Danica d'Hondt (born 29 May 1939) is an English-Canadian actress, writer and businesswoman. She was a winner of the

Miss Canada Miss Canada is a beauty pageant for young women in Canada. It was founded in Hamilton in 1946. No title was awarded from 1993 through 2008. The trademark was purchased in 2009 by a Québec organization who produces the pageant under the name to ...

pageant in 1958 and has worked in American television and film, and theater productions in the San Francisco area.

Biography

d'Hondt was born in London, England, of an Irish mother and a Belgian father. She is the sister of Canadian Olympic Gold Medalist Walter D'Hondt, the mother of actress

America Olivo America Athene Olivo (born January 5, 1978) is an American actress and singer best known as a member of the band Soluna, for her roles in the films ''Bitch Slap'' (2009), '' Friday the 13th'' (2009) and ''Maniac'' (2012), as well as starring in ...

, and mother-in-law of actors

Christian Campbell Christian Bethune Campbell (born May 12, 1972) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his roles as Gabriel in the film ''Trick'', Greg Ivey in the television series ''Big Love'' and on stage as Jimmy Harper in the musical ''Reefer Madness''. Ea ...

and Jason Brooks. D'Hondt began her career at the age of nine by appearing in a movie at

Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not to be confused w ...

in England. She worked in radio, TV and on stage in Canada, where her family emigrated while she was still in school. She graduated from high school in Montreal, and returned to England after attending the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

in Vancouver. She worked as a stage actress in London, also performing in radio and TV dramas for the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

, and then relocated to Toronto, Canada, where she became a CBC-TV game show personality and a talk show host at an early age. She also appeared on TV shows out of New York City, and in summer stock theatre in New York and Illinois. She starred with comic

Harvey Korman Harvey Herschel Korman (February 15, 1927May 29, 2008) was an American actor and comedian who performed in television and film productions. His big break was being a featured performer on CBS' ''The Danny Kaye Show'', but he is best remembered f ...

in ''Living Venus'' (1961), a film shot in Chicago in 1960. D'Hondt's Hollywood career spans the years from 1960 to 1990, during which time she starred in "B" movies, played supporting roles in major Hollywood movies, and performed guest-starring roles on TV shows of the time as ''

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. ''The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction television series produced by MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and first broadcast on NBC. The series follows secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who wo ...

'' (1964); ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western, espionage, and science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 1969. Two satirical comedy television film sequels w ...

'' (1965); ''

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1961 American science fiction disaster film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, and starring Walter Pidgeon and Robert Sterling. The supporting cast includes Peter Lorre, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, M ...

'' (1964); and ''

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

'' (1966). She turned down the role of "Ginger" in ''

Gilligan's Island ''Gilligan's Island'' is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells. It aired for thr ...

'' (1964). She left Hollywood from 1966 to 1971, during which time she worked as a theatre director in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

, where she also wrote for a magazine, produced educational films and taught acting at her own school, "The Actor's Lab", on Sacramento Street. Upon her return to Hollywood in 1971, she directed several stage productions, worked as a writer and associate producer in film and television, and did a stint as a television journalist, becoming the Consumer and Financial Reporter to a syndicated daytime magazine show called "Breakaway". She relocated to Northern California in the 1990s, became active in real estate investing and had two non-fiction books published. D'Hondt is married to businessman and winemaker Nello Olivo, and they have six children together. The couple lives on a vineyard in the Sierra Foothills, where she writes, teaches, and helps tend their vineyard. The couple also owns a large restaurant and banquet facility in Placerville, California, named "Sequoia".

Filmography

*1971: '' A Step Out of Line'' ... Doreen *1966: '' Unkissed Bride'' ... Dr. Marilyn Richards *1966:''

'' ... Maggie Calloway *1965: ''

'' ... Lola Hale *1965: ''

'' ... Roxanne *1965: ''

A Very Special Favor ''A Very Special Favor'' is a 1965 romantic comedy film directed by Michael Gordon and starring Rock Hudson and Leslie Caron. Plot Paul Chadwick (Hudson) is a wealthy American oilman who is in a Parisian court, where he is up against the opposin ...

'' ... Jacqueline *1965: ''

'' ... Lucia Nazarone *1965: ''

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...

'' ... Donna *1964: ''

The Cara Williams Show ''The Cara Williams Show'' is an American situation comedy starring Cara Williams which centers on a married couple who try to conceal their marriage from their employer. Original episodes aired from September 23, 1964, until April 21, 1965 on CBS. ...

'' ... Constance (episode "Cara, Girl Genius") *1964: '' A House Is Not a Home'' ... Vicki *1964: ''

Bedtime Story A bedtime story is a traditional form of storytelling, where a story is told to a child at bedtime to prepare the child for sleep. The bedtime story has long been considered "a definite institution in many families".Dickson, Marguerite Stockma ...

'' ... Miss Knudsen *1964: ''

Wild and Wonderful ''Wild and Wonderful'' is a 1964 comedy film directed by Michael Anderson and starring Tony Curtis and Christine Kaufmann. The screenplay concerns a clever French poodle named Monsieur Cognac, and the dog's effect on the newly married couple po ...

'' ... Monique *1964: '' Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' ... Diana *1962: ''

I'm Dickens, He's Fenster ''I'm Dickens, He's Fenster'' is an American sitcom starring John Astin and Marty Ingels that ran on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from September 28, 1962 to May 10, 1963. The series was created and produced by Leonard B. Stern, Leonard Ster ...

'' ... Dianne *1961: ''

Living Venus ''Living Venus'' is a 1961 exploitation film loosely based on the life of ''Playboy'' magazine founder Hugh Hefner. Marking the directorial debut of Herschell Gordon Lewis, the film stars frequent Lewis collaborators William Kerwin as unscrupulou ...

'' ... Peggy Brandon

References

Notes

Sources & further reading

External links

*
movies.yahoo.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:d'Hondt, Danica 1939 births Living people Actresses from London British real estate businesspeople Canadian beauty pageant winners Canadian expatriates in the United States Canadian film actresses Canadian non-fiction writers Canadian people of Belgian descent Canadian people of Irish descent Canadian real estate businesspeople Canadian restaurateurs Women restaurateurs Canadian theatre directors Canadian women theatre directors Canadian winemakers English beauty pageant winners English film actresses English non-fiction writers English people of Belgian descent English people of Irish descent English restaurateurs English stage actresses English theatre directors British women theatre directors English winemakers English emigrants to Canada English expatriates in the United States Miss Canada winners Miss World 1960 delegates University of British Columbia alumni 20th-century English women 20th-century English people