Kate Wilkinson (October 25, 1916 – February 9, 1993) was an American stage, film and television actress.

Career

She is best known to TV audiences for her roles as Viola Stapleton in the CBS

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'', a role she played from 1976 to 1981, and Clara Hudson on 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 ...

soap opera '' Another World'', which she played from 1987 to 1989. In addition to making many guest appearances in supporting roles on television as well as a number of films, she also was a regular on

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...

. Among her stage roles were Mrs. McCollough in 1972-73's '' Last of Mrs. Lincoln'' (she also reprised her role in the 1976 film version), and Clairee in the original Off-Broadway production of ''

Steel Magnolias ''Steel Magnolias'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama film directed by Herbert Ross and starring Academy Award winner Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis and Julia Roberts. The picture is a film adaptat ...

'' in 1987 (a role

Olympia Dukakis Olympia Dukakis (June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021) was an American actress. She performed in more than 130 stage productions, more than 60 films and in 50 television series. Best known as a screen actress, she started her career in theater. Not lon ...

would play in the film version). In 1980, she originated the role of Libby in ''

The Whales of August ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

'', which

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...

played in the film version. Her last role was a 1990 guest appearance on ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering o ...

''.

Death

Kate Wilkinson died from

bone cancer A bone tumor is an abnormal growth of tissue in bone, traditionally classified as noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). Cancerous bone tumors usually originate from a cancer in another part of the body such as from lung, breast, th ...

in 1993, aged 76.

Filmography

# ''

Edge of Night ''The Edge of Night'' is an American television mystery crime drama series and soap opera, created by Irving Vendig and produced by Procter & Gamble Productions. It debuted on CBS on April 2, 1956, and ran as a live broadcast on that netwo ...

'' - Mrs. Perkins (1966) # '' Love is a Many Splendored Thing'' - Sister Irene (1973) # '' Beyond the Horizon'' - Kate Mayo (1973) # ''

F. Scott Fitzgerald and 'The Last of the Belles' ''F. Scott Fitzgerald and 'The Last of the Belles is a 1974 American made-for-television biographical romance drama film directed by George Schaefer and starring Susan Sarandon, Blythe Danner and Richard Chamberlain. The film, which is known as ...

'' (1974) # ''First Ladies Diaries: Martha Washington'' - Mrs. Chamberlayne (1975) # ''

'' - Viola Stapleton (November 1976 - 1981) # '' Last of Mrs. Lincoln'' - Mrs. McCollough (1976) # ''

Diary of the Dead ''Diary of the Dead'' (promoted as ''George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead'') is a 2007 American found footage horror film written and directed by George A. Romero. Although independently produced, it was distributed theatrically by The Weinst ...

'' - Ethel Dean (1976) # '' Another World'' - Mrs. Franklin (1983); Alice Nixon (1986); Clara Hudson (1987–1989) # ''A Mistaken Charity'' (made-for-TV movie) - Charlotte (1986) # '' See You in the Morning'' - Aunt Matilda (1989) # ''

: (episode: "

Prescription for Death "Prescription for Death" is the first episode of the long-running crime drama television series ''Law & Order''. It aired on September 13, 1990 on NBC. Although it was the first episode of the series to air, it is not the pilot. The pilot episode ...

"'') - Grey-haired lady (1990)

Stage credits

# ''Danton's Death'' (October 21, 1965 - November 1965) # ''The Rimers of Eldritch'' - Martha Truit (February 20, 1967 – March 19, 1967) # ''Watercolor & Criss-Crossing'' (January 21, 1970 - January 24, 1970) # ''Postcards'' (March 16, 1970 - March 28, 1970) # ''

A Doll's House ''A Doll's House'' ( Danish and nb, Et dukkehjem; also translated as ''A Doll House'') is a three-act play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 December 1879, having be ...

'' - Anne Marie (January 13, 1971 - June 26, 1971) # ''

Hedda Gabler ''Hedda Gabler'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The world premiere was staged on 31 January 1891 at the Residenztheater in Munich. Ibsen himself was in attendance, although he remained back-stage. The play has been ca ...

'' (February 17, 1971 - June 19, 1971) # ''Ring Around the Bathtub'' - Nurse Sampson (April 29, 1972 - April 29, 1972) # '' Last of Mrs. Lincoln'' - Mrs. McCollough (December 12, 1972 - February 4, 1973) # ''

Our Town ''Our Town'' is a 1938 Metatheatre, metatheatrical Three act structure, three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play tells the story of the fictional American small town of Grover's Cor ...

'' - Mrs. Gibbs (August 3, 1976 - August 7, 1976) # ''

The Shadow Box ''The Shadow Box'' is a play written by actor Michael Cristofer. The play made its Broadway debut on March 31, 1977. It is the winner of the 1977 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. The play was made into a telefilm, directe ...

'' (August 1, 1978 - August 5, 1978) # ''Man and Superman'' - Mrs. Whitefield (December 14, 1978 - February 18, 1979) # ''

Camino Real Camino may refer to: Places *Camino, California, United States, a census-designated place *Camino, Piedmont, Italy, a town *Camino, Veneto, Italy, a town People *Jaime Camino (1936–2015), Spanish film director and screenwriter *Renae Camino ...

'' - The Gypsy (June 28, 1979 – July 7, 1979) # ''

The Matchmaker ''The Matchmaker'' is a 1954 play by Thornton Wilder, a rewritten version of his 1938 play '' The Merchant of Yonkers''. History The play has a long and colorful history. John Oxenford's 1835 one-act farce ''A Day Well Spent'' had been extend ...

'' - Miss Flora Van (July 10, 1979 - July 14, 1979) # ''

The Man Who Came to Dinner ''The Man Who Came to Dinner'' is a comedy play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. It debuted on October 16, 1939, at the Music Box Theatre in New York City, where it ran until 1941, closing after 739 performances. It then enjoyed a number of ...

'' (June 26, 1980 - September 7, 1980) # ''Frankenstein'' - Frau Mueller (January 4, 1981 - January 14, 1981) # ''Rude Times -'' Mrs. Crystal (February 1985) # ''

A Day in the Death of Joe Egg A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''a'' (pronounced ), plural ''ae ...

'' - Grace (August 11, 1985 - August 22, 1985) # ''

'' - Clairee (March 28, 1987 - February 25, 1990) # '' Inherit the Wind'' - Mrs. Brady (July 24, 1990 - August 4, 1990)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Kate 1916 births 1993 deaths Actresses from San Francisco American film actresses American soap opera actresses American stage actresses Deaths from bone cancer Deaths from cancer in New York (state) 20th-century American actresses San Jose State University alumni