Barbara Bel Geddes (October 31, 1922 â€" August 8, 2005) was an
American stage and screen actress, artist, and children's author whose
career spanned almost five decades. She was best known for her
starring role as Miss Ellie Ewing in the television series Dallas. Bel
Geddes also starred as Maggie in the original Broadway production of
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 1955. Her notable films included I Remember
Mama (1948) and Vertigo (1958). Throughout her career, she was the
recipient of several acting awards and nominations.One of her early
movie roles was that of Amy Lufton in the 1948 movie, Blood on the
Moon, with Robert Mitchum.Bel Geddes was born on October 31, 1922, in
New York City, the daughter of Helen Belle (née Schneider;
1891â€"1938) and stage and industrial designer Norman Bel Geddes
(1893â€"1958). She married theatrical manager Carl Sawyer (né
Schreuer) in 1944; they had one daughter, Susan. They divorced in
1951. Later that year, she married stage director Windsor Lewis, with
whom she had a daughter, Betsy. When Lewis became ill in 1967, Bel
Geddes suspended her career to care for him; he died in 1972.Bel
Geddes came to prominence in the 1946 Broadway production of Deep Are
the Roots. The performance garnered her the Clarence Derwent Award,
the Theatre World Award and the Donaldson Award (forerunner of the
Tony Awards) presented to her by Laurette Taylor, for "Outstanding
Achievement in The Theatre". From 1951 to 1953, Bel Geddes played 924
performances of the F. Hugh Herbert hit comedy The Moon Is Blue. In
1955, she created the role of Maggie "The Cat" in Elia Kazan's
original Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin
Roof, and in 1961 created the title role in the Jean Kerr comedy Mary,
Mary which became Broadway's longest-running show with over 1,500
performances. Both roles earned her Tony Award nominations. Other
highlights include John Steinbeck's Burning Bright, Edward Albee's
Everything in the Garden, and Silent Night, Lonely Night with Henry
Fonda.
American stage and screen actress, artist, and children's author whose
career spanned almost five decades. She was best known for her
starring role as Miss Ellie Ewing in the television series Dallas. Bel
Geddes also starred as Maggie in the original Broadway production of
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 1955. Her notable films included I Remember
Mama (1948) and Vertigo (1958). Throughout her career, she was the
recipient of several acting awards and nominations.One of her early
movie roles was that of Amy Lufton in the 1948 movie, Blood on the
Moon, with Robert Mitchum.Bel Geddes was born on October 31, 1922, in
New York City, the daughter of Helen Belle (née Schneider;
1891â€"1938) and stage and industrial designer Norman Bel Geddes
(1893â€"1958). She married theatrical manager Carl Sawyer (né
Schreuer) in 1944; they had one daughter, Susan. They divorced in
1951. Later that year, she married stage director Windsor Lewis, with
whom she had a daughter, Betsy. When Lewis became ill in 1967, Bel
Geddes suspended her career to care for him; he died in 1972.Bel
Geddes came to prominence in the 1946 Broadway production of Deep Are
the Roots. The performance garnered her the Clarence Derwent Award,
the Theatre World Award and the Donaldson Award (forerunner of the
Tony Awards) presented to her by Laurette Taylor, for "Outstanding
Achievement in The Theatre". From 1951 to 1953, Bel Geddes played 924
performances of the F. Hugh Herbert hit comedy The Moon Is Blue. In
1955, she created the role of Maggie "The Cat" in Elia Kazan's
original Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin
Roof, and in 1961 created the title role in the Jean Kerr comedy Mary,
Mary which became Broadway's longest-running show with over 1,500
performances. Both roles earned her Tony Award nominations. Other
highlights include John Steinbeck's Burning Bright, Edward Albee's
Everything in the Garden, and Silent Night, Lonely Night with Henry
Fonda.
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