Connie Clausen (born Constance Clausen on June 11, 1923, in

Menasha, Wisconsin Menasha () is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Winnebago and Calumet County, Wisconsin, Calumet counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 18,268 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Of this, 15,144 were in Winn ...

, and died September 7, 1997, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

) was an American actress, author, and

literary agent A literary agent is an agent who represents writers and their written works to publishers, theatrical producers, film producers, and film studios, and assists in sale and deal negotiation. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwr ...

Career

Connie Clausen's career began in 1942 at the age of 19 when she was approached by

John Ringling North John Ringling North (August 14, 1903 – June 4, 1985) was the president and director of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from 1937 to 1943 and again from 1947 to 1967. Life and career North was born on August 14, 1903, in Barabo ...

on Main Street in

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

(then the winter quarters for Ringling Brothers Circus), who told her that her long hair would make her a perfect

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

in the following season's "fairy tale"-themed grand finale. She joined the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and performed as an acrobat in an elephant act. Her experiences in the circus later provided material for her memoir ''I Love You Honey, but the Season's Over'' (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1961), in which she discussed, among other issues, the "significant gap" between what women did within the circus ring and their treatment outside of it. After leaving the circus, she worked as a magazine and television writer and started with

MGM Studios Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American film and television production and distribution company headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. Metro ...

in Hollywood as director of special promotions. Encouraged by an MGM studio photographer, she moved to

to begin a career as a Conover Model and as a successful Broadway and television actress. She appeared on Broadway in ''The Gambler'' with

Alfred Drake Alfred Drake (October 7, 1914 – July 25, 1992) was an American actor and singer. Biography Born as Alfred Capurro in New York City, the son of parents emigrated from Recco, Genoa, Drake began his Broadway career while still a student at Bro ...

and appeared in television shows and commercials in the 1950s and 1960s. She was a television spokeswoman for Beech-Nut and

Westinghouse Electric Corporation The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was an American manufacturing company founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse and headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was originally named "Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company" and was ...

. In 1971 Connie Clausen began a new career in publishing. As an assistant vice president of Macmillan, she helped launch two of the company's best sellers, ''

Watership Down ''Watership Down'' is an adventure novel by English author Richard Adams, published by Rex Collings Ltd of London in 1972. Set in Hampshire in southern England, the story features a small group of rabbits. Although they live in their natur ...

'' and ''

Jonathan Livingston Seagull ''Jonathan Livingston Seagull'' is an allegorical fable in novella form written by American author Richard Bach and illustrated with black-and-white photographs shot by Russell Munson. It is about a seagull who is trying to learn about flying, ...

''. In 1978 she started her own literary agency, Connie Clausen & Associates, which had a series of best sellers, including the beauty books by the photographer

Francesco Scavullo Francesco Scavullo (January 16, 1921 – January 6, 2004) was an American fashion photography, fashion photographer best known for his work on the covers of ''Cosmopolitan (magazine), Cosmopolitan'' for over three decades, and his celebrity portr ...

, the Pulitzer Prize-winning '' Jackson Pollock: An American Saga'' by Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith, "Eat to Win," "The Rules," and many others. She was also the long-time American agent for the British author

Quentin Crisp Quentin Crisp (born Denis Charles Pratt; – ) was an English raconteur, whose work in the public eye included a memoir of his life and various media appearances. Before becoming well known, he was an artist's model, hence the title of h ...

. Clausen was portrayed by

Swoosie Kurtz Swoosie Kurtz ( ; born September 6, 1944) is an American actress. She is the recipient of an Emmy Award and two Tony Awards. Kurtz made her Broadway debut in the 1975 revival of '' Ah, Wilderness''. She has received five Tony Award nomination ...

in the ITV film production of ''An Englishman in New York'', a sequel to ''The Naked Civil Servant''.

Filmography

Television

References

External links

*
Photos of Connie ClausenI Love You Honey, but the Season's Over
* ttp://www.crisperanto.org/news/AnEnglishmanInNYmovie.html Connie Clausen portrayed in "An Englishman in New York"br>Connie Clausen on "Watership Down"video clips from Connie Clausen's television career
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clausen, Connie 1923 births 1997 deaths Actresses from Wisconsin Writers from Wisconsin People from Menasha, Wisconsin 20th-century American actresses American women memoirists