Marian Winters (April 19, 1920 – November 3, 1978) was an American dramatist and actress of

stage Stage or stages may refer to: Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly British theatre newspaper * Sta ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

, and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

Biography

Marian Winters was born Marian Weinstein, the eldest of four sisters born to Morris and Sophie Weinstein. Her three sisters, Shirley Zeisel (died 2010), Elaine Singer (died 2014), and Annette Laster (died 2019), long outlived her. She was raised in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. She made her debut in summer stock in her teens. She began her career on Broadway understudying

Frances Dee Frances Marion Dee (November 26, 1909 – March 6, 2004) was an American actress. Her first film was the musical ''Playboy of Paris'' (1930). She starred in the film '' An American Tragedy'' (1931). She is also known for starring in the 1943 ...

in ''The Secret Room'' (1945). She also played Lady Constance in '' King John'', and toured in such plays as ''

Detective Story Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...

'', ''

The Heiress ''The Heiress'' is a 1949 American romantic drama film directed and produced by William Wyler, from a screenplay written by Ruth and Augustus Goetz, adapted from their 1947 stage play of the same title, which was itself adapted from Henry Jame ...

'' and '' Dream Girl''. Winters achieved fame for her role in ''

I Am a Camera ''I Am a Camera'' is a 1951 Broadway play by John Van Druten adapted from Christopher Isherwood's 1939 novel ''Goodbye to Berlin'', which is part of '' The Berlin Stories''. The title is a quotation taken from the novel's first page: "I am a cam ...

'' as Natalia Landauer. For this performance she was awarded various acting honors including the 1952

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 cer ...

as a Best Supporting or Featured Actress. In 1955, she played Gelda in the American production of ''The Dark is Light Enough'', a verse drama by

Christopher Fry Christopher Fry (18 December 1907 – 30 June 2005) was an English poet and playwright. He is best known for his verse dramas, especially ''The Lady's Not for Burning'', which made him a major force in theatre in the 1940s and 1950s. Biograph ...

, which starred

Katharine Cornell Katharine Cornell (February 16, 1893June 9, 1974) was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born in Berlin to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York. Dubbed "The First Lady of the Theatre" by critic A ...

and

Tyrone Power Tyrone Edmund Power III (May 5, 1914 – November 15, 1958) was an American actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include '' Jesse James'', ...

. Her last role was in '' Deathtrap''.

Writing

In 1967, Winters won an Emmy for her television adaptation of Animal Keepers, one of the three one-act plays comprising ''A is for All''.

Death

Her tenure in ''Deathtrap'' was cut short due to

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, which claimed her life on November 3, 1978. She was succeeded in her role (Helga Ten Dorp) by Elizabeth Parrish. The role was played by

Irene Worth Irene Worth, CBE (June 23, 1916March 10, 2002) was an American stage and screen actress who became one of the leading stars of the British and American theatre. She pronounced her given name with three syllables: "I-REE-nee". Worth made her Bro ...

in the film version.

Personal life

Winters was married to NBC executive Jerome H. "Jay" Smolin (November 29, 1919 – October 21, 2010) from circa 1946/1947 until her death in 1978. The couple had no children.

Stage productions

* ''The Dark Is Light Enough'' as Gelda (February 23, 1955 to April 23, 1955) * ''

Auntie Mame ''Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade'' is a 1955 novel by American author Patrick Dennis chronicling the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his Aunt Mame Dennis, the sister of his dead father. The book is often desc ...

'' as Sally Cato MacDougal (October 31, 1956 to June 28, 1958) * ''

Tall Story ''Tall Story'' is a 1960 American romantic comedy film made by Warner Bros., directed by Joshua Logan and starring Anthony Perkins with Jane Fonda, in her first screen role. It is based on the 1957 novel ''The Homecoming Game'' by Howard Nemero ...

'' as Myra Solomon (January 29, 1959 to May 22, 1959) * ''

The 49th Cousin ''The 49th Cousin'' is a play by Florence Lowe and Caroline Francke. The work premiered on Broadway at the Ambassador Theatre on 27 October 1960 and closed after 102 performances on January 21, 1961.Volume 42 - Page 303 The production was direc ...

'' as Tracy Lowe (October 27, 1960 to January 21, 1961) * ''Nobody Loves an Albatross'' as Marge Weber (December 19, 1963 to June 20, 1964) * ''Mating Dance'' (November 3, 1965 to November 3, 1965) * '' Deathtrap'' as Helga ten Dorp (February 26, 1978 until October 1978)

Television

* ''

Lux Video Theatre ''Lux Video Theatre'' is an American television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1957. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays. Overview The ''Lux Vid ...

'' (1952) * ''

Play of the Week Play of the Week may refer to: *''ITV Play of the Week'', British TV anthology series broadcast from 1956 to 1966 *''The Play of the Week'', American TV anthology series broadcast from 1959 to 1961 See also *''Play of the Month ''Play of the M ...

'' (1960) * '' The Defenders'' (1962) * '' The Nurses'' (1963) * ''

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse (poetry), verse. A second edition fo ...

'' (1974)

References

External links

*
Infosite
abaa.org; accessed May 20, 2015. {{DEFAULTSORT:Winters, Marian 1920 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from New York City American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Jewish American actresses Place of death missing Donaldson Award winners Tony Award winners Writers from New York City 20th-century American Jews