Rudy Vallee How to Succeed in Business Broadway 1961

Virginia Martin (December 2, 1927 – August 27, 2009) was an American actress and singer known for her work on the Broadway stage and on television. She was nominated for the

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

for Best Featured Actress in a Musical in 1963.

Early life

Martin was born in

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, the daughter of Tommy T. and Harville Martin. She had two brothers, Jere and Donald, and was a graduate of the

University of Chattanooga The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UT-Chattanooga, UTC, or Chattanooga) is a public university in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1886 and is one of four universities and two other affiliated institutions in the ...

Theatre

Martin made her

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debut during the original run of the musical '' South Pacific'' in the role of Ensign Bessie Noonan. In 1954, Martin was in the chorus of the original Broadway cast for the musical ''

The Pajama Game ''The Pajama Game'' is a musical based on the 1953 novel '' 7½ Cents'' by Richard Bissell. The book is by George Abbott and Richard Bissell; the music and lyrics are by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. and dances were staged by Bob Fosse in his ...

''. In 1955, she was a part of the cast of the musical ''

Ankles Aweigh ''Ankles Aweigh'' is a musical with a book by Guy Bolton and Eddie Davis, lyrics by Dan Shapiro, and music by Sammy Fain. The plot involves Hollywood starlet Wynne, who secretly marries a Navy pilot while filming a movie in Sicily. She disguises ...

'', again in the chorus. She next appeared in the revue show ''New Faces of 1956''. In 1958, Martin understudied the lead role of Irene Lovelle under star

Vivian Blaine Vivian Blaine (born Vivian Stapleton; November 21, 1921 – December 9, 1995) was an American actress and singer, best known for originating the role of Miss Adelaide in the musical theater production of ''Guys and Dolls'', as well as appearin ...

in the musical ''

Say, Darling ''Say, Darling'' is a three-act comic play by Abe Burrows and Richard and Marian Bissell about the creation of a Broadway musical. Although the play featured nine original songs with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Sty ...

''. In 1961, Martin originated the role of Hedy La Rue in the original Broadway production of ''

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' may refer to: * ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' (book), a 1952 book written by Shepherd Mead and the inspiration for the musical of the same name. * ''How to Succeed in Bu ...

''. In 1963, Martin was nominated for a

Tony Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for originating the role of Young Belle Poitrine in the musical '' Little Me''. Martin played the younger version of Belle Poitrine with Nancy Andrews playing the older version of the character. '' Little Me'' was revived on Broadway twice, in 1982 and 1998. In the second revival, the character was played by one actress. '' Little Me'' was written by

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

and starred

Sid Caesar Isaac Sidney Caesar (September 8, 1922 – February 12, 2014) was an American comic actor, comedian and writer. With a career spanning 60 years, he was best known for two pioneering 1950s live television series: ''Your Show of Shows'' (1950� ...

. The show opened on Nov 17, 1962 at the

Lunt-Fontanne Theatre The Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, originally the Globe Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 205 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1910, the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre was designed by Carrère and Hasti ...

and closed on June 29, 1963, after 257 performances. In February 1965, Martin played the lead role of Emily Kirsten in the musical ''

Bajour Bajaur District ( ps, باجوړ ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. Until 2018, it was an agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, then during restructuring that merg ...

'' that was originated by

Nancy Dussault Nancy Dussault (born June 30, 1936) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for playing Muriel Rush in the sitcom ''Too Close for Comfort'' (1980–1987). In a career spanning over half a century, Dussault received two Tony Award n ...

. Her last appearance on Broadway was in the 1979 musical ''

Carmelina ''Carmelina'' is a musical with a book by Joseph Stein and Alan Jay Lerner, lyrics by Lerner, and music by Burton Lane. Based on the 1968 film '' Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell'', it focuses on an Italian woman who has raised her teenaged daughte ...

''.

Television

Martin made several appearances on '' Bewitched'' between 1965 and 1966, notably as Charmaine Leach, the wife of conniving private investigator Charlie Leach ( Robert Strauss)and also the role of Roxie Ames.

Death

She died on August 27, 2009, in her native

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...

at the age of 81 from undisclosed causes.

External links

* *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Virginia 1927 births 20th-century American singers 2009 deaths 20th-century American actresses People from Chattanooga, Tennessee American musical theatre actresses American television actresses Actresses from Tennessee Singers from Tennessee University of Tennessee at Chattanooga alumni 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American women