Dyan Cannon | |
|---|---|
 Cannon,c. 1960 | |
| Born | Samille Diane Friesen (1937-01-04)January 4, 1937 (age 88) Tacoma, Washington, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1958–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | Jennifer Grant |
| Relatives | David Friesen (brother) |
Dyan Cannon (bornSamille Diane Friesen; January 4, 1937) is an American actress, filmmaker, and editor. Her accolades include aSaturn Award, aGolden Globe Award, threeAcademy Award nominations, and a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame. She was named Female Star of the Year by theNational Association of Theatre Owners in 1973 and theHollywood Women's Press Club in 1979.
A former beauty queen who held the title of Miss West Seattle, Cannon made her television debut in 1958. Over the next decade, she became a common sight on episodic shows while appearing occasionally onBroadway and in B-movies. In 1969, she had her breakthrough film role in the sex comedyBob & Carol & Ted & Alice, for which she was nominated for anAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Cannon was nominated in that category again forHeaven Can Wait (1978), earning her aGolden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture, and was nominated for aGolden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama for her lead role inSuch Good Friends (1971). She also was nominated for anAcademy Award for Best Live Action Short Film as the producer ofNumber One (1976).
Other films in which Cannon has performed includeThe Love Machine (1971),Shamus (1973),The Last of Sheila (1973),Child Under a Leaf (1974),Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978),Honeysuckle Rose (1980),Coast to Coast (1980),Deathtrap (1982),Author! Author! (1982),Caddyshack II (1988),8 Heads in a Duffel Bag (1997),Out to Sea (1997), andBoynton Beach Club (2005). Cannon made her feature directorial debut with 1990's semiautobiographical dramaThe End of Innocence, which she also wrote and starred in. From 1997 to 2000, she played a recurring role on the legal seriesAlly McBeal.
Before her career took off, Cannon was married toCary Grant for three years and gave birth to his only child, daughterJennifer. Reluctant to discuss the marriage since their 1968 divorce, Cannon initially turned down publishing deals following Grant's death in 1986. Her memoirDear Cary was published in 2011 and became aNew York Times Best Seller. In 2023, the book was adapted into a miniseries calledArchie with Cannon executive producing.
Cannon was born Samille Diane Friesen inTacoma, Washington, on January 4, 1937, the daughter of housewife Claire (née Portnoy) and life insurance salesman Ben Friesen.[1][2][3][4][a] She was raised in the Jewish faith of her mother, who was an immigrant from Ukraine; her father was a Mennonite of Dutch-Canadian ancestry.[8][9][10] Her younger brother is jazz musicianDavid Friesen. When Cannon was 10, the family moved eastward toSpokane, Washington; they returned to the Pacific coast four years later, settling in Seattle.[11][12] Cannon attendedWest Seattle High School and was crowned Miss West Seattle in 1954.[13] She spent two-and-a-half semesters at theUniversity of Washington, majoring in anthropology.[14][15]
In 1956, Cannon dropped out of college and went to live with her aunt Sally inPhoenix, Arizona, where she took a job atMerrill Lynch & Co.[16][17] Courted by nightclub owner Sonny Orling, then 32, she got engaged and followed him toBeverly Hills, California.[17][18] They soon parted, but she decided to stay in the area and enroll atUCLA.[17] A part-time modeling job led to an interview with producerJerry Wald, who suggested she change her professional last name to Cannon.[b] She signed toMGM, doing promotional work for the filmLes Girls (1957), and studied with acting teacherSanford Meisner.[16][19]
Cannon made her film debut in 1960 inThe Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond; she had appeared on television since the late 1950s, including a guest appearance onBat Masterson as Mary Lowery in the 1959 episode "Lady Luck" and again in a 1961 episode as Diane Jansen in "The Price of Paradise". She appeared in 1959 onCBS'sWanted: Dead or Alive, in episode 52, "Vanishing Act", as Nicole McCready. About this time, she was on the CBS WesternJohnny Ringo, starringDon Durant, and onJack Lord's WesternStoney Burke onABC. She also appeared onHawaiian Eye in 1961, opposite Tracey Steele,Robert Conrad, andConnie Stevens.
In 1962, Cannon acted on Broadway withJane Fonda andBradford Dillman inThe Fun Couple.[16][20] Next came the national touring company of the musicalHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, in which she played Rosemary.[17][20]
In 1964 she guest-starred onGunsmoke, playing Ivy Norton, an abused daughter looking to marry the man she loves in the episode "Aunt Thede". She portrayed Mona Elliott in the episode "The Man Behind the Man" of the 1964 CBS drama seriesThe Reporter and had a regular role on the short-lived daytime soap operaFull Circle. Cannon also made guest appearances on77 Sunset Strip,The Untouchables,Tombstone Territory, the 1960 episode "Sheriff of the Town" of the first-run syndicated Western seriesTwo Faces West withWalter Coy as Cauter, and the 1962Ripcord episode "The Helicopter Race" as Ripcord Inc.'s secretary and receptionist Marion Hines. She landed another role in a feature withThe Murder Game (1965), then took four years off.
Cannon's first major film role came in 1969'sBob & Carol & Ted & Alice, which earned herAcademy Award andGolden Globe nominations. In 1971, she starred in four films:The Love Machine, from the novel byJacqueline Susann;The Anderson Tapes withSean Connery andChristopher Walken;The Burglars withJean-Paul Belmondo andOmar Sharif; andOtto Preminger'sSuch Good Friends, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress. Her name was used to market a fifth release that year,Doctors' Wives, in which she had top billing despite only making a cameo appearance.
Cannon was slated to appear inThe Traveling Executioner (1970) andDouble Indemnity (1973), but bowed out and was replaced byMarianna Hill andSamantha Eggar, respectively.[21][22]
In 1973, Cannon starred oppositeBurt Reynolds inShamus and played an agent based onSue Mengers inThe Last of Sheila, and was named Actress of the Year by theNational Association of Theatre Owners.[23] In 1974, she gave a critically acclaimed performance inChild Under a Leaf and starred in the made-for-TV movieVirginia Hill withHarvey Keitel. Following this, she took a four-year absence from acting in feature films.[24] Among the offers she turned down wasJacqueline Bisset's role inSt. Ives (1976).[25]
Cannon, who is also a singer/songwriter, starred in her own musical stage act atCaesars Palace in Las Vegas andHarrah's Lake Tahoe during the mid-1970s. She then enrolled in the American Film Institute'sDirecting Workshop for Women. She became the first Oscar-nominated actress to be nominated in the Best Short Film, Live Action category forNumber One (1976), a project which Cannon produced, directed, wrote, and edited. It was a story about adolescent sexual curiosity.[26] In 1978, Cannon co-starred inRevenge of the Pink Panther. That same year, she appeared inHeaven Can Wait, for which she received another Oscar nomination and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Cannon hostedSaturday Night Live during its first season and guest-starred in the fourth season ofThe Muppet Show. She co-starred with then-boyfriendArmand Assante in the TV movieLady of the House (1978), a dramatization of the life ofSally Stanford. In 1979, theHollywood Women's Press Club voted Cannon as Female Star of the Year.[27]
Cannon appeared inHoneysuckle Rose (1980) withWillie Nelson,Coast to Coast (1980) withRobert Blake,Author! Author! (1982) withAl Pacino, andSidney Lumet'sDeathtrap (1982) withMichael Caine andChristopher Reeve. She starred in the TV movieHaving It All (1982), as well as a miniseries,Master of the Game (1984), then had the title role inJenny's War (1985).[28] After makingRock 'n' Roll Mom (1988) forDisney, she appeared with an ensemble cast inCaddyshack II (1988).[29] In addition, she co-wrote the title track forChaka Khan's album,The Woman I Am, withBrenda Russell.
For her contributions to the film industry, Cannon was inducted into theHollywood Walk of Fame in 1983 with amotion picture star located at 6608Hollywood Boulevard.[30]
Cannon wrote, directed, and starred in the semiautobiographical filmThe End of Innocence (1990).[31] She subsequently appeared oppositePhylicia Rashad inJailbirds (1991) andKris Kristofferson andTony Curtis inChristmas in Connecticut (1992), the latter of which was directed byArnold Schwarzenegger, before reuniting withBob & Carol & Ted & Alice directorPaul Mazursky forThe Pickle (1993), alongsideDanny Aiello.
Cannon had guest roles on the popular television showsDiagnosis: Murder andThe Practice, and was a semiregular onAlly McBeal. In 1997, she could be seen in three major studio film releases:8 Heads in a Duffel Bag withJoe Pesci; a remake ofThat Darn Cat; andOut to Sea withWalter Matthau andJack Lemmon. Also that year, she worked withSarah Michelle Gellar in the TV movieBeverly Hills Family Robinson. In 2001 and 2002, she had a regular part in the TV seriesThree Sisters. Cannon and Christopher Walken were reunited forKangaroo Jack (2003), but her performance was cut down to awalk on in the final version of the film.
In 2005, she appeared inBoynton Beach Club, a movie about aging Floridians who have just lost their spouses; Cannon's real-life exMichael Nouri played her love interest. Her later roles includedA Kiss at Midnight (2008) forHallmark and the unaired pilotWomen Without Men (2010) withLorraine Bracco andPenny Marshall. She wrote and directed another short,Unleashed (2010). Cannon returned to the stage to star in a 2013 production ofKen Ludwig'sThe Fox on the Fairway inOverland Park, Kansas.[15] After a hiatus from the screen, she acted in theequestrian-themed family filmHope's Legacy (2021). Forgoing its scheduled opening at Baltimore'sSenator Theatre due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, the film was instead released to streaming platforms.[32][33]
Cannon published a bestselling memoir,Dear Cary: My Life with Cary Grant, in 2011.[34] She had previously been approached bySwifty Lazar to write about her late ex-husband in 1986, turning down "millions", and declined another publishing offer some years later fromJacqueline Kennedy Onassis, stating that healing was still needed.[35] Cannon served as executive producer of a four-part miniseries based on her book, entitledArchie, which premiered onBritBox in 2023 and starsJason Isaacs as Grant andLaura Aikman as Cannon.[36]
In 2025, she began co-hosting the podcastGod’s Table alongsideTracey E. Bregman,Kym Douglas, and Christine Avanti-Fischer.[37]
In 1961, Cannon began dating actorCary Grant, who was 33 years her senior.[38] They married on July 22, 1965, and had one daughter,Jennifer (b. February 26, 1966). Cannon filed for divorce in September 1967, and it was finalized on March 21, 1968.[39]
Cannon married a second time on April 18, 1985, to lawyer-turned-real estate investor Stanley Fimberg.[40] They divorced in 1991.[41] In 2024, Cannon said Fimberg and she are still friendly.[42]
Cannon has also been in relationships with comedianMort Sahl, talent agent Ron Weisner, and sculptor Carl Hartman, as well as producers Murray Shostak and Leonard Rabinowitz, directorsJerry Schatzberg andHal Ashby, and actorsArmand Assante, Hy Chase,Ron Ely andMichael Nouri.[29][31][43][44][45] She remains friendly with Nouri and accompanied him to a premiere four decades after their breakup.[46] In 2025, Cannon told a reporter forPeople magazine that she has severalfriends with benefits.[47] She later clarified that she had misunderstood the term.[48]
Cannon has often collaborated with her significant others on film and TV projects. Shostak and Rabinowitz produced her starring vehiclesChild Under a Leaf andThe End of Innocence, respectively; Schatzberg directed her inHoneysuckle Rose; Assante and Nouri were her leading men inLady of the House andBoynton Beach Club, respectively; and she guest-starred on Ely's seriesMalibu Run.
In 1972, Cannon revealed that she engaged inprimal therapy.[49] She also dabbled inmetaphysics and got kicked out ofEsalen.[50] Cannon smoked three packs of cigarettes a day until 1971; she decided to stop after reading the habit would dull her libido.[51] She was avegetarian for a long time, but quit that too.[52][53]
A longtime fixture atLos Angeles Lakers games, she is considered the team's second-most famous fan behindJack Nicholson.[2][54][55][56][57]
For 12 years, Cannon hosted God's Party, a biweekly Bible study held atRadford Studio Center.[58][59] She formerly identified as aborn-again Christian,[8][58][60] but has since expressed she isspiritual but not religious.[61]
Cannon's experience as a single mother led to her becoming national spokeswoman forBig Brothers Big Sisters of America, which provides emotional support and companionship for children of one-parent homes.[62] She paid for the tombstone of slain runaway Alyssa Margie 'Raven' Gomez, whom she'd met while making a documentary about homelessness.[63] Cannon has used her celebrity to benefit other charitable organizations, such asSpecial Olympics, for mentally and physically disabled athletes.[13]
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | Have Gun – Will Travel | Fifi | Episodes: "Twenty-Four Hours at North Fork" and "The Man Who Wouldn't Talk" |
| Target | Episode: "On Cue" | ||
| 77 Sunset Strip | Sheila | Episode: "The Bouncing Chip" | |
| 1959 | Highway Patrol | Jean Deesing | Episode: "Revenge" |
| Playhouse 90 | Gloria / Marcie | Episodes: "The Velvet Alley", "The Ding-A-Ling Girl" and "A Trip to Paradise" | |
| Lock-Up | Eileen Winfield | Episode: "Change of Heart" | |
| Bat Masterson | Mary Lowery | Episode: "Lady Luck" | |
| Zane Grey Theatre | Annie | Episode: "Shadows" | |
| Hotel de Paree | Peggy Joyce | Episode: "The Only Wheel in Town" | |
| Wanted Dead or Alive | Nicole McCready | Episode: "Vanishing Act" | |
| 1960 | The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond | Dixie | |
| This Rebel Breed | Wiggles | ||
| The Detectives | Olga May | Episode: "The Chameleon Truck" | |
| Johnny Ringo | Rhoda | Episode: "Soft Cargo" | |
| Tombstone Territory | Tracy Travers | Episode: "The Injury" | |
| Two Faces West | Episode: "Sheriff of the Town" | ||
| 1960–1961 | Full Circle | Lisa Crowder | Series regular |
| 1961 | Bat Masterson | Diane Jansen | Episode: "The Price of Paradise" |
| Hawaiian Eye | Julie Brent | Episode: "The Big Dealer" | |
| Malibu Run | Thelma / Diana Hogarth | Episodes: "The Radioactive Object Adventure" and "The Diana Adventure" | |
| Follow the Sun | Lana Flanagan | Episode: "The Woman Who Never Was" | |
| Ben Casey | Donna Whitney | Episode: "A Certain Time, a Certain Darkness" | |
| 1962 | The Untouchables | Mavis Carroll | Episode: "Silent Partner" |
| 77 Sunset Strip | Kathy | Episode: "The Bridal Trail Caper" | |
| The Red Skelton Show | Clara II | Episode: "Somebody Up There Should Stay There" | |
| Ripcord | Marion Hines | Episode: "The Helicopter Race" | |
| 1963 | Stoney Burke | Flatbush | Episode: "Death Rides a Pale Horse" |
| 1964 | Mr. Broadway | Marianne | Episode: "Between the Rats and the Finks" |
| The Reporter | Mona Elliott | Episode: "The Man Behind the Badge" | |
| Gunsmoke | Ivy Norton | Episode: "Aunt Thede" | |
| 1965 | Burke's Law | Francesca Szabo | Episode: "The Weapon" |
| The Murder Game | |||
| 1969 | Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice | Alice Henderson | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress(3rd place) New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Female |
| Medical Center | Elinor Crawford | Episode: "Victim" | |
| 1971 | Doctors' Wives | Lorrie Dellman | |
| The Anderson Tapes | Ingrid | ||
| The Love Machine | Judith Austin | ||
| The Burglars | Lena | ||
| Such Good Friends | Julie Messinger | Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama | |
| 1972 | Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In | Various - Guest performer | Episode: "Dyan Cannon" |
| 1973 | Shamus | Alexis Montaigne | |
| The Last of Sheila | Christine | Cannon's character is believed to have been based onSue Mengers.[64] | |
| 1974 | Child Under a Leaf | Domino | |
| Virginia Hill | Virginia Hill | ||
| 1976 | Number One | Matt's mother | Also writer, director, producer, editor Nominated—Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film |
| Saturday Night Live | Various - Guest host | Episode: "Dyan Cannon/Leon & Mary Russell" | |
| 1978 | Heaven Can Wait | Julia Farnsworth | Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated—Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| Revenge of the Pink Panther | Simone Legree | ||
| Lady of the House | Sally Stanford | ||
| 1980 | The Muppet Show | Herself | Episode: "Dyan Cannon" |
| Honeysuckle Rose | Viv Bonham | Cannon also sings three songs on the soundtrack: "Two Sides To Every Story," "Loving You Is Easier," and "Unclouded Day." | |
| Coast to Coast | Madie Levrington | ||
| 1982 | Deathtrap | Myra Bruhl | Nominated—Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress |
| Author! Author! | Alice Detroit | ||
| Having It All | Thera Baylin | ||
| 1983 | Arthur the King | Katherine | |
| 1984 | Master of the Game | Kate McGregor-Blackwell | |
| 1985 | Jenny's War | Jenny Baines | |
| 1988 | She's Having a Baby | Herself | |
| Rock 'n' Roll Mom | Annie Hackett | ||
| Caddyshack II | Elizabeth Pearce | ||
| 1990 | The End of Innocence | Stephanie | Also director and writer |
| 1991 | Jailbirds | Rosie LaCroix | |
| 1992 | Christmas in Connecticut | Elizabeth Blane | |
| 1993 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Herself | Episode: "Senior Poll" |
| The Pickle | Ellen Stone | ||
| Based on an Untrue Story | Varda Gray | ||
| 1994 | Diagnosis: Murder | Bonnie Valin | Episodes: "The Last Laugh: Part 1" and "The Last Laugh: Part 2" |
| 1995 | A Perry Mason Mystery: The Case of the Jealous Jokester | Josie Joplin | |
| The Naked Truth | Mitzi Wilde | Episode: "Girl Buys Soup While Woman Weds Ape!" | |
| 1996 | The Rockford Files: If the Frame Fits... | Jess Wilding | |
| 1997 | Beverly Hills Family Robinson | Marsha Robinson | |
| That Darn Cat | Mrs. Flint | ||
| 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag | Annette Bennett | ||
| Out to Sea | Liz LaBreche | ||
| Allie & Me | Karen Schneider | ||
| 1997–2000 | Ally McBeal | The Honorable Judge Jennifer 'Whipper' Cone | Recurring role; 17 episodes Nominated—Viewers for Quality Television Award for Best Recurring Player |
| 1998 | The Practice | The Honorable Judge Jennifer 'Whipper' Cone | Episode: "Line of Duty" |
| Black Jaq | Abby 'Bubblin' Browne | ||
| Diamond Girl | Abby Montana | ||
| The Sender | Gina Fairfax | ||
| 1999 | Kiss of a Stranger | Leslie | |
| Arliss | Herself | Episode: "People Are Assets Too" | |
| 2000 | My Mother the Spy | Gloria Shaeffer | |
| 2001–2002 | Three Sisters | Honey Bernstein-Flynn | Series regular |
| 2003 | Kangaroo Jack | Anna Carbone | |
| 2004 | After the Sunset | Herself | |
| 2005 | Boynton Beach Club | Lois | |
| 2008 | A Kiss at Midnight | Kay Flowers | |
| 2010 | Women Without Men | Dominique | Unsold pilot |
| 2019 | Five Old Comedy Writers Talking Sh*t | Short subject | |
| Mood Swings | Aunt Sam | Episode: "Farrah's Day Off" | |
| 2021 | Hope's Legacy | Linda |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | The Fun Couple | Kathy | Lyceum Theatre |
| 1963–1964 | How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying | Rosemary Pillkington | See full listhere |
| 1967 | The Ninety Day Mistress | Leona Hastings | Biltmore Theatre |
| 1975 | Private Lives | Amanda Prynne | Packard Music Hall, Warren, Ohio |
| 1976 | Two for the Seesaw | Gittel Mosca | Arlington Park Theatre, Arlington Heights, Illinois |
| 2013 | The Fox on the Fairway | Pamela | New Theatre, Overland Park, Kansas |
