1984 Norma Crane Eddie Albert Studio One 1953

Norma Crane (born Norma Anna Bella Zuckerman; November 10, 1928 — September 28, 1973) was an American actress of stage, film, and television best known for her role as Golde in the 1971 film adaptation of '' Fiddler on the Roof''. She also starred in '' They Call Me Mister Tibbs!'' and ''

Penelope Penelope ( ; Ancient Greek: Πηνελόπεια, ''Pēnelópeia'', or el, Πηνελόπη, ''Pēnelópē'') is a character in Homer's ''Odyssey.'' She was the queen of Ithaca and was the daughter of Spartan king Icarius and naiad Periboea. Pe ...

''. Crane was born in New York City, but raised in

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

Biography

Born to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in New York City and raised in El Paso, Crane studied drama at Texas State College for Women in Denton, and was a member of Elia Kazan's Actors Studio. She made her debut on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are ''All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

's play ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during 1692–93. Miller wrote the play as ...

''. Throughout the 1950s, she appeared on a variety of live television dramas, first gaining recognition in a televised adaptation of George Orwell's ''

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

''. She played Ellie Martin in

Vincente Minnelli Vincente Minnelli (born Lester Anthony Minnelli; February 28, 1903 – July 25, 1986) was an American stage director and film director. He directed the classic movie musicals '' Meet Me in St. Louis'' (1944), '' An American in Paris'' (1951), ' ...

's film version of '' Tea and Sympathy''. She appeared in the 1956 '' Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' episode "There Was an Old Woman" the 1958 episode "The Equalizer" and the 1959 episode “Appointment at Eleven”. Also in 1959, she portrayed “Tilda” on the TV Western '' Gunsmoke''. She guest-starred four times on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

Have Gun – Will Travel ''Have Gun – Will Travel'' is an American Western series that was produced and originally broadcast by CBS on both television and radio from 1957 through 1963. The television version of the series starring Richard Boone was rated number t ...

'' with

Richard Boone Richard Allen Boone (June 18, 1917 – January 10, 1981) was an American actor who starred in over 50 films and was notable for his roles in Westerns, including his starring role in the television series '' Have Gun – Will Travel''. Early li ...

. She appeared on an episode of ABC's ''

The Untouchables Untouchables or The Untouchables may refer to: American history * Untouchables (law enforcement), a 1930s American law enforcement unit led by Eliot Ness * ''The Untouchables'' (book), an autobiography by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley * ''The U ...

'' as Lily Dallas, a ruthless gang leader, and she appeared in two other episodes. In 1960, Crane appeared as Sarah Prentice in the episode "River Champion" of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

Western series ''

Riverboat A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury un ...

'' starring Darren McGavin. A few weeks later, Crane was cast as Sarah in the episode "Deadly Tomorrow" of the ABC adventure series '' The Islanders'', set in the South Pacific. In 1961, Crane guest-starred in the title role in the episode "The Return of Widow Brown" of the NBC Western ''

The Deputy ''The Deputy, a Christian tragedy'' (German: ''Der Stellvertreter. Ein christliches Trauerspiel''), also published in English as ''The Representative '', is a controversial 1963 play by Rolf Hochhuth which portrayed Pope Pius XII as having failed ...

''. Later that year she re-appeared on '' Gunsmoke'' in an episode entitled "Perce", as well as in an episode of ''

The Asphalt Jungle ''The Asphalt Jungle'' is a 1950 American film noir heist film directed by John Huston. Based on the 1949 novel of the same name by W. R. Burnett, it tells the story of a jewel robbery in a Midwestern city. The film stars Sterling Hayden and L ...

''. In 1965, Crane guest-starred as Mrs. Mavis Hull in '' The Fugitive'' episode "Masquerade" and a 1968 episode of ''

The Flying Nun ''The Flying Nun'' is an American sitcom about a community of nuns which included one who could fly when the wind caught her cornette. It was produced by Screen Gems for ABC based on the 1965 book '' The Fifteenth Pelican,'' written by Tere ...

''.

Personal life

In 1961, she married writer-producer Herb Sargent; the marriage ended in divorce.

Death

Crane died of

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a r ...

at age 44 in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, two years after the release of '' Fiddler on the Roof'' (1971), her last film. She is interred at

Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park & Mortuary is a cemetery and mortuary located in the Westwood Village area of Los Angeles. It is located at 1218 Glendon Avenue in Westwood, with an entrance from Glendon Avenue. The cemetery was ...

in Los Angeles.

Filmography

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Crane, Norma 1928 births 1973 deaths Actresses from El Paso, Texas American stage actresses American film actresses American television actresses Deaths from breast cancer Deaths from cancer in California Burials at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American actresses Jewish American actresses Texas Woman's University alumni 20th-century American Jews