Merle "Mimsy" Farmer (born February 28, 1945) is an American actress, artist and sculptor. She began her career appearing in several Hollywood studio films, such as '' Spencer's Mountain'' (1963) and '' Bus Riley's Back in Town'' (1965), followed by roles in the

exploitation film An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become hi ...

s ''

Devil's Angels ''Devil's Angels'' (also known as ''The Checkered Flag'') is a 1967 American outlaw biker film The outlaw biker film is a film genre that portrays its characters as motorcycle riding rebels. The characters are usually members of an outlaw ...

'' and '' Riot on Sunset Strip'' (both 1967). Farmer went on to establish herself as an international performer, starring in numerous European films, including the dramas '' More'' (1969) and '' Strogoff'' (1970), as well as multiple Italian

giallo In Italian cinema, ''Giallo'' (; plural ''gialli'', from ''giallo'', Italian for yellow) is a genre of mystery fiction and thrillers that often contains slasher, crime fiction, psychological thriller, psychological horror, sexploitation, a ...

films:

Dario Argento Dario Argento (; born 7 September 1940) is an Italian film director, producer, screenwriter, actor and critic. His influential work in the horror genre during the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the subgenre known as ''giallo'', has led him t ...

's ''

Four Flies on Grey Velvet ''Four Flies on Grey Velvet'' ( it, 4 mosche di velluto grigio) is a 1971 ''giallo'' film written and directed by Dario Argento. The film concerns Roberto Tobias (Michael Brandon), who accidentally kills a man and is then tormented by someone who ...

'' (1971), '' The Perfume of the Lady in Black'' (1974), ''

Autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any dis ...

'' (1975), and

Lucio Fulci Lucio Fulci (; 17 June 1927 – 13 March 1996) was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor. Although he worked in a wide array of genres through a career spanning nearly five decades, including comedies and Spaghetti Westerns, he garn ...

's '' The Black Cat'' (1981).

Early years

Farmer was born Merle Farmer on February 28, 1945 in Chicago, Illinois. Her father was a news reporter for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

'' and a writer for radio. Her mother was French. Her nickname, which she later took as her stage name, is derived from a line in

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequel ...

's ''

Jabberwocky "Jabberwocky" is a nonsense poem written by Lewis Carroll about the killing of a creature named "the Jabberwock". It was included in his 1871 novel '' Through the Looking-Glass'', the sequel to ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865). The ...

'': "All mimsy were the borogoves". When she was four years old, her family relocated to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, California, where she was raised. Farmer graduated from

Hollywood High School Hollywood High School is a four-year public secondary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District, located at the intersection of North Highland Avenue and West Sunset Boulevard in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles, California. Histo ...

in 1962. Her early experience as an entertainer came in her role of handling rabbits for a magician who performed at children's birthday parties. As a teenager, Farmer also worked as a concession cashier and theater usherette at the

Cinerama Dome Pacific Theatres' Cinerama Dome is a movie theater located at 6360 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California. Designed to exhibit widescreen Cinerama films, it opened November 7, 1963. The original developer was William R. Forman, founder of Pa ...

in Los Angeles.

Career

Farmer acted in '' Spencer's Mountain'' (1963) and '' More'' (1969). After a brief film career in the United States, mostly portraying party-girl types in films such as ''

Hot Rods to Hell ''Hot Rods to Hell'' is a 1967 American suspense film, the last by director John Brahm. The film was based on a 1956 ''Saturday Evening Post'' story by Alex Gaby, "52 Miles to Terror",p. 170 Goble, Alan ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources ...

'' (1967), '' Riot on Sunset Strip'' (1967), and ''

The Wild Racers ''The Wild Racers'' is a 1968 American film directed by Daniel Haller and starring Fabian, Mimsy Farmer, and Judy Cornwell. The screenplay concerns a Grand Prix racing car driver. Plot Stock car racer Jo Jo Quillico goes to Europe after an acc ...

'' (1968), Farmer moved to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Most of her acting career has been in Europe, with roles in gialli such as ''

'' by

, '' The Black Cat'' by

and '' The Perfume of the Lady in Black'' by Francesco Barilli.''Moon in the Gutter'': A Tribute to Mimsy Farmer in Argento's Four Flies on Grey Velvet (July 2008)
mooninthegutter.blogspot.com; accessed June 13, 2017. In 1962 and 1963, respectively, Farmer guest-starred as Laurie in "The Swingin' Set" and as Joanne Wells in "Boys and Girls" on the

sitcom A sitcom, a Portmanteau, portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troup ...

The Donna Reed Show ''The Donna Reed Show'' is an American sitcom starring Donna Reed as the middle-class housewife Donna Stone. Carl Betz co-stars as her pediatrician husband Dr. Alex Stone, and Shelley Fabares and Paul Petersen as their teenage children, Mary ...

''. She made two guest appearances on ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a cli ...

'' in 1964, including the role of defendant Kathy Anders in "The Case of the Tragic Trophy" and as Sande Lukins in "The Case of the Careless Kidnapper". She appeared on ''

My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chroni ...

'', '' Honey West'', ''

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from October 3, 1952, to April 23, 1966, and starred the real-life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television, where it ...

'', ''

The Outer Limits ''The Outer Limits'' or ''Outer Limits'' may refer to: Television * ''The Outer Limits'' (1963 TV series), a black-and-white science fiction series that aired from 1963 to 1965 * ''The Outer Limits'' (1995 TV series), a revival of the older series ...

'' (March 2, 1964 episode "Second Chance") and '' The F.B.I.'' In 1966, she appeared as Lorrie Thatcher in the episode "The Calico Kid" and as Antonia in the episode "A Prince of a Ranger" on '' Laredo''. In 1971, Farmer won a special

David di Donatello The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the '' Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (The Academy of Italian Cinema). There are 26 award ca ...

film award for acting for her performance in ''

The Road to Salina '' Road to Salina '' (french: La Route de Salina) ( it, Quando il sole scotta) is a 1970 French-Italian psychological thriller film directed by Georges Lautner. It stars Robert Walker, Mimsy Farmer and Rita Hayworth. The film is based upo ...

'' (1970). Since 1992, she has worked as a sculptor for theatre and opera in France and Italy, and for films such as ''

Oceans The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the wo ...

'', ''Troy'', ''

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'' is a 1964 children's novel by British author Roald Dahl. The story features the adventures of young Charlie Bucket inside the chocolate factory of eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka. The story was originally ...

'', ''

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child ...

'', ''

Five Children and It ''Five Children and It'' is a children's novel by English author E. Nesbit. It was originally published in 1902 in the ''Strand Magazine'' under the general title ''The Psammead, or the Gifts'', with a segment appearing each month from Apr ...

'', ''

The Golden Compass ''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...

'', '' Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'', ''

Wrath of the Titans ''Wrath of the Titans'' is a 2012 action fantasy film and a sequel to the 2010 film '' Clash of the Titans''. The film stars Sam Worthington, Rosamund Pike, Bill Nighy, Édgar Ramírez, Toby Kebbell, Danny Huston, Ralph Fiennes, and Liam Neeson ...

'', ''

Guardians of the Galaxy The Guardians of the Galaxy is a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It may more specifically refer to: Comic book teams * Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), the original 31st-century team f ...

'', and ''

Beauty and the Beast ''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine T ...

''. She also creates personal sculptures and paintings.

Filmography

Television

Awards

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Farmer, Mimsy Living people 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American sculptors 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American sculptors 21st-century American women artists Actresses from Chicago Actresses from Los Angeles American film actresses American television actresses American women sculptors Artists from Chicago Artists from Los Angeles David di Donatello winners Hollywood High School alumni Sculptors from California Sculptors from Illinois 1945 births