Alice Ghostley | |
|---|---|
 Ghostley inMayberry R.F.D. (1970) | |
| Born | Alice Margaret Ghostley (1923-08-14)August 14, 1923 |
| Died | September 21, 2007(2007-09-21) (aged 84) Studio City,California, U.S. |
| Occupations | Actress, singer[1] |
| Years active | 1953–2007 |
| Spouse | |
Alice Margaret Ghostley (August 14, 1923 – September 21, 2007) was an American actress and singer on stage, film and television. Ghostley was best known for her roles as bumbling witch Esmeralda (1969–72) onBewitched, as Cousin Alice (1970–71) onMayberry R.F.D., and as Bernice Clifton (1986–93) onDesigning Women.
Ghostley dropped out of university to pursue a career in theater. She first starred on Broadway inNew Faces of 1952 and in the film version of the play released in 1954. She portrayed recurring characters on several sitcoms, includingBewitched (1969-1972),Mayberry R.F.D.,Nichols (1971–72) andThe Julie Andrews Hour (1972–73). Between 1986 and 1993, Ghostley portrayed Bernice Clifton onDesigning Women.[2] Over the years, Ghostley had numerous guest starring roles, including onHogan's Heroes,Good Times,Maude,One Day at a Time,The Odd Couple,What's Happening!!,Evening Shade, andThe Golden Girls. She also appeared in film inTo Kill a Mockingbird (1962),Gator, the film version ofGrease, in the 1985 comedyNot for Publication, and in the direct-to-video movieAddams Family Reunion.
Ghostley received aTony nomination in 1963 for her roles in the comedyThe Beauty Part. She also received a Tony Award forBest Featured Actress for her role inThe Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window and, in1992, she wasnominated for an Emmy for her role inDesigning Women.[3]
Alice Margaret Ghostley was born on August 14, 1923 at atrain station inEve, Missouri, to Edna Muriel (née Rooney) and Harry Francis Ghostley, who worked as a telegraph operator.[4] Ghostley grew up in Siloam Springs Arkansas andHenryetta, Oklahoma. She attended theUniversity of Oklahoma, but dropped out to pursue a career in theater.[3]
Alice Ghostley first came toBroadway inLeonard Sillman'sNew Faces of 1952 and in the film version released in 1954.[1] Her featured number was "The Boston Beguine", a comic song about finding romance and danger in the very proper Boston, Massachusetts. Ghostley recorded her vocal for anRCA Victor 45-rpm single; the other side wasNew Faces co-starEartha Kitt singing "Monotonous".
Ghostley established herself as a plain-looking, sad-smiling comedienne inearly television. She appeared as Joy, one of the ugly stepsisters in the 1957 musical television production ofRichard Rodgers andOscar Hammerstein'sCinderella, which starredJulie Andrews in the title role. The other stepsister was played by actressKaye Ballard. Twelve years later, Ghostley guest-starred as a harried maternity nurse on Ballard's comedy series,The Mothers-in-Law.[5] Ghostley guest-starred on theNBC police comedy,Car 54, Where Are You? withJoe E. Ross andFred Gwynne, filmed in New York. In the musical episode "Christmas at the 53rd", she sang the comic torch song "Irving". She also appeared in two 1961 episodes ofThe Tom Ewell Show. She was also a favorite ofJackie Gleason's,[citation needed] who featured her in his "American Scene Magazine" variety hours of the 1960s. In the recurring sketch "Arthur and Agnes", Gleason played a loudmouthed, inconsiderate braggart talking to Ghostley on her front stoop. Gleason's character treated her thoughtlessly for several minutes before walking away, leaving Ghostley alone to confide to the audience, "I'm the luckiest girl in the world!"
She portrayedrecurring characters on several situation comedies, beginning withBewitched in 1966 in "Maid to Order", in which Ghostley played an inept maid named Naomi, who was hired by Darrin Stephens (played byDick York) to assist his wife Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery) during her pregnancy. Towards the end of the series' 1965–66 season, actress-comedienneAlice Pearce, who was featured as nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz, died. The producers of the series immediately offered the role of Gladys to Ghostley, who refused it. As a result, in the fall of 1966, character actressSandra Gould assumed the role of Gladys. In September 1969, after the death of actressMarion Lorne, who played Aunt Clara, Ghostley joinedBewitched as a semiregular in the role of Esmeralda, a shy witch who served as a maid and babysitter to the Stephenses' household.[6] Ghostley's character of Esmeralda was created to replace Aunt Clara's role as a bumbler of magic.[7]
Ghostley's Esmeralda appeared in 15 episodes ofBewitched between 1969 and 1972.[8] During her two years onBewitched, Ghostley also joined the cast ofMayberry R.F.D., playing Cousin Alice afterFrances Bavier's character,Aunt Bee, was written out of the series. She appeared in 14 episodes.[7]
On February 22, 1969, she appeared as Aggie onThe Ghost & Mrs. Muir (starringEdward Mulhare andHope Lange). The episode was entitled "Make Me a Match". The captain and Mrs. Muir matched her with Claymore Gregg (Charles Nelson Reilly). On March 6, 1970, she appeared on another episode ofThe Ghost & Mrs. Muir, "Curious Cousin". She played nosey Cousin Harriet, who interferes with Mrs. Muir's private life. To divert her excessive attention, Claymore, posing as Captain Gregg, comes to court her.[7]
After eight years,Bewitched was canceled by ABC in the spring of 1972. Later that year, in September, Ghostley was hired as a semiregular for the ABC-TV variety series,The Julie Andrews Hour; in addition to participating in songs and sketches, Andrews and Ghostley were featured in a recurring segment as roommates sharing a small apartment.The Julie Andrews Hour was cancelled by ABC in the spring of 1973 after 24 episodes. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Ghostley appeared in episodes of situation comedies such asHogan's Heroes (alternating withKathleen Freeman playing Gertrude Linkmaier, General Burkhalter's sister) and Mrs. Field Marshal Manheim,Good Times,Maude,One Day at a Time,The Odd Couple, andWhat's Happening!!.[7]
Between 1986 and 1993, Ghostley portrayed Bernice Clifton, the slightly off-kilter, eccentric friend to Julia and Suzanne Sugarbaker's mother, Perky, onDesigning Women.[2] She later played Irna Wallingsford in six episodes ofEvening Shade. She also had a recurring role of Ida Mae Brindle in the sitcomSmall Wonder, which ran from 1985 to 1989. Among many other guest roles, she appeared in a flashback episode as the crazed mother-in-law of Dorothy Zbornak (Bea Arthur) onThe Golden Girls. She made a one-time appearance as Great-Grandma inSabrina the Teenage Witch. Ghostley also made a few guest appearances on thedaytime dramaPassions in 2000, playing the ghost ofMatilda Matthews.[7]
Among her roles in motion pictures, Ghostley appeared inTo Kill a Mockingbird (1962),[6] playing Stephanie Crawford, the neighborhood gossip. She starred inGator as Gator's partner in crime who brings her cats along on a burglary. She appeared in the film version ofGrease as shop teacher Mrs. Murdock. In 1985, she had a supporting role in theNancy Allen comedyNot for Publication.[7] Alice played Grandmama in the direct-to-video movieAddams Family Reunion.[citation needed]
Ghostley received aTony nomination in 1963 for different roles she played in the Broadway comedyThe Beauty Part. She also received a Tony Award forBest Featured Actress for her role inThe Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window.[3]In1992, she earnedan Emmy nomination for her role inDesigning Women.[3]
Alice Ghostley was married toFelice Orlandi, an Italian-American actor, from 1953 until his death in 2003.[3]
Ghostley died at her home inStudio City, California, on September 21, 2007, of colon cancer and a series of strokes.[6][9]
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