Garn Gaynell Stephens (November 7, 1944 – April 2, 2023) was an American film, television, stage, and musical theatre actress, and, later, a screenwriter. She was known for her roles in the television series '' Phyllis'' and the 1982 horror film '' Halloween III: Season of the Witch''.
Career
Stephens began her career on stage as a theatre actress. She performed as Estelle in the original stage play ''Father's Day'' in 1971 and played the original character Jan in the Broadway production of '' Grease'' the following year.
Throughout her 20-year career, Stephens made many television guest appearances, beginning in 1975 with an appearance on the series ''Wide World Mystery'' and a guest role on CBS sitcom ''
All in the Family
''All in the Family'' is an American sitcoms in the United States, sitcom television series that aired on CBS for nine seasons from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979, with a total of 205 episodes. It was later produced as ''Archie Bunker's Pla ...
''. The following year, Stephens received a leading role on the
Golden Globe
The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...
-winning television sitcom ''Phyllis'' with
Cloris Leachman
Cloris Leachman (April 30, 1926 – January 27, 2021) was an American actress and comedian whose career spanned nearly eight decades. She received many accolades including 22 Primetime Emmy nominations and won eight, tying Julia Louis-Dreyfus ...
, the second spin-off from ''
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from September 19, 1970 ...
''. From the late seventies until the early nineties, Stephens appeared in several top-rated television series, including ''
Charlie's Angels
''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts for ABC. It originally aired from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, airing for five seasons consisting of 115 episodes. It was produ ...
'', ''
Family Ties
''Family Ties'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC for seven seasons, premiering on September 22, 1982, and concluding on May 14, 1989. The series, created by Gary David Goldberg, reflected the social shift in the United Stat ...
'', ''
Falcon Crest
''Falcon Crest'' is an American prime time television soap opera created by Earl Hamner Jr. that aired for nine seasons on CBS from December 4, 1981, to May 17, 1990. The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Cha ...
'', and ''
Quantum Leap
Quantum leap or ''variation'', may refer to:
In general
* Quantum leap (physics), also known as quantum jump, a transition between quantum states
** Atomic electron transition, a key example of the physics phenomenon
* Paradigm shift, a sudden ch ...
''.
During her career, Stephens starred in three feature films. In 1975, she appeared in ''
The Sunshine Boys
''The Sunshine Boys'' is an original two-act play written by Neil Simon that premiered December 20, 1972, on Broadway starring Jack Albertson as Willie Clark and Sam Levene as Al Lewis and later adapted for film and television.
Plot
The play ...
'' with
Walter Matthau
Walter John Matthau ( Matthow; ; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, known for his "hangdog face" and for playing world-weary characters. He starred in 10 films alongside his real-life friend Jack Lemmon, including '' The Od ...
and
George Burns
George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum; January 20, 1896March 9, 1996) was an American comedian, actor, writer, and singer, and one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, radio, film, and television. His arched eyeb ...
, as well as ''Jake's M.O.'' She is best known for her role as Marge Guttman in the 1982 horror film ''Halloween III: Season of the Witch'', which also starred her then-husband Tom Atkins. In 2003, she appeared at the ''Halloween: 25 Years of Terror'' convention, where she discussed how she received the role. Stephens had been friends with
John Carpenter
John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, composer, and actor. Most commonly associated with horror film, horror, action film, action, and science fiction film, science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s, he is ...
's then-wife
Adrienne Barbeau
Adrienne Jo Barbeau (born June 11, 1945) is an American actress and author. She came to prominence in the 1970s as Broadway's original Rizzo in the musical ''Grease (musical), Grease'', and as Carol Traynor, the divorced daughter of Maude Findl ...
, with whom she had worked on ''Grease''. Stephens met Carpenter when she and Atkins were invited to see a premiere of ''Halloween'' in 1978 with Carpenter and Barbeau. Carpenter later offered her a role in ''Halloween III''.
Stephens also wrote for television, including a 1983 episode of the medical drama series ''
St. Elsewhere
''St. Elsewhere'' is an American medical drama television series created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey that originally ran on NBC from October 26, 1982, to May 25, 1988. The series stars Ed Flanders, Norman Lloyd, and William Daniels as ...
'', for which she received an
Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
nomination. Her writing credits also include '' Trapper John, M.D.'', ''
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
'', and ''
Trial by Jury
A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial, in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions.
Jury trials are increasingly used ...
''.
Stephens also penned a number of crime-mystery stories.
Personal life and death
Stephens was born in
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...