Karen Kay Sharpe (born September 20, 1934) is an American film and television actress. She is known for playing Laura Thomas in the American

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 ...

television series ''

Johnny Ringo John Peters Ringo (May 3, 1850 – July 13, 1882), known as Johnny Ringo, was an American Old West outlaw loosely associated with the Cochise County Cowboys in frontier boomtown Tombstone, Arizona Territory. He took part in the Mason County ...

''.

Life and career

Sharpe was born in

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...

, the daughter of Dorothy Shrout and Kirk Howard Sharpe. Her father was a

businessman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for the ...

and oilman. She was an ice skater in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Picture ...

and a student at the Hollywood Professional School. She studied dancing with

ballet dancer A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ye ...

and

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who c ...

Adolph Bolm Adolph Rudolphovich Bolm (russian: Адольф Рудольфович Больм; September 25, 1884 – April 16, 1951) was a Russian-born American ballet dancer and choreographer, of German descent. Biography Bolm graduated from the Russi ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

Dennis Hopper & Karen Sharpe - Conflict TV Promotional Photograph (1957)

Sharpe had unsuccessful screen tests while she worked as a

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...

. After she was discovered by a talent scout, she began her career in 1952, starring in the film ''

Army Bound ''Army Bound'' is a 1952 American drama film directed by Paul Landres and written by Al Martin. The film stars Stanley Clements, Karen Sharpe, Steve Brodie, Jeffrey Stone, Harry Hayden, Lela Bliss and Gil Stratton. The film was released on Octo ...

''. Sharpe also appeared in the films '' The Sniper'', ''

Bomba and the Jungle Girl ''Bomba and the Jungle Girl'' is a 1952 American adventure film directed by Ford Beebe and starring Johnny Sheffield. It is the eighth film (of 12) in the ''Bomba, the Jungle Boy'' film series.http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/26652/Bomba-and-the-J ...

'', ''

Holiday for Sinners ''Holiday for Sinners'' is a 1952 American drama film directed by Gerald Mayer and starring Gig Young, Keenan Wynn and Janice Rule. Plot Three men, reared together in New Orleans, but whose paths have drifted apart, each face a crisis during the ...

'', ''

The Vanquished ''The Vanquished'' is a 1953 American Western film directed by Edward Ludwig, written by Lewis R. Foster, Winston Miller and Frank L. Moss, and starring John Payne, Jan Sterling, Coleen Gray, Lyle Bettger, Willard Parker, Roy Gordon and John ...

'', ''

Strange Fascination ''Strange Fascination'' is a 1952 American film noir directed by Hugo Haas, starring Cleo Moore, himself and Mona Barrie.. This was the first of six films pairing Haas and Moore. Plot The life of Paul Marvan (Haas), a world-famous concert piani ...

'' and '' Mexican Manhunt''. She guest-starred in television programs, including ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...

'' (1957 episode “Sweet and Sour”), ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on ...

'', ''

Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...

'', '' Perry Mason'', ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western, espionage, and science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 1969. Two satirical comedy television film sequels ...

'', '' The Texan'', '' Rawhide'', ''

Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. ''Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.''The show (and CBS) renders the title as ''Gomer Pyle – USMC''. is an American situation comedy that originally aired on CBS from September 25, 1964, to May 2, 1969. The series was a spin-off of ''The Andy Griffith Sho ...

'', '' Trackdown'', '' Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer'', ''

77 Sunset Strip ''77 Sunset Strip'' is an American television private detective drama series created by Roy Huggins and starring Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Roger Smith, Richard Long (from 1960 to 1961) and Edd Byrnes (billed as Edward Byrnes). Each episode was o ...

'', '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'', '' The Millionaire'' and ''

I Dream of Jeannie ''I Dream of Jeannie'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series, created by Sidney Sheldon that starred Barbara Eden as a sultry, 2,000-year-old genie and Larry Hagman, as an astronaut with whom she falls in love and eventually mar ...

''. In 1955, Sharpe won the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

in the category New Star of the Year – Actress for her acting performance as Nell Buck in the 1954 film '' The High and the Mighty'', along with actresses,

Shirley MacLaine Shirley MacLaine (born Shirley MacLean Beaty, April 24, 1934) is an American actress, author, and former dancer. Known for her portrayals of quirky, strong-willed and eccentric women, MacLaine has received numerous accolades over her seven-dec ...

and

Kim Novak Marilyn Pauline "Kim" Novak (born February 13, 1933) is an American retired film and television actress and painter. Novak began her career in 1954 after signing with Columbia Pictures and quickly became one of Hollywood's top box office stars, ...

Mark Goddard Don Durant Karen Sharpe Johnny Ringo 1959

In 1959, Sharpe starred in the new CBS

television series ''

'', playing Laura Thomas. She retired in 1966, last appearing in the

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

''Valley of Mystery'', playing Connie Lane.

Personal life

Sharpe married Chester Stevens Marshall, an actor, in 1957. She later filed for divorce from Marshall, on the grounds that he had physically abused her. According to

The Odessa American The ''Odessa American'' is a newspaper based in Odessa, Texas, that serves Odessa and the rest of Ector County. The newspaper has daily editions (sold at $2) and Sunday/Thanksgiving Day editions (sold at $3). The paper is particularly notable for ...

, due to beatings at the hands of Marshall, her

rib cage The rib cage, as an enclosure that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum in the thorax of most vertebrates, protects vital organs such as the heart, lungs and great vessels. The sternum, together known as the thoracic cage, is a sem ...

was contused and her head was smashed into

brickwork Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called ''courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall. Bricks may be differentiated from blocks by si ...

. The divorce became final on September 18, 1962. Chester Stevens Marshall was murdered at his home in 1974. In the early 1960s Sharpe inherited her father's business, and spent several years running it in Texas before selling up and returning to California. Sharpe subsequently married

Stanley Kramer Stanley Earl Kramer (September 29, 1913February 19, 2001) was an American film director and producer, responsible for making many of Hollywood's most famous "message picture, message films" (he would call his movies ''heavy dramas'') and a libera ...

, a

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

and producer, on September 1, 1966. They were married in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

. They had two children, Jennifer and Katharine. Sharpe settled in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...

in 1978 and moved to Beverly Hills, California, in 1985. In 2022, Sharpe revealed that she was

sexually assaulted Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, whic ...

and harassed by comedian, actor, singer, director, producer, writer and

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in popular culture, pop culture ...

on the set of the 1964 film '' The Disorderly Orderly''. She stated that Lewis had sent for Sharpe to come his office, whereupon he grabbed and fondled her, then unzipped his pants. Sharpe stated that "I was dumbstruck." She rebuffed his advances, which enraged Lewis so much that that was the last time she ever worked with him. Actress Hope Holiday shared that she was similarly sexually assaulted by Lewis.

References

External links

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Rotten Tomatoes profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharpe, Karen 1934 births Living people People from San Antonio Actresses from San Antonio Actresses from Texas American film actresses American television actresses 20th-century American actresses Western (genre) television actors American models New Star of the Year (Actress) Golden Globe winners 20th-century American women 21st-century American women