Yvonne Wilder (born Yvonne Othon, September 21, 1937 – November 24, 2021) was an American actress, comedian, writer, and artist. She appeared in ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid-1 ...

'' on stage and in the 1961 film, and had a busy career in American television from the 1960s into the 1990s.

Early life

Yvonne Othon was born in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, New York City. Her parents were from Cuba and Puerto Rico, but Othon did not learn to speak Spanish as a child. She attended the High School for Performing Arts, with further training at the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...

in London.

Career

As a young actress and dancer, Yvonne Othon appeared in shows starring

Imogene Coca Imogene Coca (born Emogeane Coca; November 18, 1908 – June 2, 2001) was an American comic actress best known for her role opposite Sid Caesar on ''Your Show of Shows''. Starting out in vaudeville as a child acrobat, she studied ballet and wishe ...

and

Carol Burnett Carol Creighton Burnett (born April 26, 1933) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and writer. Her groundbreaking comedy variety show ''The Carol Burnett Show'', which originally aired on CBS was one of the first of its kind to be hosted ...

. While she was studying in London, Othon appeared in a West End production of ''West Side Story'', and later played Anita in the first international touring company of the show. Othon's first screen credit was as Consuelo in ''

'' (1961). She and

Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...

were among the few Puerto Rican performers playing Puerto Rican characters in the film, and they both worked with Natalie Wood on her accent as Maria. She attended some reunion events related to ''West Side Story''. "She was a worldly, wiseass New Yorker, intelligent and ''very'' funny," recalled her friend and fellow dancer from ''West Side Story'', actress

Nobuko Miyamoto is a Japanese actress. She was born in Otaru, Hokkaidō, and raised in Nagoya. She was married to director Juzo Itami from 1969 until his death in 1997, and regularly starred in his films. She has been nominated for eight Best Actress Japanese ...

. Wilder was also known for roles in the vampire film, ''

The Return of Count Yorga ''The Return of Count Yorga'' (originally titled ''Yorga Returns'') is a 1971 American vampire horror film directed by Bob Kelljan and starring Robert Quarry, Roger Perry, Yvonne Wilder, George Macready, Rudy De Luca, Edward Walsh, and Craig T. Ne ...

'' (1971), which she co-wrote; and in ''

Silent Movie ''Silent Movie'' is a 1976 American satirical comedy film co-written, directed by and starring Mel Brooks, released by 20th Century Fox in the summer of 1976. The ensemble cast includes Dom DeLuise, Marty Feldman, Bernadette Peters, and Sid Cae ...

'' (1976), '' Bloodbrothers'' (1978), ''Why Not Stay for Breakfast?'' (1979), ''

The Last Married Couple in America ''The Last Married Couple in America'' is a 1980 comedy film released in the US. It was directed by Gilbert Cates, whose most successful film ''Oh, God! Book II'', was released in the same year. The film starred George Segal and Natalie Wood as ...

'' (1980), and '' Seems Like Old Times'' (1980). Most of Wilder's work was in television, including roles in ''

Hennesey ''Hennesey'' is an American military comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from 1959 to 1962, starring Jackie Cooper and Abby Dalton. Cooper played a United States Navy physician, Lt. Charles W. "Chick" Hennesey, with Abby Dalton ...

'' (1962), ''

CBS Workshop ''CBS Workshop'', aka ''CBS Repertoire Workshop'' is an hour-long dramatic television anthology series that was produced by and aired on CBS mid-day on Sundays in the 1960s. There were a total of twenty-five episodes with guest stars that included ...

'' (1964), ''

Hey, Landlord ''Hey Landlord!'' is an American sitcom that appeared on NBC during the 1966–1967 season, sponsored by Procter & Gamble in the 8:30-9pm Eastern time period on Sunday nights. It is notable for its casting director Fred Roos, who later became a pr ...

'' (1967), ''

Bracken's World ''Bracken's World'' is an American drama television series that aired on NBC from September 19, 1969, to December 25, 1970. The series was created and produced by Dorothy Kingsley. The Lettermen performed the second-season theme song "Worlds". ...

'' (1969), ''

Room 222 ''Room 222'' is an American comedy-drama television series produced by 20th Century Fox Television that aired on ABC for 112 episodes, from September 17, 1969 until January 11, 1974. The show was broadcast on Wednesday evenings at 8:30 ( EST) fo ...

'' (1969–1970), ''

The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977. Moor ...

'' (1972), ''

The Courtship of Eddie's Father ''The Courtship of Eddie's Father'' is an American sitcom based on the 1963 film of the same name, which was based on a novel by Mark Toby (edited by Dorothy Wilson). The series is about a widower, Tom Corbett (played by Bill Bixby), who is a ...

'' (1972), ''

The Partridge Family ''The Partridge Family'' is an American musical sitcom starring Shirley Jones and featuring David Cassidy. Jones plays a widowed mother, and Cassidy plays the oldest of her five children, in a family who embarks on a music career. It ran from Se ...

'' (1971–1972), ''

The Girl with Something Extra ''The Girl with Something Extra'' is an American fantasy sitcom that aired on NBC for one season during 1973–1974. The series was created by Bernard Slade and produced by Screen Gems. Synopsis ''The Girl with Something Extra'' is a comedy abo ...

'' (1973), ''

Death Sentence Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

'' (1974), ''

On the Rocks Various unique terminology is used in bartending. Definitions and usage Straight, up, and straight up In bartending, the terms "straight up" and "up" ordinarily refer to an alcoholic drink that is shaken or stirred with ice and then strained ...

'' (1975–1976), ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy in 1 ...

'' (1976), '' Police Story'' (1977), ''Operation Petticoat'' (1977–1978), '' The Tenth Month'' (1979), '' One Day at a Time'' (1979), ''

Archie Bunker's Place ''Archie Bunker's Place'' is an American television sitcom produced as a continuation of ''All in the Family''. It aired on CBS from September 23, 1979, to April 4, 1983. While not as popular as its predecessor, the show maintained a large enough ...

'' (1981–1982), ''

Mama's Family ''Mama's Family'' is an American sitcom television series starring Vicki Lawrence as Thelma Harper, Mama (Thelma Harper). The series is a Spin-off (media), spin-off of a recurring series of sketch comedy, comedy sketches called "The Family (sketc ...

'' (1983), ''

Gimme a Break! ''Gimme a Break!'' is an American television sitcom created by Morton Lachman, Mort Lachman and Sy Rosen, that aired on NBC for six seasons from October 29, 1981, to May 12, 1987. The series starred Nell Carter as the housekeeper for a widowed ...

'' (1986–1987), ''

227 Year 227 ( CCXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Senecio and Fulvius (or, less frequently, year 980 ''Ab urbe condi ...

'' (1988), '' The Equalizer'' (1986–1989), and ''

Full House ''Full House'' is an American television sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for ABC. The show is about widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and childhood best friend Joey Gladstone to help raise his three dau ...

'' (1988–1991). Wilder was also half of a comedy duo with

Jack Colvin Jack Colvin (October 13, 1934 – December 1, 2005) was an American character actor of theatre, film and TV. He is best known for the role of the tabloid reporter Jack McGee in ''The Incredible Hulk'' television franchise (1977–82). Ear ...

. Later in life, she was a painter and sculptor, and wrote a play, ''Weehawken'', performed in Los Angeles in 1988.

Personal life

Wilder married five times. Her third husband was Bob Kelljan (Robert Kelluchian). Her fifth husband was Zach Kleiman. She had one son, Chris. She died at home in Los Angeles on November 24, 2021, at the age of 84.

References

External links

*
Yvonne Othon Wilder's websiteColvin & Wilder on ''The Hollywood Palace''
In 1964, on YouTube
Colvin & Wilder on ''Gimme a Break!''
on YouTube {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilder, Yvonne 1937 births 2021 deaths American actresses American dancers Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School alumni American people of Cuban descent American people of Puerto Rican descent American comedians People from the Bronx