Betty Lou Keim (September 27, 1938 – January 27, 2010) was an American stage, film, and television actress.

Early life and career

Keim was born in

Malden, Massachusetts Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 66,263 people. History Malden is a hilly woodland area no ...

, as the daughter of a choreographer and a dancer, and she grew up in New York from the age of five. She started getting dance lessons from her father at the age of six and later took voice lessons. Her stage debut followed at age seven under the direction of

José Ferrer José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón (January 8, 1912 – January 26, 1992) was a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican actor and director of stage, film and television. He was one of the most celebrated and esteemed Hispanic and Latino Americans, Hi ...

in ''Strange Fruit''. After several stage parts, she debuted on Broadway, and she became most remembered for playing a mean-spirited girl in the play ''A Roomful of Roses'' in 1956. Her other work on Broadway included ''The Remarkable Mr. Pennypacker'' (1953), ''Texas, Li'l Darlin (1949), and ''Crime and Punishment'' (1947). Keim also acted on television, guest starring in numerous TV series. In 1953, she landed a co-starring role in the short-lived sitcom '' My Son Jeep''. Three years later, she made her film debut with a role alongside

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career, she was known for her strong, realistic screen p ...

and James Cagney in ''

These Wilder Years ''These Wilder Years'' is a 1956 American drama film directed by Roy Rowland and starring James Cagney, Barbara Stanwyck and Walter Pidgeon. It is the story of a businessman who tries to find the illegitimate son he gave up to an orphanage many y ...

''. The same year, she repeated her ''A Roomful of Roses'' role in its movie adaptation ''

Teenage Rebel ''Teenage Rebel'' is a 1956 American drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Ginger Rogers, Michael Rennie and Mildred Natwick. It was nominated for two Academy Awards; Academy Award for Best Costume Design, Best Costume Design and A ...

'' as

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

' daughter. In 1957, she had a supporting role in

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

's '' The Wayward Bus''. The following year, she appeared in '' Some Came Running''. When not acting, Keim attended the Lodge Tutoring School. Her final acting experience was on ''

The Deputy ''The Deputy, a Christian tragedy'' (German language, 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 ...

'', in which she starred as Fran McCord from 1959 to 1960.

Personal life

Keim retired from acting in 1960 after marrying actor

Warren Berlinger Warren Berlinger (August 31, 1937 – December 2, 2020) was an American character actor, with Broadway runs, movie and television credits, and much work in commercials. Early life Warren Berlinger was born in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, ...

, with whom she had four children. She died at her home in Chatsworth, California, aged 71, from lung cancer. She was interred at

Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery is the largest Jewish mortuary and Jewish cemetery organization, located in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of the central region of Los Angeles, California. Many notable Jewish people from the American ente ...

.Betty Berlinger
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Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Keim, Betty Lou 1938 births 2010 deaths Actresses from Boston American television actresses Deaths from lung cancer in California People from Malden, Massachusetts American child actresses American film actresses American stage actresses Western (genre) television actors 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women Burials at Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery