shelliemacs Posted August 10, 2005 Share Posted August 10, 2005 I just read this on MSN that Miss Ellis passed away from lung cancer today. Actress Barbara Bel Geddes has died Most famous role was Miss Ellie Ewing on ‘Dallas’ Barbara Bel Geddes, shown here in 1949, had a whole career before "Dallas," but her role as the gentle yet strong Ewing family matriarch brought her a whole new generation of fans. Keystone / Getty Images MSNBC staff and news service reports Updated: 3:57 p.m. ET Aug. 10, 2005 Barbara Bel Geddes, the winsome actress who rose to stage and movie stardom but reached her greatest fame as Miss Ellie Ewing in the long-running TV series “Dallas,” has died. She was 82. The San Francisco Chronicle said she died Monday of lung cancer at her home in Northeast Harbor, Maine. Jordan-Fernald Funeral Home in Mount Desert, Maine, confirmed the death Wednesday, but owner Bill Fernald said the family asked that no further information be given out. Bel Geddes, daughter of renowned industrial designer Norman Bel Geddes, was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actress for the 1948 drama “I Remember Mama” and was the original Maggie the Cat on Broadway in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.” Story continues below ↓ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- advertisement -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “Dallas” came late in her career. She had retired to take care of her husband, Windsor Lewis, after he fell ill with cancer in 1966. He died in 1972. Her earnings depleted by his long illness, she found work scarce for a middle-aged actress and said she was “flat broke” in 1978 when she accepted the role as matriarch of a rambunctious Texas oil family. ‘Dallas’: Fun marked by tragedy Though castigated by critics, “Dallas” hurtled to the top of the audience ratings and spawned copycat shows. Bel Geddes won an Emmy in 1980 as best lead actress in a drama series and remains the only nighttime soap star to be so honored. She was only eight years older than actor Larry Hagman, who played her son, J.R. Bel Geddes called “Dallas “real fun,” but it was also marked by tragedy. In 1981, Jim Davis, who played Miss Ellie’s husband, Jock Ewing, died. “It was like losing her own husband again,” said “Dallas” producer Leonard Katzman. “It was a terribly difficult and emotional time for Barbara.” In March 1984, Bel Geddes was stricken with a major heart attack. Miss Ellie was played by Donna Reed for six months, then Bel Geddes returned to “Dallas,” remaining until 1990, a year before CBS canceled the show. Broadway to Hollywood In 1945, Bel Geddes made a splash on Broadway at 23 with her first important role in “Deep Are the Roots,” winning the New York Drama Critics Award as best actress. She announced to a reporter: “My ambition is to be a good screen actress. I think it would be much more exciting to work for Frank Capra, George Cukor, Alfred Hitchcock or Elia Kazan than to stay on Broadway.” Hollywood was quick to notice. In 1946 she signed a contract with RKO that granted her unusual request to be committed to only one picture a year. In her first movie she costarred with Henry Fonda in “The Long Night,” a disappointing remake of a French film. Her second film was a hit playing a budding writer in George Stevens’ “I Remember Mama,” the touching story of an immigrant family in San Francisco starring Irene Dunne as Mama. With her delicate features and patrician manner, Bel Geddes became a popular leading lady in films. CONTINUED: 'Don't go, learn your craft' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | 2 | Next > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dadstimeon Posted August 10, 2005 Share Posted August 10, 2005 Sad... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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