Beatrice Colen (January 10, 1948 – November 18, 1999) was an American television and film actress. Her most famous roles were Marsha Simms on ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marshall, it was one of the most su ...

'' and

Etta Candy Etta Candy is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics publications and related media, commonly as the best friend of the superhero Wonder Woman. Spirited and vivacious, with a devil-may-care attitude, Etta debuted as a young white woman with ...

on ''Wonder Woman''.

Early life

Colen was born to Anne and Bruce D Colen in New York City, New York. Both of her parents were of

German Jewish The history of the Jews in Germany goes back at least to the year 321, and continued through the Early Middle Ages (5th to 10th centuries CE) and High Middle Ages (''circa'' 1000–1299 CE) when Jewish immigrants founded the Ashkenazi Jewish ...

descent. She was the granddaughter of playwright George S. Kaufman.

Career

Starting in the 1970s, Colen landed roles early in her career in both film and television. On ''

'', she starred as

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

carhop A carhop is a waiter or waitress who brings fast food to people in their cars at drive-in restaurants. Carhops usually work on foot but sometimes use roller skates, as depicted in movies such as ''American Graffiti'' and television shows such as ...

Marsha Simms in seasons 1-3 and 5. She was the first actress to portray

in the live action adaptation of the DC comic book series ''Wonder Woman''. After the pilot, she appeared only during the series' first season (1976–77), which were set during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. When the series was retooled and reset in modern times, the character was dropped. Colen acted in such television film as '' Schoolboy Father'' (1980), ''

Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...

'', and in feature films such as '' Lifeguard'', ''

High Anxiety ''High Anxiety'' is a 1977 American satirical comedy film produced and directed by Mel Brooks, who also plays the lead. This is Brooks' first film as a producer and first speaking lead role (his first lead role was in ''Silent Movie''). Veteran ...

'', ''

American Pop ''American Pop'' is a 1981 American adult animated jukebox musical drama film starring Ron Thompson and produced and directed by Ralph Bakshi. It was the fourth animated feature film to be presented in Dolby sound. The film tells the story of f ...

'', and '' Who's that Girl''. She also guest starred on a number of TV shows such as ''

The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...

'', ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series ''Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'', ''

The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy/drama television series that aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired in 1986, 1987, and 1990. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS ''Pa ...

'', '' Kolchak: The Night Stalker'' (1974, premiere episode: "The Ripper"), ''

Barney Miller ''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th St in Greenwich Village. The series was broadcast on ABC Network from January 23, 1975, to May 20, 1982. It was created ...

'' (1981, episode: "The Rainmaker" and the 1975 episode: “Grand Hotel”), ''

The Wonder Years ''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy/drama television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super ...

'', and ''

Baywatch ''Baywatch'' is an American action drama television series about lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, and Hawaii, starring David Hasselhoff. It was created by Michael Berk, Douglas Schwartz, and Gregory J. Bo ...

''. Her final television appearance before retiring was in a 1997 episode of

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

's ''

The Secret World of Alex Mack ''The Secret World of Alex Mack'' is an American television series that ran from October 8, 1994 to January 15, 1998, on Nickelodeon (part of the SNICK line-up). The series was co-created by Ken Lipman and Thomas W. Lynch and was produced by Lynch ...

''.

Personal life and death

Colen was married to Patrick Cronin on October 23, 1977, and together they had two sons, James Cronin and Charlie Cronin. She died of lung cancer on November 18, 1999, in Los Angeles, California, at the

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

. Colen died on the opening night of Brentwood High School's production of ''

The Man Who Came to Dinner ''The Man Who Came to Dinner'' is a comedy play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. It debuted on October 16, 1939, at the Music Box Theatre in New York City, where it ran until 1941, closing after 739 performances. It then enjoyed a number of N ...

'', which was written by her grandfather, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright George S. Kaufman, and which starred her son, James Cronin, in the title role of Sheridan Whiteside. Her memorial service was held at Saint James Episcopal Church in Los Angeles ten days later.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Colen, Beatrice 1948 births 1999 deaths 20th-century American actresses American film actresses American people of German-Jewish descent American television actresses Actresses from New York City Jewish American actresses Deaths from lung cancer in California 20th-century American Jews