Susan Browning (born Susan Brown; February 25, 1941 – April 23, 2006) was an American actress and singer, known for performing in the Broadway musicals ''

Shelter A shelter is an architectural structure or natural formation (or a combination of the two) providing protection from the local environment. A shelter can serve as a home or be provided by a residential institution. It can be understood as both ...

'', ''

Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

'', '' Big River'', and ''

Goodtime Charley ''Goodtime Charley'' is a musical with a book by Sidney Michaels, music by Larry Grossman, and lyrics by Hal Hackady. A humorous take on actual historical events, it focuses on the Dauphin of France, who evolves from a hedonistic young man en ...

''.

Early years

Browning was born Susan Brown in Baldwin, New York, and graduated from Baldwin High School in 1958. She attended

Penn State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

where she was a member of

Kappa Alpha Theta Kappa Alpha Theta (), commonly referred to simply as Theta, is an international Fraternities and sororities, sorority founded on January 27, 1870, at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. It was the first Greek-letter fraternity established ...

and graduated with a bachelor's degree in theater arts in 1962. She changed her last name to differentiate herself from another actress named Susan Brown.

Career

After Browning finished college, she acted with the Equity Library Theatre. Impresario

Julius Monk Julius Withers Monk (November 10, 1912, Spencer, North Carolina – August 17, 1995, New York City) was an American impresario in the New York cabaret scene. His 1956 revue, ''Four Below'', has been characterized as "the first legitimate cafe re ...

saw her in a musical production there and signed her for a revue, ''Dime a Dozen'', at Plaza 9. She was in that show for a year and left to make her debut on Broadway in ''Love and Kisses''. Browning was nominated for two

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

s: for Best Actress in a Musical for ''

'' in 1971 and for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for ''

'' in 1975. She was also featured on Broadway in the musicals '' Big River'' and ''Shelter'', as well as several plays. Browning played one of the nuns in the 1992 movie ''

Sister Act ''Sister Act'' is a 1992 American musical crime comedy film directed by Emile Ardolino and written by Paul Rudnick (billed as Joseph Howard). It stars Whoopi Goldberg as a lounge singer forced to hide in a convent after being placed in a witn ...

'', as well as its 1993 sequel '' Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit''. Her television work included appearances on '' Love Is a Many Splendored Thing'', ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...

'', ''

All My Children ''All My Children'' (often shortened to ''AMC'') is an American television soap opera that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network (TOLN) from April 29 to September 2, 2 ...

'', ''

Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman ''Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'' is an American satirical soap opera broadcast on weeknights from January 1976 to July 1977. The syndicated series follows the eponymous Mary Hartman, a small-town Ohio housewife attempting to cope with various bi ...

'', ''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...

'', ''

The Girl From U.N.C.L.E. ''The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.'' is an American spy fiction TV series starring Stefanie Powers that aired on NBC for one season from September 13, 1966, to April 11, 1967. The series was a spin-off from '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' and used the same ...

'', and ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...

''.

Death

Browning died on April 23, 2006, in New York City after a brief illness, according to friends in the theatre community. She was 65 years old.

Filmography

Television

References

External links

* * * 1941 births 2006 deaths American film actresses American stage actresses Pennsylvania State University alumni 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women Broadway theatre people {{US-film-actor-1940s-stub