Norma Connolly (August 27, 1927 – November 18, 1998) was an American actress having a career spanning five decades and known for her roles on ''

The Young Marrieds ''The Young Marrieds'' is an American daytime soap opera which aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 5, 1964 to March 25, 1966. The program was created by James Elward and written by Elward with Frances Rickett. Authors John ...

'' as Lena Karr Gilroy and ''

General Hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

'' as

Ruby Anderson ''General Hospital'' is the longest running American television serial drama, airing on ABC. Created by Frank and Doris Hursley, who originally set it in a general hospital (hence the title), in an unnamed fictional city. In the 1970s, the city w ...

Early life

Connolly was born on August 27, 1927, in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

to Beulah and Archie Connolly, where her father owned a lumber business. She graduated from

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

in 1958. Connolly studied acting with

Morris Carnovsky Morris Carnovsky (September 5, 1897 – September 1, 1992) was an American stage and film actor. He was one of the founders of the Group Theatre (1931-1940) in New York City and had a thriving acting career both on Broadway and in films u ...

at the Leland Powers School of Drama, with both

Harold Clurman Harold Edgar Clurman (September 18, 1901 – September 9, 1980) was an American theatre director and drama critic. In 2003, he was named one of the most influential figures in U.S. theater by PBS.

and

Stella Adler Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher. A member of Yiddish Theater's Adler dynasty, Adler began acting at a young age. She shifted to producing, directing, and teaching, founding the ...

Actors Studio The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights located on West 44th Street in Hell's Kitchen in New York City. The studio is best known for its work refining and teaching method actin ...

, and at the

Cushing Academy Cushing Academy is a private, coeducational college-preparatory school for boarding and day students in Ashburnham, Massachusetts, United States. It serves approximately 400 students in grades 9–12 and a postgraduate year. History Cushing ...

Career

Film and television

Connolly started her career as a

guest star The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...

on ''

Pulitzer Prize Playhouse ''Pulitzer Prize Playhouse'' is an American drama anthology television series which offered adaptations of Pulitzer Prize-winning plays, novels, and stories. The journalist Elmer Davis was the host and narrator of this 1950–1952 ABC series. ...

'' in 1951. She next was in ''

Celanese Theatre ''Celanese Theatre'' is an anthology television series which aired from October 3, 1951, to June 25, 1952, on ABC. Concept The series arose from the Playwrights' Repertory Theater of Television with its focus on adapting stage plays to televis ...

'' as Marcia in 1952. Connollly would guest star in a number of television programs such as ''

Danger Danger is a lack of safety and may refer Places * Danger Cave, an archaeological site in Utah * Danger Island, Great Chagos Bank, Indian Ocean * Danger Island, alternate name of Pukapuka Atoll in the Cook Islands, Pacific Ocean * Danger Island ...

'', '' Naked City'', ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

'', '' Dr. Kildare'', ''

Mr. Novak ''Mr. Novak'' is an American television drama (film and television), drama television series starring James Franciscus in the title role as a high school teacher. The series aired on NBC for two seasons, from 1963 to 1965. It won a Peabody Award ...

'', '' The F.B.I.'', ''

I Dream of Jeannie ''I Dream of Jeannie'' is an American Fantasy television, fantasy sitcom television series created by Sidney Sheldon and starring Barbara Eden as a beautiful but guileless 2,000-year-old Jinn, genie and Larry Hagman as an astronaut with whom s ...

'', '' The Bold Ones: The New Doctors'', ''

Columbo ''Columbo'' is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Columbo (character), Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originall ...

'', ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

'', and ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts for ABC. It originally aired from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, airing for five seasons consisting of 115 episodes. It was produ ...

''. She starred in the made-for-TV-movies ''Mr. and Mrs. Cop'' and ''F. Scott Fitzgerald in Hollywood''. Connolly starred in the

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

'' QB VII'' as Corinne. She is best known for her roles as Lena Karr Gilroy in ''

'' from 1964 to 1966 and

on ''

'' from 1979 to 1998. She was in

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

's ''

The Wrong Man ''The Wrong Man'' is a 1956 American docudrama film noir directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Henry Fonda and Vera Miles. The film was drawn from the true story of an innocent man charged with a crime, as described in the book ''The True S ...

'' (1956), Robert Lewin's ''Third of a Man'' (1962),

Robert Mulligan Robert Patrick Mulligan (August 23, 1925 – December 20, 2008) was an American director and producer. He is best known for his sensitive dramas, including ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' (1962), '' Summer of '42'' (1971), '' The Other'' (1972), '' Sam ...

's '' The Other'' (1972), and

James Goldstone James Goldstone (June 8, 1931 – November 5, 1999) was an American film and television director whose career spanned over thirty years. Early life and education Goldstone was born in Los Angeles, the son of the Hollywood agent and early televi ...

's ''

They Only Kill Their Masters ''They Only Kill Their Masters'' is a 1972 American mystery film directed by James Goldstone, written by Lane Slate, and starring James Garner and Katharine Ross, with a supporting cast featuring Hal Holbrook, June Allyson, Tom Ewell, Peter Law ...

'' (1972). She was nominated for a

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

for her performance as Ruby Anderson in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

at the

12th Daytime Emmy Awards The 12th Daytime Emmy Awards were held on Thursday, August 1, 1985, on CBS to commemorate excellence in daytime programming from March 6, 1984, to March 5, 1985. Two new categories were added: Outstanding Young Man in a Daytime Drama Series and O ...

Theatre

On stage, Connolly was in ''

A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of pe ...

'' on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

. She was in '' Night of the Iguana'' and ''

The Crucible ''The Crucible'' is a 1953 play by the American playwright Arthur Miller. It is a dramatized and partially fictionalized story of the Salem witch trials that took place in the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1692 to 1693. Miller wrote ...

'' at Los Angeles'

Ahmanson Theatre The Ahmanson Theatre is one of the four main venues that compose the Los Angeles Music Center. Shows at this theater are produced by Center Theatre Group. History The theatre was built as a result of a donation from Howard F. Ahmanson Sr, the ...

. Connolly also appeared on Broadway in such plays as '' The Love of Four Colonels'' and ''Make a Million''.

Personal life and death

Connolly married Howard Rodman in 1954; the marriage ended when he died on December 5, 1985. Together, they had three children: two sons and one daughter. She was active in the battle against

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

, serving on the board of Hollywood Helps. Connolly addressed the concerns of actresses in their limited roles in television and film productions. She died on Wednesday, November 18, 1998, from complications of a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* *
Norma Connolly
a
Aveleyman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Norma 1927 births 1998 deaths Actresses from Boston American film actresses 20th-century American actresses American television actresses American soap opera actresses Actors Studio alumni Brandeis University alumni