Claiborne Cary (born Claiborne Leachman; February 17, 1932 – March 20, 2010) was an American actress and cabaret performer.

Early life and education

Cary was born Claiborne Leachman in Lone Tree, Iowa, the daughter of Cloris (née Wallace) and Berkeley Claiborne "Buck" Leachman, who worked at the family-owned Leachman Lumber Company. She was raised in

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

. The younger sister of actress Cloris Leachman, Cary began dancing and performing at a young age. Cary's maternal grandmother was of

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

n (Czech) descent. She attended both the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

and

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

before moving to

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

to pursue an acting career in the 1950s.

Career

Cary made her

Broadway theater Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), many of the extant or closed Broadway venues use or used the spelling ''Theatr ...

debut in ''

Silk Stockings ''Silk Stockings'' is a musical with a book by George S. Kaufman, Leueen MacGrath, and Abe Burrows and music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The musical is loosely based on the Melchior Lengyel story ''Ninotchka'' and the 1939 film adaptation it ...

'' in 1956, later touring with the production's national tour with actor,

Don Ameche Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, repertory theatre, and vaudeville, he became a major radio star in the early 19 ...

. In 1957, with the support of choreographer

Bob Fosse Robert Louis Fosse (; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American choreographer, dancer, filmmaker, and stage director. Known for his work on stage and screen, he is arguably the most influential figure in the field of jazz dance in th ...

and despite the objections of director

George Abbott George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades. He received numerous honors including six Tony Awards, the ...

, she appeared opposite Gwen Verdon and Thelma Ritter in ''New Girl in Town'' at the 46th Street Theater on Broadway. Her many other Broadway credits included ''The Supporting Cast'', and the musical ''Beg, Borrow or Steal'' (opposite Betty Garrett and Eddie Bracken). Her

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

resume included roles in ''Kukla, Burr and Ollie'', ''Smiling, the Boy Fell Dead'', ''Faith, Hope and Charity'' and ''All Kinds of Giants''. She was featured in "Hellazpoppin' 67" which tried out at the Montreal Expo in Canada but never made it to Broadway. She also appeared in

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

, including ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...

'', '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' and '' Young Dr. Kildare''. She appeared in numerous

television commercials A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...

. She began, however, to focus more on cabaret productions and regional theater following the birth of her son, Berkeley Northrop. Within cabaret, she starred in and produced ''Grand Slam'' with Murray Grand. She also toured with the stage adaptation of ''

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'' is a non-fiction novel by John Berendt. The book, Berendt's first, was published on January 10, 1994, and follows the story of Jim Williams, an antiques dealer on trial for the killing of Danny Hansf ...

''. In 1987, she performed at Jan Wallman's in New York City in what a reviewer for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' described as "the kind of brilliant cabaret act that does not happen overnight." Cary's cabaret performances led to her twice winning

MAC Awards The MAC Awards, established in 1986, are presented annually to honor achievements in cabaret, comedy and jazz. They are administered by the non-profit Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs (MAC), founded in 1983, and voted on by the MAC member ...

, presented by the Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs as "the New York cabaret scene's top honor". Her lengthy regional theater credits included ''

Ballroom A ballroom or ballhall is a large room inside a building, the primary purpose of which is holding large formal parties called ''balls''. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions and palaces, especially histori ...

'', in which she appeared in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, with Charles Durning and

Tyne Daly Ellen Tyne Daly (; born February 21, 1946) is an American actress whose six-decade career included many leading roles in movies and theater. She has won six Emmy Awards for her television work, a Tony Award, and is a 2011 American Theatre Hall of ...

. She recorded and released two albums on CD, ''Miss Claiborne Cary Live'' and ''Now and Then''. Her last public performance was in a cabaret in the early 2000s.

Death

She died from complications of

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

Costa Mesa, California Costa Mesa (; Spanish language, Spanish for "coastal tableland") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including ...

, on March 20, 2010, at the age of 78.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cary, Claiborne 1932 births 2010 deaths American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses American women singers American cabaret performers Deaths from Parkinson's disease in California People from Costa Mesa, California Actresses from Des Moines, Iowa 21st-century American women