Fay Baker (born Fay Schwager; January 31, 1917 â€" December 8, 1987)
was an American stage, film and television actress, and a successful
author under the pen name Beth Holmes. Her novel, The Whipping Boy,
made the Los Angeles Times bestseller list in 1978. She also
published, under her own name, My Darling, Darling Doctors.Baker's
father was a surgeon, and her mother was a pharmacist. She attended
Smith College.Roles on radio soap operas provided Baker's early
professional acting experience. Her Broadway career began in 1938 with
a role in Danton's Death. Her final Broadway role was in Wonderful
Journey (1946). She changed her name to Baker (from her mother's
family) in 1944 in Another Love Story at New York's Fulton Theatre.
She was "discovered" by Alfred Hitchcock in 1946 and given the role of
Ethel in Notorious. While the part was minor, she told her daughter
that Hitchcock made her stay on the set for the entire film shoot. The
director felt that she should be standing by at all times because he
was paying her salary. She claimed she had a larger role in the film
but that much of her work had been cut from the final film.
was an American stage, film and television actress, and a successful
author under the pen name Beth Holmes. Her novel, The Whipping Boy,
made the Los Angeles Times bestseller list in 1978. She also
published, under her own name, My Darling, Darling Doctors.Baker's
father was a surgeon, and her mother was a pharmacist. She attended
Smith College.Roles on radio soap operas provided Baker's early
professional acting experience. Her Broadway career began in 1938 with
a role in Danton's Death. Her final Broadway role was in Wonderful
Journey (1946). She changed her name to Baker (from her mother's
family) in 1944 in Another Love Story at New York's Fulton Theatre.
She was "discovered" by Alfred Hitchcock in 1946 and given the role of
Ethel in Notorious. While the part was minor, she told her daughter
that Hitchcock made her stay on the set for the entire film shoot. The
director felt that she should be standing by at all times because he
was paying her salary. She claimed she had a larger role in the film
but that much of her work had been cut from the final film.
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