Judith-Marie Bergan was an American film, television and stage actress, known for starring in the Joseph Zito films '' Abduction'' and ''

Bloodrage ''Bloodrage'', also known as ''Never Pick Up a Stranger'', is a 1979 American horror film directed by Joseph Zito (under the pseudonym Joseph Bigwood) and written by Robert Jahn. The film stars Ian Scott and Judith-Marie Bergan. Plot A you ...

''. She appeared in the television series, ''

Brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...

'', and had a recurring role in ''

Soap Soap is a salt (chemistry), salt of a fatty acid (sometimes other carboxylic acids) used for cleaning and lubricating products as well as other applications. In a domestic setting, soaps, specifically "toilet soaps", are surfactants usually u ...

'' and in ''

Maggie Maggie or Maggy is a common short form of the name Magdalena, Magnolia, Margaret, or Marigold. People Maggie * Maggie Adamson, Scottish musician * Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock (born 1968), British scientist * Maggie Alderson (born 1959), ...

''. Bergan was married to cinematographer João Fernandes.

Background

Bergan was born in

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

on November 25, 1948. Her young to teenage years were spent there as well as in

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

and Highland Park. Bergan received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting from the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Career

Television

In 1977, she appeared in ''

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 ...

'', playing the part of Raven in the ''Angels on the Air'' episode that also starred

Nicolas Coster Nicolas Dwynn Coster (December 3, 1933 – June 26, 2023) was an American actor, most known for his work in daytime drama and as a character actor with his role on series '' Santa Barbara'' and daytimes Another World as Robert Dulaney and on ni ...

and

John Forsythe John Lincoln Forsythe ( Freund; January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, drama teacher and philanthropist whose career spanned six decades. He also appeared as a guest on several t ...

. Between 1977 and 1978 she appeared in various episodes of ''

'' as Marilyn McCallam. In a December 1984 ''

Highway to Heaven ''Highway to Heaven'' is an American fantasy drama television series that ran on NBC from September 19, 1984, to August 4, 1989. The series starred its creator and co-director Michael Landon as Jonathan Smith, an angel sent to Earth to help peo ...

'' episode "Hotel of Dreams" she played Allison Rutledge, a difficult guest who unsuccessfully tried to cause trouble for the main characters. She also had a starring role in the short-lived Martin Mull sitcom, '' Domestic Life''. It was a mid-season replacement on CBS in 1984 and lasted 10 episodes. She played Janet in the ''

Tales from the Darkside ''Tales from the Darkside'' is an American horror anthology television series created by George A. Romero. A pilot episode was first broadcast on October 29, 1983. The series was picked up for syndication, and the first season premiered on S ...

'' episode "Effect and Cause" (1985). In 1987 she appeared in ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...

'' as Elizabeth Harley. In the 1987 TV series '' Hard Knocks'', she played Maggie a sarcastic lady who happened to be a restaurateur and who was also an ex-con and informant.

Film

She played the lead role of Patricia Prescott in the Joseph Zito directed / Kent E. Carroll produced film '' Abduction'', based on the Harrison James novel ''Black Abductor''. The film came out in October 1975. She played the part of the daughter of a rich property developer who is kidnapped by a group of radicals and ends up becoming converted to their cause. In 1978 she had a role in the Delbert Mann directed ''Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery'', a made for television drama about the wife of a disabled man who has an extramarital affair. The following year she co-starred as Beverly Stevens in the horror film ''

'' which was also directed by Joseph Zito. Her final film was ''Finding Kelly'' in 2000.

Stage

In 1997, having left her television and film career she became a member of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and took on a variety of roles and spent 16 seasons with the company. One of the roles that she played was that of Mary in Eugene O’Neill’s A Long Day’s Journey Into Night, about a family which was set in or around 1912. She played the part of a mother who because of a painful birth delivery was introduced to drugs by her doctor. She would later become a woman who by the evening would regress to a drugged out almost catatonic state. As a recognized and respected stage actress, she was recognized by the

Oregon Shakespeare Festival The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) is a regional Repertory, repertory theatre in Ashland, Oregon, United States, founded in 1935 by Angus L. Bowmer. The Festival now offers matinee and evening performances of a wide range of classic and conte ...

, who dedicated the 2017 theater season to her honor.

Death

Suffering from lung cancer, Bergan died at her home in

Ashland, Oregon Ashland is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. It lies along Interstate 5 in Oregon, Interstate 5 approximately 16 miles (26 km) north of the California border and near the south end of the Rogue Valley. The city's population w ...

on August 20, 2016. She was survived by her cinematographer husband, João Fernandes, as well as her two sisters, Brooke and Joan.''Ashland Daily Tidings'', Sunday, August 21, 2016
Longtime Oregon Shakespeare Festival actress dies By Ryan Pfeil

References

External links

** {{DEFAULTSORT:Bergan, Judith-Marie 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American stage actresses American Shakespearean actresses American television actresses 1948 births 2016 deaths Actresses from Indianapolis American film actresses