Helen Hughes (January 8, 1918 - April 3, 2018) was an American-Canadian
actress who has worked in theatre, television, and film.
Biography
Helen Hughes was born in the
Johnstown, Pennsylvania, where she worked as an art teacher, editor and actress. Although she acted while she was in college, her undergraduate degree (from Indiana State University) and her graduate study (at Penn State) both focused on teaching art.
In 1938, Hughes was interviewed on Kate Smith's radio program as one of "the outstanding radio actresses from representative American cities".
She became a permanent resident of Canada in 1972. Her move resulted from acting opportunities, when she performed in 10 weeks of summer theatre in Canada. "I discovered that I loved Canada", she said. A contributing factor in her move was that her marriage had broken up. With her children grown, she felt free to make a change.
She was nominated for a
Dora Mavor Moore Award
The Dora Mavor Moore Award (also known as the Dora Award) is an award presented annually by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts which honours theatre, dance and opera productions in Toronto. Named after Dora Mavor Moore, who helped estab ...
in 1986. She made her last appearance at age 96, as a guest actress in the TV series ''
Sensitive Skin
Sensitive skin is a skin condition in which skin is prone to itching and irritation experienced as a subjective sensation when using cosmetics and toiletries. When questioned, over 50% of women in the UK and US, and 38% of men, report that they ha ...
''.
In 1980, Hughes starred in ''The 75th'' at the Lunchbox Theatre. in Alberta, Canada.
At the
10th Genie Awards
The 10th Genie Awards were held on March 22, 1989."Dead Ringers tops at Genies". ''Montreal Gazette'', March 23, 1989. This was in the middle of a strike at the CBC, causing the ceremony to be scaled down and several nominees to boycott the awards ...
in 1989, she received a nomination for
Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the film ''
Martha, Ruth and Edie
''Martha, Ruth and Edie'' is a Canadian drama film, released in 1988. An anthology film directed by Deepa Mehta, Norma Bailey and Danielle J. Suissa, the film centres on the titular Martha (Jennifer Dale), Ruth (Andrea Martin) and Edie (Lois Maxw ...
''.
["List of nominees for the Genie Awards". '' Montreal Gazette'', February 14, 1989.]
Hughes also made TV commercials for American Express, Anacin,
and one for Heinz ketchup that ran for about three years.
Selected filmography
References
External links
Helen Hughes works*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Helen
1918 births
2018 deaths
American emigrants to Canada
People from Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Actresses from Pennsylvania
American centenarians
Canadian centenarians
Canadian film actresses
20th-century Canadian actresses
Women centenarians
Indiana State University alumni