Fay Spain
This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. (March 2009) |
Lona Fay Spain[2] (October 6, 1932 – May 8, 1983) was an American actress in motion pictures and television.
Fay Spain | |
|---|---|
Spain in 1959 | |
| Born | Lona Fay Spain October 6, 1932 Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.[1] |
| Died | May 8, 1983 (aged 50) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Lona May Spain |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1955–1977 |
| Spouse(s) | John Falvo (m. 1949; div. 1954)John Altoon (m. 1959; div. 1962)Imo Ughini (m. 1965; div. 1966)Philip Fulmer (m. 1968) |
| Children | 1 |
Early years
Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Fay Spain was the younger of two daughters born to Robert C. Spain and Arminta Frances "Mickie" Cochran.[2] When she was 17 years old, Spain worked as a dealer in a casino in Reno, Nevada. Years later, she said, "I lied about my age and got a job as a dealer – and made big money, much more than my husband, who was a shill."[3]
Theater apprentice
Within two months she found work with a stock company in the Catskill Mountains. She obtained an Equity Card which enabled her to continue working as an actress. Spain eschewed a college scholarship after attending high school in White Salmon, Washington. She chose instead to pursue a stock company apprenticeship.[citation needed]
Film actress
Spain pursued acting, unimpeded by rejection. She accepted any parts which came along, learning the techniques of the acting trade.[citation needed]
In 1955, Spain was one of 15 actresses who were named WAMPAS Baby Stars.[4] She first came to prominence with movie audiences in the late 1950s. In 1957, she appeared as Carol Smith with John Smith as Tommy Kelly in the dramatic film The Crooked Circle in which a young boxer is pressured to throw a fight. In 1958, she was cast as "Darlin Jill" in the film version of God's Little Acre, based on Erskine Caldwell's novel. The film marked the screen debut of Tina Louise and also starred Robert Ryan, Jack Lord, Buddy Hackett, Aldo Ray, and Vic Morrow.
Spain followed this success by playing Maureen Flannery in the film Al Capone (1959), and appeared in such films as The Beat Generation (1959), The Private Lives of Adam and Eve (1960), Hercules and the Conquest of Atlantis (1961), Black Gold (1962), Thunder Island (1963), Flight to Fury (1964), The Gentle Rain (1966), Welcome to Hard Times (1967) and The Todd Killings (1971).
Her final appearance as a film actress came in 1974, when she portrayed the wife of mobster Hyman Roth (Lee Strasberg) in The Godfather Part II (1974).
Marriages
When she was 16, Spain married John Falvo, a screenwriter and actor. They had one son, Jock Falvo (born 1954), and divorced in 1954.[2] In 1959 the actress married west coast abstract painter John Altoon.[5] From 1965 to 1966, she was married to Imo Ughini, a hairdresser.[2]
Television
Spain starred in 11 episodes of NBC Matinee Theater.[6]
She appeared as a contestant in an episode of the Groucho Marx game show You Bet Your Life (episode #56-02, October 4, 1956, Secret Word 'Hand'). By the middle and late 1950s and 1960s, Spain appeared in Bonanza (Sue Ellen Terry in "The Sisters"), Gunsmoke (in 1957 as the title character "Mavis McCloud" (S3E7) & in 1961 as "Bessie" a gang member and killer in "A Man A Day" (S7E14), Cheyenne, Rawhide, Whirlybirds, Hogan's Heroes, Perry Mason (Charlotte Lynch in "The Case of the Fiery Fingers"), Tombstone Territory (episode "Pick up the Gun"), The Millionaire, M Squad, Adventures in Paradise, The Texan, Riverboat, The Rat Patrol, Gomer Pyle, USMC, Gunsmoke (episode "Mavis McCloud" (1957) and episode "A Man a Day" (1961)), Playhouse 90, 77 Sunset Strip, Have Gun - Will Travel (episode "High Wire," 1957), Alfred Hitchcock Presents (episode "The Last Dark Step" (1959) and "The Cuckoo Clock" (1960)), Maverick (episodes "The Naked Gallows" with Jack Kelly (1957), "The Goose-Drownder" (1959), and "The Cactus Switch" with Roger Moore (1961)), Pony Express, The Restless Gun, The Fugitive, Bat Masterson and as Angela in Steve McQueen's Wanted: Dead or Alive (Season 2, Episode 18 (1959)).
Spain also appeared on the NBC interview program Here's Hollywood. In the 1950s and 1960s she continued to be seen frequently on television series such as Rawhide episodes, "Incident of the Valley in Shadow" (1959) and "Incident in the Middle of Nowhere" (1961) and "Incident of the Lost Woman" (1962), as well as Stoney Burke, Hogan's Heroes and The Fugitive.
In 1966, she played Calamity Jane in the episode "A Calamity Called Jane" of the syndicated series, Death Valley Days.
Death
Spain died of lymphatic cancer in Los Angeles in 1983 at age 50.[citation needed]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | Dragstrip Girl | Louise Blake | |
| The Abductors | |||
| Teenage Doll | Helen | ||
| The Crooked Circle | Carol Smith | ||
| 1958 | God's Little Acre | Darlin' Jill | |
| 1959 | Al Capone | Maureen Flannery | |
| The Beat Generation | Francee Culloran | ||
| 1960 | The Private Lives of Adam and Eve | Lil Lewis / Lilith | |
| 1961 | Hercules and the Conquest of Atlantis | Queen Antinea of Atlantis | |
| 1962 | Black Gold | Julie | |
| 1963 | Thunder Island | Helen Dodge | |
| The Great Space Adventure | |||
| 1964 | Flight to Fury | Destiny Cooper | |
| Cordillera | |||
| 1965 | Choque de Sentimentos | ||
| 1966 | The Gentle Rain | Nancy Masters | |
| 1967 | Welcome to Hard Times | Jessie | |
| 1970 | The Naked Zoo | Pauline | |
| 1971 | The Todd Killings | Mrs. Mack | |
| 1974 | The Godfather Part II | Mrs. Marcia Roth |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Big Town | Episode: "Mental Health" | |
| 1956 | The NBC Comedy Hour | Episode: Season 1, Episode 17 | |
| Matinee Theatre | Episode: "Backfire" | ||
| Cheyenne | Susan Doonevan | Episode: "The Long Winter" | |
| Conflict | Nancy Meadows | Episode: "The Magic Brew" | |
| Dragnet | Episode: "The Big Beer" | ||
| Playhouse 90 | Crystal Vail | Episode: "The Big Slide" | |
| 1957 | Wire Service | Peggy | Episode: "Chicago Exclusive" |
| Matinee Theatre | Episode: "On the Trail of the Klingsfeld" | ||
| The Brothers | Tracey | Episode: "The Crush" | |
| The Web | Sadie | Episode: "Dead Silence" | |
| Gunsmoke | Mavis McCloud | Episode: "Mavis McCloud" | |
| Have Gun – Will Travel | Rena | Episode: "High Wire" | |
| Sugarfoot | Susie Tatum | Episode: "Quicksilver" | |
| Maverick | Ruth Overton | Episode: "The Naked Gallows" | |
| 1958 | The Restless Gun | Helen Rockwood | Episode: "A Pressing Engagement" |
| The Court of Last Resort | Episode: "The Court of Last Resort" | ||
| Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer | Trina Greco | Episode: "A Grave Undertaking" | |
| The Millionaire | Aileen Evans | Episode: "The Tony Drummond Story" | |
| Perry Mason | Charlotte Lynch | Episode: "The Case of the Fiery Fingers" | |
| Tombstone Territory | Lisa Carew | Episode: "Pick up the Gun" | |
| Whirlybirds | Episode: "Blind Victory" | ||
| M Squad | Ruth Reardon | Episode: "Accusation" | |
| Playhouse 90 | Annamay Paul | Episode: "A Town Has Turned to Dust" | |
| Whirlybirds | Episode: "The Midnight Show" | ||
| The Texan | Ann Dowd | Episode: "The Easterner" | |
| Pursuit | Andrea | Episode: "The Dark Cloud" | |
| 1959 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Leslie Lenox | Episode: "The Last Dark Step" |
| The Ten Commandments | Television film | ||
| Bat Masterson | Julie Poe | Episode: "The Tumbleweed Wagon" | |
| 77 Sunset Strip | Audrey Franklin | Episode: "Abra-Cadaver" | |
| The Restless Gun | Serena | Episode: "A Very Special Investigator" | |
| Schlitz Playhouse | Anna Carrick | Episode: "Ballad to Die For" | |
| Wanted Dead or Alive | Amy Williams | Episode: "The Matchmaker" | |
| Adventures in Paradise | Amy | Episode: "Paradise Lost" | |
| Rawhide | Winoka | Episode: "Incident of the Valley in Shadow" | |
| Bonanza | Sue Ellen Terry | Episode: "The Sisters" | |
| Maverick | Stella Legendre | Episode: "The Goose-Drownder" | |
| 1960 | Wanted Dead or Alive | Angela | Episode: "Angela" |
| The Detectives | Marcy Collins | Episode: "House Call" | |
| Markham | Lucille Barrett | Episode: "Deadly Promise" | |
| Laramie | Gloria Patterson | Episode: "Duel at Alta Mesa" | |
| The Alaskans | Janice Collier | Episode: "Peril at Caribou Crossing" | |
| Hawaiian Eye | Honey Shaw | Episode: "Birthday Boy" | |
| The Alaskans | Ellen Hawley | Episode: "The Bride Wore Black" | |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Madeleine Hall | Episode: "The Cuckoo Clock" | |
| Moment of Fear | Episode: "Fire by Night" | ||
| Naked City | Felice Reynolds | Episode: "A Succession of Heartbeats" | |
| Michael Shayne | Marge Jerome | Episode: "Call for Michael Shayne" | |
| Maverick | Angelica Garland | Episode: "Bolt from the Blue" | |
| The Deputy | Sally Tornado | Episode: "Sally Tornado" | |
| Laramie | Fran Ericson | Episode: "No Second Chance" | |
| Riverboat | Laurie Rawlings | Episode: "Duel on the River" | |
| Route 66 | Paula Shay | Episode: "A Fury Slinging Flame" | |
| 1961 | Maverick | Lana Cane | Episode: "The Cactus Switch" |
| Gunslinger | Martha | Episode: "The Buried People" | |
| Adventures in Paradise | Julie | Episode: "Captain Butcher" | |
| The Untouchables | Julie Duvall | Episode: "Testimony of Evil" | |
| Rawhide | Barbara Fraser | Episode: "Incident in the Middle of Nowhere" | |
| Gunsmoke | Bessie | Episode: "A Man a Day" | |
| 1962 | Cain's Hundred | Enid Lazzo | Episode: "Murder by Proxy: Earl Klegg" |
| Ben Casey | Lisa Delman | Episode: "Odyssey of a Proud Suitcase" | |
| Dr. Kildare | Sally Winters | Episode: "The Roaring Boy-O" | |
| Hawaiian Eye | Barbara Mason | Episode: "Payoff" | |
| Tales of Wells Fargo | Marie Jarnier | Episode: "The Angry Sky" | |
| Rawhide | Lissa Hobson | Episode: "Incident of the Lost Woman" | |
| 1963 | Laramie | Gladys | Episode: "Vengeance" |
| Going My Way | Helen Bancroft | Episode: "The Slasher" | |
| Stoney Burke | Libby Ferris | Episode: "Cat's Eyes" | |
| The Greatest Show on Earth | Alicia | Episode: "The Hanging Man" | |
| 1964 | Channing | Phyllis | Episode: "Swing for the Moon" |
| Daniel Boone | Kathleen O'Hannrahan | Episode: "The Sisters O'Hannrahan" | |
| Dr. Kildare | Emily Buchanan | Episode: "Catch a Crooked Mouse" | |
| 1965 | The Fugitive | Nora Keel | Episode: "Three Cheers for Little Boy Blue" |
| 1966 | A Man Called Shenandoah | Millie Turner | Episode: "The Accused" |
| I Spy | Vanessa | Episode: "It's All Done with Mirrors" | |
| The Rat Patrol | Fay Morgan | Episode: "The Gun Runner Raid" | |
| Death Valley Days | Calamity Jane | Episode: "A Calamity Called Jane" | |
| 1967 | Iron Horse | Marian Elwood | Episode: "Six Hours to Sky High" |
| Mannix | Gladys | Episode: "A Catalogue of Sins" | |
| Gunsmoke | Willy | Episode: "Wonder" | |
| 1968 | Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. | Lila St. Clair | Episode: "Gomer and the Queen of Burlesque" |
| Hogan's Heroes | Myra | Episode: "How to Catch a Papa Bear" | |
| 1969 | My Friend Tony | Episode: "Kidnap" | |
| Hogan's Heroes | Carla | Episode: "At Last - Schultz Knows Something" | |
| 1971 | The Man and the City | Lois Niles | Episode: "I Should Have Let Him Die" |
| Medical Center | Linda | Episode: "The Nowhere Child" | |
| 1972 | Mannix | Mrs. Welch | Episode: "Cry Silence" |
| Night Gallery | Molly Mitchell | Episode: "Rare Objects" | |
| 1974 | Ironside | Alice Schmidt | Episode: "Class of '40" |
| Police Woman | Mame Dorn | Episode: "Flowers of Evil" | |
| 1975 | Caribe | Connie James | Episode: "Assault on the Calavera" |
| Police Woman | Nadine Hummel | Episode: "The Hit" |
References
- ^ . Glamour Girls. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2014.
- ^ a b c d Wagner, Laura (Spring 2019). "Fay Spain". Films of the Golden Age (96): 56–57.
- ^ "Fay Spain Really Veteran Gambler". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Texas, Lubbock. Associated Press. November 16, 1958. p. 64. Retrieved June 4, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "15 Wampas Baby Stars Appointed". Long Beach Independent. California, Long Beach. Associated Press. October 31, 1955. p. 13. Retrieved June 4, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Actress Fay Spain, Painter To Marry". The Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Texas, Corpus Christi. Associated Press. January 29, 1959. p. 18. Retrieved June 4, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Johnson, Erskine (March 6, 1959). "Hollywood Today". The Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Texas, Corpus Christi. p. 40. Retrieved June 4, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
Sources
- The Fremont Argus, "Fay Spain", May 17, 1975, Page 40.
- Reno Evening Gazette, "Fay Spain Comes Back To Reno", Friday, February 6, 1959, Page 22.
External links
- Fay Spain at IMDb
- Fay Spain at AllMovie
- Fay Spain at Find a Grave