Cliff Robertson Mona Freeman Two Worlds of Charlie Gordon 1961

Monica Elizabeth "Mona" Freeman (June 9, 1926 – May 23, 2014) was an American actress and painter.

Early years

Freeman was born in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

, and grew up in

Pelham, New York Pelham is a suburban town in Westchester County, approximately 10 miles northeast of Midtown Manhattan. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 13,078, an increase from the 2010 census.United States Census Bureau, 2020 Report, Pelham to ...

. A lumberman's daughter, she was a model while in high school, and was selected the first " Miss Subways" of the New York City transit system in 1940.

Career

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

signed Freeman to a contract after she moved to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

. She eventually signed a movie contract with

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor. He was The World's Billionaires, one of the richest and most influential peo ...

. Her contract was later sold to

. Her first film appearance was in the 1944 film '' Till We Meet Again''. She became a popular teenage movie star. After a series of roles as a pretty, naive teenager, she complained of being typecast. As an adult, Freeman's career slowed and she appeared in mostly B-movies, though an exception was her role in the

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

'' Angel Face'' (1952). She also co-starred in the hit film '' Jumping Jacks'' with the comedy team of

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...

and

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian, with a career spanning seven decades in film, stage, television and radio. Famously nicknamed as "Th ...

Freeman's appearances in films ended in the 1950s, but she continued to work in television. Among her appearances were seven guest roles on '' The United States Steel Hour'' from 1960 to 1962 and three on '' Perry Mason'', all of them roles as Mason's client: Jane Wardman in "The Case of the Lurid Letter" (1962), Rosanne Ambrose in "The Case of the Illicit Illusion" (1964), and Ellen Payne in "The Case of the 12th Wildcat" (1965). She appeared in two episodes of '' Wanted: Dead or Alive'' starring

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...

titled "The Fourth Headstone" (Season One, Episode 9, air date 11/1/1958) and "Breakout" (Season 2 Episode 4, aired 9/26/1959), and two episodes of '' Maverick'' titled "The Cats of Paradise" (1959) and "Cruise of the Cynthia B." (1960), both starring James Garner, in which she played a recurring role as crazy-eyed swindler Modesty Blaine. She also appeared in an episode of ''

Riverboat A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury ...

'' titled "The Boy from Pittsburgh" (1959) starring Darren McGavin and

Burt Reynolds Burton Leon Reynolds Jr. (February 11, 1936 – September 6, 2018) was an American actor most famous during the 1970s and 1980s. He became well known in television series such as ''Gunsmoke'' (1962–1965), '' Hawk'' (1966) and '' Dan Augus ...

, an episode of ''

Checkmate Checkmate (often shortened to mate) is any game position in chess and other chess-like games in which a player's king is in check (threatened with ) and there is no possible escape. Checkmating the opponent wins the game. In chess, the king is ...

'' titled "Don't Believe a Word She Says" (1961) starring Doug McClure and Sebastian Cabot, and an episode of '' The Tall Man'' titled "Petticoat Crusade" (1961) starring Barry Sullivan as

Pat Garrett Patrick Floyd Jarvis Garrett (June 5, 1850February 29, 1908) was an American Old West lawman, bartender and U.S. Customs, customs agent known for killing Billy the Kid. He was the Sheriffs in the United States, sheriff of Lincoln County, New Me ...

and Clu Gulager as Billy the Kid, along with numerous other

leading lady A leading actor, leading actress, or leading man or lady or simply lead (), plays a main role in a film, television show or play. The word ''lead'' may also refer to the largest role in the piece, and ''leading actor'' may refer to a person w ...

roles in various television series, including anthologies. Freeman was a portrait painter and concentrated on painting after 1961. Her best-known portrait is that of businesswoman Mary See, founder of

See's Candies See's Candy Shops, Inc., Trade name, doing business as See's Candies, is an American manufacturer and distributor of candy, particularly chocolates. It was founded by Charles See, his wife Florence, and his mother Mary in Los Angeles, California ...

Personal life and death

Freeman married Pat Nerney, a car dealer, in Los Angeles in 1945. The couple had one daughter, Mona. They divorced in 1952. In 1961, she married H. Jack Ellis, a businessman from Los Angeles. Freeman died on May 23, 2014, at the age of 87 after a long illness, at her

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

home.

Partial filmography

* '' Till We Meet Again'' (1944) - Elise * '' National Velvet'' (1944) - Schoolgirl (uncredited) * '' Here Come the Waves'' (1944) - Fainting Girl (uncredited) * '' Together Again'' (1944) - Diana Crandall * '' Roughly Speaking'' (1945) - Barbara, ages 15–20 * '' Junior Miss'' (1945) - Lois Graves * '' Danger Signal'' (1945) - Anne Fenchurch * '' Our Hearts Were Growing Up'' (1946) - Girl (uncredited) * '' Black Beauty'' (1946) - Anne Wendon * '' That Brennan Girl'' (1946) - Ziggy Brennan * '' Dear Ruth'' (1947) - Miriam Wilkins * '' Mother Wore Tights'' (1947) - Iris * '' Variety Girl'' (1947) - Mona Freeman * ''

Isn't It Romantic Isn't It Romantic may refer to: *"Isn't It Romantic?", a 1932 song by Rodgers and Hart *Isn't It Romantic? (1948 film), ''Isn't It Romantic?'' (1948 film), a musical starring Veronica Lake and Billy De Wolfe *Isn't It Romantic (2019 film), ''Isn't ...

'' (1948) - Susie Cameron * '' Streets of Laredo'' (1949) - Rannie Carter * '' The Heiress'' (1949) - Marian Almond * ''

Dear Wife ''Dear Wife'' is a 1949 comedy film starring Joan Caulfield and William Holden. It is the sequel to '' Dear Ruth'', which was based on the Broadway play of the same name by Norman Krasna. Plot Miriam Wilkins is a teenage girl who is campaigni ...

'' (1949) - Miriam Wilkins * ''

I Was a Shoplifter ''I Was a Shoplifter'' is a 1950 American film noir crime film directed by Charles Lamont and starring Scott Brady and Mona Freeman. Plot A shoplifter, Faye Burton, is being watched by Herb Klaxon, a security guard at a Los Angeles department s ...

'' (1950) - Faye Burton * '' Copper Canyon'' (1950) - Caroline Desmond * '' Branded'' (1950) - Ruth Lavery * '' Dear Brat'' (1951) - Miriam Wilkins * '' Darling, How Could You!'' (1951) - Amy * '' The Greatest Show on Earth'' (1952) - Spectator (uncredited) * '' Flesh and Fury'' (1952) - Ann Hollis * '' Jumping Jacks'' (1952) - Betsy Carter * '' Thunderbirds'' (1952) - Lt. Ellen Henderson * '' Angel Face'' (1953) - Mary Wilton * ''

Battle Cry A battle cry or war cry is a yell or chant taken up in battle, usually by members of the same combatant group. Battle cries are not necessarily articulate (e.g. "Eulaliaaaa!", "Alala"..), although they often aim to invoke patriotic or religio ...

'' (1955) - Kathy - later Mrs. Danny Forrester * '' Before I Wake'' (1955) - April Haddon * '' The Road to Denver'' (1955) - Elizabeth Sutton * '' Dial 999'' (1955) - Terry Moffat Carradine * '' Huk!'' (1956) - Cindy Rogers * '' Hold Back the Night'' (1956) - Anne Franklin McKenzie * '' Dragoon Wells Massacre'' (1957) - Ann Bradley * '' The World Was His Jury'' (1958) - Robin Carson

Partial television credits

* '' Wanted: Dead or Alive'' (2 episodes) *: "The Fourth Headstone" (1958) - Jackie Harris *: "Breakout" (1959) - Margaret Dunn * ''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western television series that aired for eight seasons, first on the NBC television network (1957–1962) and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and reached the top of the ...

'' *: "The Monty Britton Story" (1958) - Betty Britton * '' The Red Skelton Hour'' (2 episodes) *: "San Fernando's Singing Sensation" (1958) - Guest *: "Freddie Gets a Job" (1959) - Kathy * '' Pursuit'' *: "Calculated Risk" (1958) - Nina Hodges * ''

Playhouse 90 ''Playhouse 90'' is an American television anthology drama series that aired on CBS from 1956 to 1960 for a total of 134 episodes. The show was produced at CBS Television City in Los Angeles, California. Since live anthology drama series of t ...

'' (3 episodes) *: "Sizeman and Son" (1956) - Marie Sizeman *: " Three Men on a Horse" (1957) - Audrey Trowbridge *: "The Long March" (1958) - Betsy * '' The DuPont Show with June Allyson'' *: "The Pledge" (1959) - Sandra McAllen * '' Maverick'' (2 episodes) *: " The Cats Of Paradise" (1959) - Modesty Blaine *: " The Cruise of the Cynthia B" (1960) - Modesty Blaine * '' Johnny Ringo'' *: "Mrs. Ringo" (1960) - Marilyn Barber * '' United States Steel Hour'' *: " The Two Worlds of Charlie Gordon" (1961) * '' Perry Mason'' (3 episodes) *: " The Case of the Lurid Letter" (1962) - Jane Wardman *: " The Case of the Illicit Illusion" (1964) - Rosanne Ambrose *: " The Case of the 12th Wildcat" (1965) - Ellen Payne

References

External links

*
Mona Freeman; Aveleyman.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Freeman, Mona 1926 births 2014 deaths American film actresses American television actresses American portrait painters Actresses from New York (state) Artists from New York (state) Painters from New York (state) Paramount Pictures contract players 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American painters 20th-century American women painters Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills) 21st-century American women