. She is often introduced on the show as "the mother of Suspense ". The most successful Moorehead appearance on Suspense is in the Sorry Sorry, The Wrong Number, written by Lucille Fletcher, broadcast on May 18, 1943. Moorehead plays a selfish and neurotic woman who overhears it. the planned killing by crossed phone cord and finally realizing that he was the intended victim. She re-made her appearance six times for Suspense and several times on other radio shows, always using her original script, a script marked with a dog. In 1952, he recorded a drama album, and featured scenes from the story in a one-woman show in the 1950s. Barbara Stanwyck played a role in the 1948 film version.
In 1941, Moorehead played Maggie in the short-lived Bringing Up Father program on Blue Network. From 1942 to 1949, Moorehead played the role of mayor's housekeeper in the Mayor City radio version. She also starred in The Amazing Mrs. Danberry, a sitcom on CBS in 1946. Moorehead's title character is described as "the living widow of a department store owner who has a tongue as sharp as a hat and heart as warm as summer." Moorehead plays one of his last roles on the 6th January 1974, as Ny. There is Canby in the ironic title entitled "The Old Ones Are Hard to Kill" the inaugural episode of CBS Radio Mystery Theater.
1950s 1960 Movies
In the 1950s, Moorehead continued to work in films and appeared on stage throughout the country. His roles include Shaw's national tour Don Juan in Hell, starring Charles Boyer, Charles Laughton, and Cedric Hardwicke, and the new Pinky's pre-Broadway musical engagement. She appeared as Mrs. Snow the hypochondriac in Disney's hit movie Pollyanna (1960). She starred with Bette Davis, Olivia De Havilland, Mary Astor, and Joseph Cotten at Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964) as Velma's maid, the role she nominated for the Best Academy Award for Supporting Actress.
Television
In 1959, Moorehead guests starred in many series, including The Rebel and Alcoa Theater. Her role in the radio drama Sorry, Number One the author was inspired by the CBS The Twilight Zone television series for the episode script with Moorehead in mind. In "The Invaders" (broadcasted January 27, 1961), Moorehead plays a woman whose isolated farm is plagued by a mysterious intruder. In Sorry, The Number is Wrong, Moorehead offers a famous bravura show using only his voice, and for "The Invaders", he is offered a script where he has no dialogue at all.
Moorehead also has guest roles in Channing , Custer , Rawhide in "Incident in Poco Tiempo" as Sister Frances, and The Rifleman . On February 10, 1967, she described Miss Emma Valentine in "The Night of the Vicious Valentine" at Wild Wild West, a show she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actress Support in Drama Series.
Tinned
In 1964, Moorehead accepted the role of Endora, Samantha's cruel mother (Elizabeth Montgomery), a whiny mother in the Bewitched sitcom . He then remarks that he did not expect him to succeed and that he finally felt trapped by his success. However, he negotiated to appear in just eight of every 12 episodes made, allowing sufficient time to pursue other projects. He also feels that writing on television is often substandard and ignores many Bewitched scripts as a "hack" in a 1965 interview for TV Guide. That role gave him a degree of recognition that he had never received before because Bewitched was in the top 10 programs for the first few years of airing.
Moorehead received six Emmy Award nominations, but was quick to remind the interviewer that he has enjoyed a long and distinguished career. Despite his ambivalence, he remained with Bewitched until his escape ended in 1972. He commented to the New York Times in 1974, "I've been in the movies and playing the theater from the coast to beach, so I'm pretty well-known before being bewitched, and I do not want to be identified as a witch. "Later that year, he said he enjoyed playing the role, but it was not challenging and the show itself" not fascinating ", despite its flamboyant and colorful characters interesting for children. She expresses her fondness for the star of Elizabeth Montgomery's show and says she enjoys working with her. Co-star Dick Sargent, who in 1969 replaced ailing Dick York because Samantha's husband, Darrin Stephens, had a more difficult relationship with Moorehead, describing him as a "hard old bird".
In the fall of 1964, Moorehead participated in a five-minute commercial venue featuring players from Bonanza and Bewitched announcing the new Chevrolet line of 1965. Moorehead featured with Dan Blocker extolling the new virtues of ' 65 Chevy II.
Next year
In 1970, Moorehead emerged as a dying woman who haunted her own home in the early Certain Shadows on the Wall episode of Certain Shadows on the Wall. He also changed his role on Don Juan in Hell on Broadway and on tour, with an all-star cast featuring Edward Mulhare, Ricardo Montalban, and Paul Henreid.
Moorehead is also remembered providing a friendly Mother Goose voice in the Hanna-Barbera adaptation of 1973 from E. B. White's Charlotte's Web children.
For the 1973 Broadway adaptation of Teeth , Moorehead played Aunt Alicia and performed a variety of songs, including "Contracts" for recording original players. He fell ill during production, forcing Arlene Francis to succeed him. Moorehead died shortly afterwards.
Three months before his death in January 1974, Moorehead appeared in two episodes (including the first) of the CBS Radio Mystery Theater, a popular series produced by the ancient radio master Himan Brown.
Personal life
Wedding
In 1930, Moorehead married actor John Griffith Lee; they divorced in 1952. Moorehead and Lee adopted an orphan named Sean in 1949, but it remains unclear whether the adoption is legitimate. Moorehead raised Sean until he ran away from home. She married actor Robert Gist in 1954, and they divorced in 1958.
Sexuality
Moorehead's sexuality has been the subject of speculation. A number of articles appearing in magazines in alternative media have identified themselves as lesbians. Paul Lynde, sometimes Moorehead's co-star on Bewitched, states: "Well, the whole world knows Agnes is a lesbian - I mean classy, ​​but one of Hollywood's embankments of all time". Reporter Boze Hadleigh reported an incident, also sourced from Lynde, where, when he arrested one of her husbands having an affair, "Agnes yells at her that if she can have a mistress, she can too." In an interview, Moorehead is reported to have acknowledged his same-sex orientation while he identified a number of other Hollywood actresses who "enjoy lesbian or bi relationships."
Moorehead's close friend, Debbie Reynolds stated that Moorehead is not a lesbian. Reynolds's autobiography mentions the rumor and states that it was started by one of Moorehead's husbands during their divorce. Moorehead's old friend and producer Paul Gregory concurred in the assessment. Quint Benedetti, a longtime gay Moorehead employee, also claimed that Moorehead was not a lesbian and linked the story to Lynde's rumor.
Politics
Moorehead rarely spoke publicly of his political beliefs, but he supported Franklin Roosevelt (he described Eleanor Roosevelt several times during his career) and also a close friend of Ronald Reagan for his title in 1966 for the governor of California.
Death
Moorehead died of uterine cancer on April 30, 1974 in Rochester, Minnesota, aged 73 years. The only survivor was a mother, Mildred, who died in 1990, aged 106 years.
Moorehead was buried at the Dayton Memorial Park in Dayton, Ohio. In 1994, he was posthumously appointed to the St. Louis Walk of Fame.
The Touchdown Tavern di Reedsburg, Wisconsin, membuka Agnes Moorehead Lounge, memamerkan memorabilia.
Moorehead left $ 25,000 to Muskingum College, with instructions to finance one or more "Agnes Moorehead Scholarships". He also left half of his manuscript to Muskingum with the other half going to the University of Wisconsin. His family's Ohio farm went to John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, along with his Bible collection and biblical materials.
Her mother, Mildred, received all of Moorehead's clothing and jewelry, and Moorehead made provision to support Mildred for the rest of her life. The Beverly Hills home was handed over to her lawyer Franklin Rohner, along with the furniture and private property inside. Small heritage is made for friends and household staff along with some charitable donations. In his will, he made no provision for Sean, John Griffith Lee, whom he suspected had been adopted, and would declare that he was "childless, natural or adopted, alive or dead".
Movieography
Radio credits
Moorehead appeared in hundreds of individual broadcasts throughout the radio career that spanned from 1926 to his last two appearances, at the CBS Radio Mystery Theater in 1974.
Theater
Moorehead began appearing on stage during his training at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He appeared in seven productions as a student. He continued acting in the theater throughout his career until just a few months before his death.
References
Further reading
- Lynn Kear, Agnes Moorehead: Bio-Bibliography . (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1992). ISBNÃ, 0-313-28155-6
- Warren Sherk, Agnes Moorehead: A Very Personal Person . (Philadelphia: Dorrance, 1976). ISBNÃ, 0-8059-2317-9
- Charles Tranberg, Like Illusions: Life and Career Agnes Moorehead (Albany, Georgia: BearManor Media, 2005) ISBNÃ, 1-59393-029-1
External links
- Agnes Moorehead on the Broadway Internet Database
- Agnes Moorehead on IMDb
- A guide to over 100,000 Moorehead documents covering 1923-1974 at the Wisconsin Historical Society
- The Georgia Johnstone papers on Agnes Moorehead, 1930-1974, held by the Billy Rose Theater Division, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
- Interview with biographer Charles Tranberg from Harpies Bizarre
- Listen - Tension 1951-02-15 Agnes Moorehead - The Death Parade with a new introduction.
- Listen - The CBS Radio Mystery Theater 1974-01-06 The Old Ones Are Hard To Kill starring Agnes Moorehead.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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