Marian Winters (April 19, 1920 – November 3, 1978) was an American dramatist and actress of stage, film, and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...

Biography

Marian Winters was born Marian Weinstein, the eldest of four sisters born to Morris and Sophie Weinstein. Her three sisters, Shirley Zeisel (died 2010), Elaine Singer (died 2014), and Annette Laster (died 2019), long outlived her. She was raised in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

. She made her debut in summer stock in her teens. She began her career on Broadway understudying Frances Dee in ''The Secret Room'' (1945). She also played Lady Constance in ''

King John King John may refer to: Rulers * John, King of England (1166–1216) * John I of Jerusalem (c. 1170–1237) * John Balliol, King of Scotland (c. 1249–1314) * John I of France (15–20 November 1316) * John II of France (1319–1364) * John I o ...

'', and toured in such plays as '' Detective Story'', '' The Heiress'' and '' Dream Girl''. Winters achieved fame for her role in '' I Am a Camera'' as Natalia Landauer. For this performance she was awarded various acting honors including the 1952

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

as a Best Supporting or Featured Actress. In 1955, she played Gelda in the American production of ''The Dark is Light Enough'', a verse drama by Christopher Fry, which starred

Katharine Cornell Katharine Cornell (February 16, 1893June 9, 1974) was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born in Berlin to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York. Dubbed "The First Lady of the Theatre" by critic A ...

and

Tyrone Power Tyrone Edmund Power III (May 5, 1914 – November 15, 1958) was an American actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include ''Jesse James (193 ...

. Her last role was in '' Deathtrap''.

Writing

In 1967, Winters won an Emmy for her television adaptation of Animal Keepers, one of the three one-act plays comprising ''A is for All''.

Death

Her tenure in ''Deathtrap'' was cut short due to

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bl ...

, which claimed her life on November 3, 1978. She was succeeded in her role (Helga Ten Dorp) by

Elizabeth Parrish Elizabeth "Betsy" Parrish (February 10, 1925 – December 16, 2022) was an American actress, singer and acting teacher. Career Parrish was long affiliated with the Stella Adler Studio of Acting. Other teaching credits include: Circle in the Squ ...

. The role was played by

Irene Worth Irene Worth, CBE (June 23, 1916March 10, 2002) was an American stage and screen actress who became one of the leading stars of the British and American theatre. She pronounced her given name with three syllables: "I-REE-nee". Worth made her B ...

in the film version.

Personal life

Winters was married to NBC executive Jerome H. "Jay" Smolin (November 29, 1919 – October 21, 2010) from circa 1946/1947 until her death in 1978. The couple had no children.

Stage productions

* ''The Dark Is Light Enough'' as Gelda (February 23, 1955 to April 23, 1955) * ''

Auntie Mame ''Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade'' is a 1955 novel by American author Patrick Dennis chronicling the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his Aunt Mame Dennis, the sister of his dead father. The book is often de ...

'' as Sally Cato MacDougal (October 31, 1956 to June 28, 1958) * '' Tall Story'' as Myra Solomon (January 29, 1959 to May 22, 1959) * '' The 49th Cousin'' as Tracy Lowe (October 27, 1960 to January 21, 1961) * ''Nobody Loves an Albatross'' as Marge Weber (December 19, 1963 to June 20, 1964) * ''Mating Dance'' (November 3, 1965 to November 3, 1965) * '' Deathtrap'' as Helga ten Dorp (February 26, 1978 until October 1978)

Television

* ''

Lux Video Theatre ''Lux Video Theatre'' is an American television anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1957. The series presented both comedy and drama in original teleplays, as well as abridged adaptations of films and plays. Overview The ''Lux Vi ...

'' (1952) * '' Play of the Week'' (1960) * '' The Defenders'' (1962) * '' The Nurses'' (1963) * ''

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. A second edition followed in 1674 ...

'' (1974)

References

External links

*
Infosite
abaa.org; accessed May 20, 2015. {{DEFAULTSORT:Winters, Marian 1920 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American actresses Actresses from New York City American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Jewish American actresses Place of death missing Donaldson Award winners Tony Award winners Writers from New York City 20th-century American Jews