Anita Morris

Infobox actor
name = Anita Morris


caption =
birthdate = March 14, 1943
birthplace = Durham, North Carolina
deathdate = March 2, 1994
deathplace = Los Angeles

Anita Rose Morris (March 14, 1943 - March 2, 1994) was an American actress.

Among many roles, Morris is best remembered as Carol Dodsworth, the mistress to Danny DeVito, in the movie "Ruthless People" and for her sensual performance as Carla in the musical "Nine" opposite Raul Julia. While nominated for a Best Featured Actress Tony Award as Carla, she lost to Liliane Montevecchi, also in "Nine". 11 years later, Jane Krakowski won the Tony in the same category as Morris, playing Carla in a splashy revival with Antonio Banderas.

Her signature number in "Nine" was "A Call From the Vatican," and she also sang the effective "Simple," late in act two. She was scheduled to perform the former at the Tony Awards in 1982, but the TV censors found her outfit too revealing. Her stage work began in the American Mime Theatre, and carried her to Broadway both for "Nine", "Jesus Christ Superstar", and "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas".

Morris portrayed the lover of Rob Lowe in 1984's "The Hotel New Hampshire". Other film work included "Bloodhounds of Broadway" with Madonna, Randy Quaid, and Matt Dillon, "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" with Nick Nolte and Bette Midler, and "Radioland Murders", which was her final film role.

She made the rounds during the 1980s and early 1990s, making guest spots in some of the decades' most indelible sitcoms and dramas, including "Miami Vice", "Who's the Boss?", "Murder, She Wrote", and "Cheers" in the 80's and "Melrose Place", "Matlock", "Tales From the Crypt", and "A Different World" in the 90's. In 1984, Morris appeared in The Rolling Stones' video "She Was Hot".

She was the mother of actor James Badge Dale and was married since 1973 to actor Grover Dale. She died in Los Angeles, aged 50, after a long struggle with ovarian cancer, which was first diagnosed in 1980. She outlived the diagnosis by 15 years.

External links

*imdb|0606360
* [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1144349926228773144&q=grover+dale&total=34&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0 ANITA MORRIS RETRO 1981 from Eubie Blake Special (1981)]