Forgotten Hollywood

Manny P. here…

   Ann B. Davis was a lovably feisty character actress, who is best remembered as Schultzy on The Bob Cummings Show, for which she twice won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series; and as Alice Nelson, the housekeeper in The Brady Bunch. She also appeared as a musical judge on ABC’s Jukebox Jury; and as a physical education teacher at a private girls’ academy in NBC sitcom The John Forsythe Show.                      ANN B. DAVIS —–>

   She got her big break while doing a cabaret act in Los Angeles, singing and telling jokes. Despite a small film career, which included parts in Pepe, All Hands on Deck, and Lover Come Back, her strength was guest starring appearances on television. Davis had roles on Lux Video Theatre, Tennessee Ernie Ford Variety Hour, Rawhide, Love American Style, and The Love Boat. Ann was also featured in commercials for Minute Rice. In her later years, she was a spokeswoman for Shake ‘n Bake, and in spots for Swiffer. In 1993, Davis joined a touring cast of Crazy for You, a musical featuring Standards by George and Ira Gershwin. She also toured with the USO to entertain US troops in Korea and elsewhere.

   Producer Sherwood Schwartz’s The Brady Bunch debuted in 1969 and aired for five years. But, it has lived on in reruns and sequels. Her character was so popular on The Brady Bunch, that she also returned when a variety hour was created in the late 1970s, and a series of television movies were produced in the 1980s. In 1994, Davis published a cookbook, Alice’s Brady Bunch Cookbook, with Brady Bunch inspired recipes. The book also includes recipes from cast members. In 2007, The Brady Bunch was awarded the TV Land Pop Culture Award on the 5th annual TV Land Awards. Davis and other cast members accepted the award, and she received a standing ovation.

   Ann B. Davis was 88.

———————————————————————–

<—MARILYN BECK was the syndicated Hollywood columnist who rose to prominence, and was influenced by predecessors, such as Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons. Beck’s Hollywood column appeared in the New York Times Special Features in 1972 as she reported on the doings of stars the likes of Elvis Presley, Natalie Wood, Robert Redford, Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Fonda, Marlon Brando, and Richard Burton. Marilyn became affiliated with Tribune Media Services in 1980. She finally headquartered for 30 years from her home in Beverly Hills, where she interviewed stars in her column and for television.

   Beck appeared on programs including Nightline, and shows hosted by Barbara Walters, Dinah Shore, Mike Douglas, and Merv Griffin, and logging on-air chats with such celebrities as Farrah Fawcett, Harrison Ford, Lucille Ball, Michael Landon, George Burns, Warren Beatty, Dustin Hoffman, Christopher Reeve, and Luciano Pavarotti.

   Beck authored Marilyn Beck’s Hollywood, a 1972 hard-cover book about the industry; also the 1988 Berkeley novel about Hollywood, Only Make Believe. She won honors from the Los Angeles City Council, Southern California Motion Picture Council, and ICG Publicists Guild of America.

   Marilyn Beck was 85.

Until next time>                               “never forget”

This entry was posted on Monday, June 2nd, 2014 at 12:09 am and is filed under Blog by Manny Pacheco. You can follow any comments to this post through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Bookmark this post: