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| Birth Name(s) : Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery |
Date of Birth: April 15, 1933 |
| Status:
Married
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Partner:
Robert Foxworth |
| Profession:
Actor |
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Full Elizabeth Montgomery Biography
Her mother 'Elizabeth Allen Montgomery' and her father Robert Montgomery were both actors. Elizabeth graduated from the Spence School in New York City and attended the Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. After three years intensive training, she made her TV debut in her father's 1950s playhouse series "Robert Montgomery Presents" (1950) and appeared in more than 200 live programs over the next decade. She once remarked "I guess you could say I'm a TV baby". Notable early film roles included "The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell" (1955) and "Johnny Cool" (1963).
She is best remembered, however, for her leading role as the witch Samantha in the top-rated ABC sitcom "Bewitched" (1964-72). Her family - mother Endora (Agnes Moorehead), look-alike cousin (Montgomery) and advertising executive husband Darrin (first Dick York (I) then Dick Sargent) - tried to suppress her supernatural skills but often turned to her tricks to solve problems. The signal of impending witchcraft was a twitch of Samantha's nose. After her first and only TV series ended she turned to made-for-TV movies, many of which won critical praise: "A Case of Rape" (1974), "The Legend of Lizzie Borden" (1975), "Black Widow Murders" (1993). She narrated the movie "The Panama Deception" which won an Academy Award in 1993. Reference works showed her as 62 when she died though the family said she was 57. The family did not disclose the type of cancer which caused her death. |
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Additional Elizabeth Montgomery Biography
Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1933 – May 18, 1995) was an American film and television actress whose career spanned five decades. She is best remembered for her famous roles as Samantha Stephens in Bewitched, as Ellen Harrod in A Case of Rape and as Lizzie Borden in The Legend of Lizzie Borden.
Born in Los Angeles, California, Elizabeth Montgomery was born to actor Robert Montgomery and his wife, Broadway actress Elizabeth Bryan Allen. She had an older sister, Martha Bryan Montgomery, who died before she was born, and a brother, Robert Montgomery, Jr., who was born in 1936. She attended The Spence School.
Montgomery made her television debut in her father's series Robert Montgomery Presents, and her film debut in 1955 in The Court Martial of Billy Mitchell.
Her early career consisted of starring vehicles and appearances in live television dramas and series, such as Studio One, Kraft Television Theater, The Twilight Zone, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In 1954 she lost out on co-starring with Marlon Brando in the seminal film On the Waterfront directed by Elia Kazan. Kazan in his autobiography says that although Montgomery tested well in the role, she had an air of "finishing school" that troubled him.Elizabeth Montgomery with Dick York in Bewitched
She was also featured in a role as a socialite with Henry Silva and Sammy Davis, Jr in the offbeat 1963 gangster film Johnny Cool and, the same year, with Dean Martin and Carol Burnett in the motion picture comedy Who's Been Sleeping In My Bed?, directed by Daniel Mann. Nevertheless, Alfred Hitchcock had her in mind to play the sister-in-law of Sean Connery, who sees herself as a rival to the troubled heroine in the movie Marnie, but Montgomery was unavailable due to her commitment to a new television show: Bewitched.
Montgomery played the central role of Samantha Stephens with Dick York (and later with Dick Sargent), in the ABC situation comedy Bewitched. The show became a rating success (it was, at the time, the highest rated series ever for the network). It enjoyed an eight-year run from 1964 to 1972 and remains popular through syndication and DVD releases. She also provided the voice of Samantha for an episode of The Flintstones.
Montgomery received five Emmy Award and four Golden Globe nominations for her role. At its creative peak, Bewitched was considered one of the most sophisticated sitcoms on the air and cleverly explored contemporary themes and social issues within a fantasy context.
The series and Montgomery's portrayal of Samantha were paid homage in the 2005 movie, Bewitched, starring Will Ferrell and Nicole Kidman.Elizabeth Montgomery with Dick Sargent in Bewitched
Although Montgomery enjoyed enormous success with the show, she felt typecast and pigeonholed when she sought other roles after the show's run ended. Montgomery refused to do Samantha's famous nose twitch for fans after Bewitched went off the air, and was reluctant to discuss the show.
Montgomery returned to Samantha-like twitching of her nose and on-screen magic in a series of Japanese television commercials (1980-83) for "Mother" chocolate biscuits and cookies by confectionery conglomerate Lotte Corp. These Japanese commercials provided a lucrative salary for Montgomery while remaining out of sight from non-Japanese fans and Hollywood industry. The commercials were posted on You Tube in 2007.
Montgomery was one of the first actresses to broaden her career from series work with television movies, and set the precedent for other TV series actresses, such as Farrah Fawcett, Jaclyn Smith, Melissa Gilbert, Carol Burnett, and Barbara Eden, to follow.
Montgomery was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the spring of 1995. She had ignored the symptoms of her illness until it was too late during the filming of "Deadline for Murder: From the Files of Edna Buchanan." Unwilling to die in a hospital, and with no hope of recovery, she elected to return to her Beverly Hills home that she shared with Foxworth. She died there, in the company of her children and husband, on May 18, 1995, at age 62, only eight weeks after her diagnosis.
A memorial service was held on June 18, 1995, at the Canon Theatre in Beverly Hills. Herbie Hancock provided the music, and Dominick Dunne spoke about their early days as friends in New York. Other speakers included Robert Foxworth, who read out sympathy cards from fans, her nurse, her brother, daughter and stepson.
Unsuccessful nominations were :
- 1961 - Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - The Untouchables
- 1966 - Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series - Bewitched
- 1967 - Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series - Bewitched
- 1968 - Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series - Bewitched
- 1969 - Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series - Bewitched
- 1970 - Outstanding Lead Actress - Comedy Series - Bewitched
- 1974 - Outstanding Lead Actress - Drama Series - A Case of Rape
- 1975 - Outstanding Lead Actress in a Special Program - Drama or Comedy - The Legend of Lizzie Borden
- 1978 - Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series - The Awakening Land
Unsuccessful nominations were :
- 1965 - Best TV Star (Female) - Bewitched
- 1967 - Best TV Star (Female) - Bewitched
- 1969 - Best TV Star (Female) - Bewitched
- 1971 - Best Actress, Comedy/Musical - Bewitched
Two audio books in which Montgomery narrates the work of Anne Rice (writing as A.N. Roquelaure) are available as of 2005. |
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