- Dawn Addams
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Dawn Addams
Addams with Alan Young in the television show Time to Smile, 1953.Born Victoria Dawn Addams
21 September 1930
Felixstowe, Suffolk, EnglandDied 7 May 1985 (aged 54)
London, EnglandOccupation Actress Years active 1951–83 Spouse Don Vittorio Emanuele Massimo, Prince of Roccasecca (m. 1954–1971)
Jimmy White (September 1974 – ?)Dawn Addams (21 September 1930 – 7 May 1985) was an English actress in motion pictures of the 1950s.
Contents
Life and career
She was born Victoria Dawn Addams in Felixstowe, Suffolk, England, the daughter of Ethel Mary (née Hickie) and Captain James Ramage Addams.[1] Her mother died when she was young, and she spent her early life in Calcutta, India. Her heart shaped face and beautiful physique soon attracted the attention of talent agents. She resembled another English actress Elizabeth Taylor but only slightly. Addams unlike Taylor retained her English accent.
Her film career began in 1951, and a year later she co-starred with Peter Lawford in The Hour of 13. In 1953 she appeared in a small role in the ground-breaking film The Moon is Blue, the film which helped end the system of religious censorship of Hollywood films, which had been in place since 1934. She also embarked on a USO tour the same year to help entertain troops in Korea, followed by a small but heavily publicised role as Richard Carlson's model girlfriend in the science fiction film Riders to the Stars (1954). Another notable performance was as the female lead opposite actor-director-filmmaker legend Charlie Chaplin in his final comedy to star himself A King in New York (1957). During the 1960s and 1970s she appeared mainly in British TV shows and French films.
She was a semi-regular on the instructional series En France (1962) and the campy sci-fi serial Star Maidens (1977), and she was a ubiquitous leading lady in several episodes of The Saint, which starred Roger Moore as Simon Templar (1962–1969).
Among her last film credits were two British horror films, The Vampire Lovers and The Vault of Horror, and she was also a regular in the British sitcom Father Dear Father. Addams retired in the early 1980s, dividing her remaining years between Europe and the United States.
She died in 1985, aged 54, reportedly from cancer. Addams had been a heavy smoker.
Personal life
She was married to:
- Jimmy White (September 1974 – ?)
- Don Vittorio Emanuele Massimo, Prince of Roccasecca (1954–1971). One son, Prince Stefano Massimo, born 10 January 1955.
Selected filmography
Movies
- The Vault of Horror (film) (1973) ... Inez
- Sapho ou La fureur d'aimer (1971) ... Marianne
- The Vampire Lovers (1970) ... The Countess
- Zeta One (1969) ... Zeta
- Where the Bullets Fly (1966) ... Felicity 'Fiz' Moonlight
- Ballad in Blue (1964) ... Gina Graham
- La Tulipe noire (1964) ... Catherine de Vigogne
- Come Fly with Me (1963) ... Katie Rinard
- The 20,000 Pound Kiss (1963) ... Maxine Hagen
- L'Éducation sentimentale (1962) ... Catherine Dambreuse
- Les Menteurs (1961) ... Norma O'Brien
- Follow That Man (1961) ... Janet Clark
- The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (1960) ... Kitty Jekyll
- The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse AKA Die Tausend Augen des Dr. Mabuse (1960) ... Marion Menil
- Die zornigen jungen Männer (1960) ... Irene
- Voulez-vous danser avec moi? (1959) ... Anita Flores
- Les Fruits du péché (1959) ... Dr. Catherine Langeac
- Geheimaktion schwarze Kapelle (1959) ... Tila
- Melodie und Rhythmus (1959) ... Cameo appearance (uncredited)
- The Treasure of San Teresa (1959) ... Hedi von Hartmann (film also released as "Hot Money Girl")
- L'Île du bout du monde (1959) ... Victoria
- I Battellieri del Volga (1959) ... Tatyana
- Pensione Edelweiss (1959) ... Nadia Rakesy
- Die Feuerrote Baronesse (1959) ... Szaga de Bor
- The Silent Enemy (1958) ... Third Officer Jill Masters, W.R.N.S.
- A King in New York (1957) ... Ann Kay
- I quattro Del Getto Tonante (1955) ... Rosi's wife
- Riders to the Stars (1954) ... Susan Manners
- Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach (1954)
- Return to Treasure Island (1954)
- The Robe (1953) ... Julia
- The Moon is Blue (1953) ... Cynthia
- Young Bess (1953) ... Catherine Howard
- Plymouth Adventure (1952) ... Patricia Mullins
- Night Into Morning (1950)
Television
- Sherlock Holmes series in The Case of the Careless Suffragette (aired 28 Feb 1955)
- "Danger Man" series 2, episode 8 – "The Battle of the Cameras" (aired UK 1st Decemnber 1964), as Martine, working for Mr Kent esq.
- A Room in Town[1] Sept 1970. With George Cole and Pauline Yates
References
- ^ "Dawn Addams Biography (1930–1985)". Filmreference.com. http://www.filmreference.com/film/16/Dawn-Addams.html. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
External links
- Dawn Addams at the Internet Movie Database
- Dawn Addams at HorrorStars
- NY Times biography/filmography
- Dawn Addams at Find a Grave
Categories:- 1930 births
- 1985 deaths
- English film actors
- English television actors
- Cancer deaths in England
- People from Felixstowe
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