Nancy Coleman (December 30, 1912 – January 18, 2000) was an American film, stage, television and radio actress. After working on radio and appearing on the Broadway stage, Nancy Coleman moved to Hollywood to work for Warner Bros. studios.

Early life

Coleman was born December 30, 1912, in Everett, Washington, where her father, Charles Sumner Coleman, was editor of ''The Daily Herald''. Her mother, Grace Sharplass Coleman, was "an accomplished violinist." The family lived in Everett, Washington, where she graduated with honors from Everett High School. She attended the University of Washington in Seattle where she majored in English and was a member of the Alpha Lambda chapter of

Kappa Alpha Theta Kappa Alpha Theta (), also known simply as Theta, is an international women’s fraternity founded on January 27, 1870, at DePauw University, formerly Indiana Asbury. It was the first Greek-letter fraternity established for women. The main arc ...

. After graduating, she was accepted at Columbia University's Teacher's College in New York. She attended the university, but dropped out, moving to San Francisco, California, where she worked as an elevator operator of a department store.

Career

Early in her career as an actress, Coleman portrayed Alice Hughes on the radio version of the soap opera ''

Young Doctor Malone ''Young Doctor Malone'' (a.k.a. ''Young Dr. Malone'') is an American soap opera, created by Irna Phillips, which had a long run on radio and television from 1939 to 1963. The producer was Betty Corday (1912–1987), who also produced ''Pepper Youn ...

''. Coleman also appeared as the lead in the 04/13/1943 episode of "Suspense", entitled "Fear Paints a Picture". On television, she played Helen Emerson on '' Valiant Lady''. Coleman's Broadway credits include ''Liberty Jones'' (1941), ''The Sacred Flame'' (1952), and '' The Desperate Hours'' (1955). Memorable roles include playing the mistress to a Nazi (played by

Helmut Dantine Helmut Dantine (7 October 1918 – 2 May 1982) was an Austrian-American actor who often played Nazis in thriller films of the 1940s. His best-known performances are perhaps the German pilot in '' Mrs. Miniver'' and the desperate refugee in '' ...

) in ''

Edge of Darkness ''Edge of Darkness'' is a British television drama serial produced by BBC Television in association with Lionheart Television International and originally broadcast in six 55-minute episodes in late 1985. A mixture of crime drama and politica ...

'' and co-starring with