Karen Steele

Infobox actor
bgcolour = silver
name = Karen Steele


imagesize = 200px
caption = "Karen Steele"
location = Honolulu, Hawaii, United States
birthdate = birth date|1931|3|20
deathdate = Death date and age|1988|3|12|1931|3|20
deathplace = Kingman, Arizona, United States
birthname = Karen Steele
spouse = Maurice Boyd Ruland,
1973 - 1988
notable role = Virginia in "Marty",
Mrs Lane in "Ride Lonesome" Eve McHuron in "", "Mudd's Women"

Karen Steele (March 20, 1931 – March 12, 1988) was an American actress and model with over 60 roles in film and television to her credit.

Her most famous roles include starring as Virginia in Marty, as Mrs Lane in "Ride Lonesome" and as Eve McHuron in "", "Mudd's Women".

Biography

Youth

Karen Steele was born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Percy Davis Steele, a Bostonian of English descent and a career Marine who in 1956 was named assistant administrator of the Marshall Islands.

Her mother was the former Ruth Covey Merritt, a Californian of French and Danish heritage. Childhood in the Hawaiian Islands brought Steele into contact with the Japanese and Polynesian languages as well as English. [http://www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/257/Karen+Steele/index.html Karen Steele - The Private Life and Times of Karen Steele. Karen Steele Pictures ] ]

She attended the University of Hawaii and studied acting at Rollins College in Florida for a year. After that, she found work as a cover girl and model.

Career

Karen Steele reportedly earned her first money by spearing baby sharks in the private cove on the estate of Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton.

Her first acting job was in a radio play titled "Let George Do It". She subsequently appeared in the 1953 films "The Clown" (in an uncredited role) and "Man Crazy" (as Marge). The following year she landed the role of Millie Darrow in "So False and So Fair" on the television anthology "Studio 57".

Her first critically acclaimed film was "Marty" (1955). She played Virginia and reportedly got the part because the director, Delbert Mann, confused her with an actress from New York who he and writer Paddy Chayevsky had intended to play it. [ [http://www.tacky-times.com/magazine/volume_008/column_celeb.htm tacky-times.com ] ]

Her character in "Survival of the Fattest", a 1965 episode of "Get Smart", was named Mary 'Jack' Armstrong, said to be "the strongest female enemy agent in the world." [ [http://allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=2:67823 allmovie ((( Karen Steele > Overview ))) ] ] . This is a reference to "Jack Armstrong", the clean-cut fictional hero of "Jack Armstrong the All American Boy", an adventure series broadcast on radio from 1933 to 1951.

Like many actresses, as she got older she turned to TV commercials for income. She also became involved in charitable causes and community service. In early 1970 she went on a handshake tour of service hospitals in the South Pacific. She turned down a series that would have brought her $78,000 in order to make the trip and in the process lost her agent. She said at the time :

cquote| "This was one commitment I had to make".

Personal life

In later life she settled in Golden Valley, Arizona and married Dr. Maurice Boyd Ruland, a psychiatrist at the Mohave Mental Health Clinic. They were married until she died, aged 56, at the Kingman Regional Medical Center in Kingman, Arizona.

Quote

In 1970, Steele was quoted as saying :

Filmography

*"The Clown" (1953) (uncredited) .... Blonde
*"Man Crazy" (1953) .... Marge
*"Marty" (1955) .... Virginia
*"Toward the Unknown" (1956) (uncredited) .... Polly Craven
*"The Sharkfighters" (1956) .... Martha Staves
*"Decision at Sundown" (1957) .... Lucy Summerton
*"Bailout at 43,000" (1957) .... Carol Peterson
*"Ride Lonesome" (1959) .... Mrs. Lane
*"Westbound" (1959) .... Jeanie Miller (Rod's wife)
*"The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond" (1960) .... Alice Shiffer
*"40 Pounds of Trouble" (1962) .... Bambi
*"McGhee" (1965) (TV) .... Ann Dorsey
*"Cyborg 2087" (1966) .... Dr. Sharon Mason
*"Death of a Salesman" (1966) (TV) .... Letta
*"Braddock" (1968) (TV) .... Louise Tratner
*"The Happy Ending" (1969) .... Divorcee
*"A Boy... a Girl" (1969) .... Elizabeth
*"The Trap on Cougar Mountain" (1972)

Television credits

* "Studio 57" .... Millie Darrow (1 episode, 1954)
* "Hallmark Hall of Fame" .... Nurse (1 episode, 1955)
* "Medic" (1 episode, 1955)
* "Stage 7" .... Mary (1 episode, 1955)
* "Climax!" .... Gloria / Lee Rogers (2 episodes, 1955-1957)
* "The Ford Television Theatre" .... Lorraine (1 episode, 1956)
* "Dragnet" (1 episode, 1956)
* "Lux Video Theatre" (1 episode, 1956)
* "The Millionaire" .... Rita (2 episodes, 1956-1958)
* "Conflict" (1 episode, 1957)
* "Wagon Train" .... Sarah Dawson (1 episode, 1957)
* "Maverick" .... Molly Gleason / Myra (2 episodes, 1957-1959)
* "Jefferson Drum" .... Madame Faro (1 episode, 1958) Star
* "Perry Mason" .... Doris Stephanak / Carina Wileen (2 episodes, 1958-1965)
* "Schlitz Playhouse of Stars" (1 episode, 1959)
* "Northwest Passage" .... Mary Clark (1 episode, 1959)
* "Bat Masterson" .... Elsa Dorn (1 episode, 1959)
* "Hawaiian Eye" .... Marian Summers (1 episode, 1959)
* "77 Sunset Strip" .... Candy Varga ... (3 episodes, 1959-1960)
* "Bourbon Street Beat" .... Barbara Komack (1 episode, 1960)
* "Lawman" .... Laura Soldano (1 episode, 1960)
* "The Deputy" .... Julie Grant (1 episode, 1960)
* "Tightrope" .... Maria Braden (1 episode, 1960)
* "The Alaskans" .... Ellen Chambers (3 episodes, 1960)
* "Riverboat" .... Sue Parker (1 episode, 1960)
* "The Roaring 20's" .... Mae Dailey (1 episode, 1961)
* "Dante" (1 episode, 1961)
* "Target: The Corruptors" .... Marie Kleberg (1 episode, 1961)
* "Bronco" .... Vicky (1 episode, 1961)
* "Surfside 6" .... Jean Pappas / Sylvia Morton (2 episodes, 1961-1962)
* "Laramie" .... Linda James ... (2 episodes, 1961-1962)
* "Bonanza" .... Sylvia Ann Goshen (1 episode, 1961)
* "Follow the Sun" .... Doris #2 (1 episode, 1962)
* "Alcoa Premiere" .... Sabina (1 episode, 1962)
* "Naked City" .... Grace Harvey (1 episode, 1962)
* "Rawhide" .... Dolly LeMoyne (1 episode, 1962)
* "Empire" .... Kate Callahan (1 episode, 1963)
* "Hazel" .... Rita Noll (3 episodes, 1964)
* "Get Smart" .... Mary 'Jack' Armstrong (1 episode, 1965)
* "A Man Called Shenandoah" .... Naomi (1 episode, 1965)
* "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" .... Cara Sloane (1 episode, 1965)
* "The Long, Hot Summer" .... Willow Sterne (2 episodes, 1965)
* "Branded" .... Lorrie Heller (1 episode, 1965)
* "Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre" .... Fran Perez (1 episode, 1965)
* "The Wackiest Ship in the Army" .... Smitty (1 episode, 1965)
* "The Farmer's Daughter" (1 episode, 1966)
* "" .... Eve McHuron (1 episode, 1966)
* "Flipper" .... Fran Whitman (2 episodes, 1967)
* "Felony Squad" .... Nina Barnes (2 episodes, 1967)
* "T.H.E. Cat" .... Crystal Pierson (1 episode, 1967)
* "Hogan's Heroes" .... Lady Valerie Stanford (1 episode, 1969)
* "Mannix" .... Sheila (1 episode, 1970)

References

External links

*imdb name|0824606
* [http://allyourtrekarebelongto.us/muddeve.htm Karen Steele as Eve McHuron]
* [http://www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com/show/257/Karen+Steele/index.htm Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen: Karen Steele]
* [http://allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=2:67823 All-movie Guide: Karen Steele]

Persondata
NAME= Steele, Karen
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Actress
DATE OF BIRTH= 20 March, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH= Honolulu, Hawaii
DATE OF DEATH= 12 March, 1988
PLACE OF DEATH= Kingman, Arizona