Phyllis Kirk

Phyllis Kirk, born Phyllis Kirkegaard (September 18 1927 - October 19 2006) was an American actress.

According to many accounts, Kirk was born in Syracuse, New York. She had polio as a child and as a result had difficulty walking later in life. Before entering show business on stage, she worked as a sales clerk, waitress, and model. She was brought to Hollywood by a Goldwyn scout and made her film debut in "Our Very Own" (1950). Later she became a Hollywood contract player for MGM and Warner Brothers.

Kirk is best known for her many television and film roles throughout the 1950s. She appeared with Vincent Price in the 3-D horror film "House of Wax" in 1953. Her most notable television role was opposite Peter Lawford in "The Thin Man" (1957—1959), where they played Nick and Nora Charles. She also appeared with Jerry Lewis in his 1957 film "The Sad Sack", with Robert Ryan, Anita Ekberg, and Rod Steiger in the 1956 film "Back from Eternity". Kirk was also a regular on "The Red Buttons Show". Kirk appeared as a guest on some television programs, including an episode of "The Twilight Zone", and was a panelist on "Mantrap" in 1971.

Kirk then returned to the stage before leaving show business altogether to enter public relations, working as a publicist for CBS News, retiring in 1992. She died on Thursday, October 19, 2006 of a post-cerebral aneurysm at age 79 in Woodland Hills, California. She was buried with her husband Warren Bush in the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia

External links

*imdb name|id=0456533|name=Phyllis Kirk
* [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/10/20/entertainment/e225655D81.DTL "San Francisco Chronicle": "Actress Phyllis Kirk, star of `House of Wax,' dies at 79," October 20, 2006]