Trudi Ames (born Trudi Ziskind on November 10, 1946) is a former actress most notable for her uncredited but memorable role in ''

Bye Bye Birdie ''Bye Bye Birdie'' is a stage musical with music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Lee Adams, based upon a book by Michael Stewart. Originally titled ''Let's Go Steady'', ''Bye Bye Birdie'' is set in 1958. The short story "Dream Man", authored ...

'' as Kim's best friend Ursula. She also had a notable role as Libby in ''

Gidget Goes to Rome ''Gidget Goes to Rome'' is a 1963 Columbia Pictures Eastmancolor feature film starring Cindy Carol as the archetypal high school teen surfer girl originally portrayed by Sandra Dee in the 1959 film ''Gidget''. The film is the third of three Gidg ...

'' and was an extra in ''

Gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

''. In a TV special on January 7, 1965,

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

recognized her as one of the entertainment industry's dozen "most promising young actresses". Ames also appeared on such television series as ''

The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis ''The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis'' (also known as simply ''Dobie Gillis'' or ''Max Shulman's Dobie Gillis'' in later seasons and in syndication) is an American sitcom starring Dwayne Hickman that aired on CBS from September 29, 1959, to June 5 ...

'', ''

Make Room for Daddy ''The Danny Thomas Show'' (titled ''Make Room for Daddy'' for its first three seasons) is an American sitcom that ran from 1953 to 1957 on ABC and from 1957 to 1964 on CBS. Starring Danny Thomas as a successful night club entertainer, the show fo ...

'', ''

Green Acres ''Green Acres'' is an American television sitcom starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a country farm. Produced by Filmways as a sister show to ''Petticoat Junction'', the series was first broadcast on ...

'' and ''

The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American television sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Product ...

''.

Biography

Born November 10, 1946 in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Louis Ziskind, a social worker for Los Angeles' Jewish Committee for Personal Service, Ames married Steven R. Lenenberg in 1971; the couple divorced in 1974. Ames attended the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

where she was on the Dean's Honor List.

Career

Ames in 1960 performed in the role of Cassie Devlin in the episode "The Sunday Man" on the television

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

series ''

Zane Grey Theatre ''Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre'' is an American Western anthology television series that was broadcast on CBS from October 5, 1956, until September 20, 1962. Format Many episodes were based on novels by Zane Grey, to all of which Four Star F ...

''. Three years later, at the age of 16, she made her film debut in the musical comedy ''

''. She had a recurring role on the television show, ''

Karen Karen may refer to: * Karen (name), a given name and surname * Karen (slang), a term and meme for a demanding woman displaying certain behaviors People * Karen people, an ethnic group in Myanmar and Thailand ** Karen languages or Karenic l ...

'', where she played Debbie Watson's friend, Candy. Ames appeared in other television shows during the 1960s, including episodes of ''

Please Don't Eat the Daisies ''Please Don't Eat the Daisies'' (New York: Doubleday, 1957) is a best-selling collection of humorous essays by American humorist and playwright Jean Kerr about suburban living and raising four boys. The essays do not have a plot or through-sto ...

, My Three Sons'' and ''

''. During that period, Ames was also chosen as one of "The Hollywood Deb Stars of 1966." Her post-acting life has included teaching in the Los Angeles area public schools for 20 years, and working for the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1978-83 as a brakeman and locomotive engineer. As Prashant Ziskind, she has worked as a life transitions coach, particularly for creative people including performance artists.

Filmography

*''

The Impossible Years ''The Impossible Years'' is a 1965 comedy play written by Robert Fisher and Arthur Marx, son of comedian Groucho Marx. After two previews, the Broadway production, directed by Arthur Storch, opened on October 13, 1965, at the Playhouse Theatre, ...

'' (1968) as Francine *''

Cinderella "Cinderella",; french: link=no, Cendrillon; german: link=no, Aschenputtel) or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a folk tale with thousands of variants throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsi ...

'' (1965) as Daughter *''

'' (1960; two episodes as Jenny) *''

'' (1965; 1 episode as Margie) *''

'' (1963) as Libby Bennett *''

'' (1963) as Ursula (uncredited) *''

'' (1962) as Scottish Girl (in Uncle Jocko Scene; uncredited) *''

My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chronicl ...

'' (1962) season 2, Blind Date, as Jenie Miller

References

External links

* Living people American child actresses American film actresses American television actresses American people of Jewish descent 1946 births 21st-century American women {{US-screen-actor-1940s-stub