Phyllis St. Felix Thaxter (November 20, 1919 – August 14, 2012) was an American actress. She is best known for portraying Ellen Lawson in '' Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo'' (1944) and Martha "Ma" Kent in ''

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

'' (1978). She also appeared in '' Bewitched'' (1945), '' Blood on the Moon'' (1948), and '' The World of Henry Orient'' (1964).

Early life

Thaxter was born in

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

, the youngest of three children of Phyllis ( Schuyler) Thaxter, former actress, and future Maine Supreme Court justice Sidney St. Felix Thaxter; her siblings were brother, Sidney W. Thaxter, and sister, Hildegarde Schuyler Thaxter (later the wife of federal judge Edward Thaxter Gignoux). Her grandfather, Major Sidney W. Thaxter, was awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Career

Before appearing in films, Thaxter was on the stage. When Dorothy McGuire went to Hollywood, Thaxter replaced her in the Broadway play '' Claudia''. In 1944, she signed a contract with

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

. Her movie debut was opposite Van Johnson in the 1944 wartime film '' Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo''. In the 1945 film-noir '' Bewitched'', Thaxter played Joan Alris Ellis, a woman with split personality. In 1948, she played a cattle owner's daughter in '' Blood on the Moon''. 30SOT trailer 27 Ellen and Ted Lawson

On August 15, 1952, Thaxter—having recently completed work on '' Operation Secret'' and '' Springfield Rifle'', and awaiting the birth of her second child—was hospitalized with what was described as a "mild" and "non-paralytic" case of polio.Hopper, Hedda (September 4, 1952)
"Hollywood"
''New York Daily News''. p. C14. Retrieved October 14, 2024. Although the illness did not impact her pregnancy, it proved sufficiently serious to all but end Thaxter's film career when, the following month, columnist

Hedda Hopper Elda Furry (May 2, 1885February 1, 1966), known professionally as Hedda Hopper, was an American gossip columnist and actress. At the height of her influence in the 1940s, more than 35 million people read her columns. A strong supporter of the Hous ...

reported that the actress's contract with Warner Brothers had, "by mutual agreement", been "quietly washed up". Of the remaining, predominantly TV-focused four decades of Thaxter's career, the big screen portion comprised four widely spaced credits. Thaxter appeared in television series such as '' Rawhide'', portraying Pauline Cushman in the episode "The Blue Spy" (1961), The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, portraying a paralyzed wife being terrorized by her husband in the episode "The Long Silence" (1963), ''

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 Christine Elliott Story" and "The Vivian Carter Story"), ''

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 ...

'' (" Young Man's Fancy"), and ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, airing on CBS and NBC, alternately, between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. Between 1962 ...

''. She returned to Broadway, appearing in ''Take Her, She's Mine'' at the Biltmore in 1961. In 1978, Thaxter was cast with

Glenn Ford Gwyllyn Samuel Newton Ford (May 1, 1916 – August 30, 2006), known as Glenn Ford, was a Canadian-born American actor. He was most prominent during Classical Hollywood cinema, Hollywood's Golden Age as one of the biggest box-office draws of th ...

as Jonathan and Martha Kent in the blockbuster film ''

''. In 1992, she appeared in the season nine "Family Secrets" episode of ''

Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...

''. In 2003, Thaxter had a seconds long appearance in the ''

Midsomer Murders ''Midsomer Murders'' is a British Mystery fiction, mystery television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the ''Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series created by Caroline Graham (writer), Caroline Graham. ...

'' episode "The Fisher King" (season 7, episode 3).

Personal life

Patricia Bosworth, in her biography of Montgomery Clift, tells of Thaxter's close relationship with Clift in the early 1940s, writing that they "seemed so close that a great many people assumed they would eventually marry". While at MGM, Phyllis Thaxter married James T. Aubrey Jr., who later became president of CBS-TV and MGM. They had two children. The couple divorced in 1962. In 1962, Thaxter married Gilbert Lea. They were married for 46 years until his death on May 4, 2008. A Republican, she supported the campaign of

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

in the 1952 presidential election.''Motion Picture and Television Magazine'', November 1952, page 34, Ideal Publishers

Death

Thaxter died on August 14, 2012, aged 92, in Longwood, Florida after an eight-year battle with

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

. She was cremated, and her ashes were scattered in Maine.

Filmography

Film

Selected television appearances

Radio appearances

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thaxter, Phyllis American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses 1919 births 2012 deaths Actresses from Portland, Maine Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in Florida Polio survivors 20th-century American actresses Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract players Warner Bros. contract players Schuyler family American people of Dutch descent Maine Republicans California Republicans Florida Republicans