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Alice Pearce Biography: Salary, Age, Wedding, Measurements, Ethnicity

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Known for movies

Lucy Shmeeler

On the Town (1949)
as Lucy Shmeeler

Gladys Kravitz

Bewitched (1964-1966)
as Gladys Kravitz

Irving's Wife

The Thrill of It All (1963)
as Irving's Wife

Mrs. Mulligan

Kiss Me, Stupid (1964)
as Mrs. Mulligan

Short Info

FactIn May of 1964 Alice had surgery and was already diagnosed with terminal cancer by the time she began the "Bewitched" sitcom in September of that year. She managed to keep it a secret and passed away 1 1/2 years into the series.


Alice Pearce (October 16, 1917 – March 3, 1966) was an American actress. She is best known for her role as Gladys Kravitz on the ABC television series Bewitched.

Pearce was born in New York City, the daughter of Margaret (née McNulty) and Joseph Francis Pearce. She had two brothers, Edward and Joseph Jr. Pearce attended the High School of Music & Art in Manhattan.

Pearce began her career as a chorus girl on Broadway in the 1930s. She made her film debut in the 1941 musical comedy Too Many Girls. She appeared in a number of other musicals in the 1940s, including Best Foot Forward (1943), Something for the Boys (1944), and Up in Central Park (1948).

In 1964, Pearce was cast as Gladys Kravitz, the nosy neighbor of Samantha Stephens (played by Elizabeth Montgomery) on the ABC television series Bewitched. Pearce appeared in all 164 episodes of the series, which aired until 1972.

Pearce was married to actor Oliver Thorndike from 1940 until his death in 1964. The couple had two children, Timothy and Barbara.

Pearce died of cancer on March 3, 1966, at the age of 48.

Social profile links

IMDBhttp://imdb.com/name/nm0668879

Quotes

#Quote
1I feel the progress of the disease in my case is unusual because of my mental attitude. I am a supremely happy woman. I have never been beautiful, but I have been blessed with a rich career and the love of two fine men. The strength I have found in the devotion of my dear Paul is beyond measure.

Facts

#Fact
1Biography in "Actresses of a Certain Character: Forty Familiar Hollywood Faces from the Thirties to the Fifties" by Axel Nissen.
2Alice portrayed blind date Lucy Schmeeler in the original Broadway stage version of "On the Town" and reprised her role in the classic movie musical On the Town (1949).
3The network (ABC) broke into the prime-time broadcast of Bewitched (1964) to announce her death.
4In May of 1964 Alice had surgery and was already diagnosed with terminal cancer by the time she began the "Bewitched" sitcom in September of that year. She managed to keep it a secret and passed away 1 1/2 years into the series.
5Met second husband Paul Davis in 1957 when she was appearing in the Broadway musical "Bells Are Ringing" starring Judy Holliday. Alice replaced Jean Stapleton in the show and Paul was the stage manager.
6Star Elizabeth Montgomery and husband/director William Asher helped Alice's husband after her death by giving him a job as a director on the "Bewitched" series. Davis, once a Broadway director, had given up his career to nurse Alice through her final illness.
7First husband, composer John Rox, was a songwriter and stage and film composer who wrote such hits as "It's a Big, Wide, Wonderful World." They put together Alice's nightclub acts for such venues as the Blue Angel in New York during the 40s.
8Educated in schools in Europe (Belgium, France, Italy, etc.), she returned to the States at age 15 and eventually attended Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York, graduating in 1940.
9She won a posthumous comedy supporting actress Emmy for her side-splitting work as neighborhood snoop Gladys Kravitz on Bewitched (1964). Her award was accepted by her husband, Paul Davis. Only two years later, Marion Lorne, as delightfully dithery Aunt Clara, also won a posthumous Emmy in the very same acting category. Elizabeth Montgomery accepted the award for Ms. Lorne.

Pictures

Alice Pearce
Alice Pearce, George Tobias
Alice Pearce
Alice Pearce, George Tobias

Movies

Actress

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Jamie1953-1954TV SeriesAnnie Moakum
The Motorola Television Hour1953TV SeriesHagga
Broadway Television Theatre1952-1953TV SeriesMiss Dale Ogden / Lady Emily Lyons
The Jean Carroll Show1953TV SeriesThe Neighbor (uncredited)
The Belle of New York1952Elsie Wilkins
Goodyear Playhouse1951TV Series
Lux Video Theatre1951TV SeriesNina
On the Town1949Lucy Shmeeler
Alice Pearce1949TV SeriesHost (1949)
Vacation Playhouse1967TV SeriesMusic Teacher
Bewitched1964-1966TV SeriesGladys Kravitz
The Glass Bottom Boat1966Mrs. Fenimore
Bus Riley's Back in Town1965Housewife
Dear Brigitte1965Unemployment Office Clerk
Kiss Me, Stupid1964Mrs. Mulligan
The Disorderly Orderly1964Mrs. Fuzzibee
Dear Heart1964Miss Moore
The New Phil Silvers Show1964TV SeriesAunt Millie
Hazel1964TV SeriesMiss Elsie
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour1963TV SeriesHaila French
The Donna Reed Show1963TV SeriesAdele Collins
The Thrill of It All1963Irving's Wife
Tammy and the Doctor1963Millie Baxter, Nurse
My Six Loves1963Bus Driver
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis1963TV SeriesMa Baker
Dennis the Menace1962TV SeriesLucy Tarbell
Lad: A Dog1962Hilda, the Nurse
General Electric Theater1962TV SeriesMrs. Ledbetter
Look Up and Live1961TV SeriesMiss Flip
The Ann Sothern Show1961TV SeriesLahona St Cyr / Ethel
Shirley Temple's Storybook1960-1961TV SeriesGoblin Queen / Rebecca
The Twilight Zone1961TV SeriesMrs. Nielson
A Christmas Festival1959TV MovieMiss Talmay
The Real McCoys1959TV SeriesEmmy
The Opposite Sex1956Olga
Kraft Theatre1955TV Series
Alice in Wonderland1955TV MovieDormouse
How to Be Very, Very Popular1955Miss 'Syl' Sylvester
Studio One in Hollywood1955TV SeriesRegina
The Goldbergs1955TV SeriesBeatrice
The Man Behind the Badge1954TV Series

Soundtrack

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Up All Night2015/IIShort performer: "Close the Door"
Bewitched1964-1965TV Series performer - 2 episodes
The Belle of New York1952performer: "Let a Little Love Come In", "Naughty but Nice" - uncredited
On the Town1949performer: "Count on Me" - uncredited

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Girl Talk1966TV SeriesHerself
The Jack Paar Tonight Show1957-1960TV SeriesHerself
Startime1960TV SeriesHerself
The Patrice Munsel Show1958TV SeriesHerself
The Frank Sinatra Show1958TV SeriesHerself
The Ed Sullivan Show1950-1955TV SeriesHerself
One Minute Please1954TV SeriesHerself / panelist
Wonderful Town, U.S.A.1951TV SeriesHerself
Texaco Star Theatre1950TV SeriesHerself / Herself - Comic Actress
Van Camp's Little Show1950TV SeriesHerself
Cavalcade of Stars1949TV SeriesHerself
The Meredith Willson Show1949TV SeriesHerself - Comedian

Archive Footage

TitleYearStatusCharacter
TV's All-Time Funniest: A Paley Center for Media Special2008TV SpecialHerself
Bewitched: The Magic Unveiled2005Video shortGladys Kravitz
The Fifties1997TV Mini-Series documentaryHerself (in girdle ad) (uncredited)
Bewitched1965TV SeriesGladys Kravitz

Awards

Won Awards

YearAwardCeremonyNominationMovie
2008TV Land AwardTV Land AwardsNeighbor You Try to AvoidBewitched (1964)
2005TV Land AwardTV Land AwardsFavorite Nosy NeighborBewitched (1964)
2003TV Land AwardTV Land AwardsNosiest NeighborBewitched (1964)
1966Primetime EmmyPrimetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a ComedyBewitched (1964)

Source: IMDb, Wikipedia

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