American actress (1927?2016)
Rita Gam
|
---|
Gam in 1969
|
Born
| Rita Eleanore MacKay
(
1927-04-02
)
April 2, 1927
|
---|
Died
| March 22, 2016
(2016-03-22)
(aged 88)
|
---|
Occupation
| Actress
|
---|
Years active
| 1950?1997
|
---|
Spouses
|
(
m.
1949;
div.
1954)
(
m.
1956;
div.
1963)
|
---|
Children
| 2
|
---|
Rita Gam
(born
Rita Eleanore MacKay
, April 2, 1927 – March 22, 2016) was an American film and television actress and documentary filmmaker. She won the
Silver Bear for Best Actress
.
Background
[
edit
]
Gam was born in
Pittsburgh
,
Pennsylvania
, the daughter of Belle (nee Fately), who was born in Romania, and Milton A. MacKay, who was born in
France
to parents from Romania. Her father died in New York in 1931 and her mother remarried. Gam took the surname of her stepfather, Benjamin J. Gam.
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
Career
[
edit
]
Gam was a model before she ventured into acting. Her acting career began on Broadway and in television, after which she moved on to films. Her Broadway credits included
There's a Girl in My Soup
,
The Insect Comedy
,
A Flag is Born
, and
A Temporary Island
.
[5]
She appeared first in the 1952
film noir
The Thief
, which starred
Ray Milland
. In October 1952, she signed a long-term
MGM
contract.
[6]
Another notable role was
Herodias
in 1961's
King of Kings
.
Gam was an occasional panelist on the famous live broadcast CBS game show
What's My Line
as well in the 1950s and early 1960s.
She shared the
Silver Bear for Best Actress
award with
Viveca Lindfors
at the
1962 Berlin Film Festival
, for their performances in
Tad Danielewski
's
No Exit
.
[7]
In 1963, Gam was a leading member of The Minnesota Theatre Company in the opening season of The
Tyrone Guthrie Theater
in Minneapolis.
[
citation needed
]
Gam appeared in a few more American films before working in Europe. She returned to the U.S. to appear in small parts in films, including
Klute
in 1971, before taking up documentary film making.
[
citation needed
]
In 2003, she appeared in the rotating cast of the Off-Broadway stage reading of
Wit & Wisdom
.
[8]
In 2004, she appeared in one of a series of ads for the
Royal Bank of Scotland
.
Personal life and death
[
edit
]
Gam's first husband was director
Sidney Lumet
, whom she married in 1949. The marriage ended in divorce in 1955.
[5]
In 1956, Gam was a bridesmaid at the wedding of
Grace Kelly
to
Prince Rainier
in Monaco.
[9]
Gam's 1956 marriage to publisher
Thomas Guinzburg
ended in divorce in 1963.
[5]
[10]
Gam died on March 22, 2016, at
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
in Los Angeles, California, from respiratory failure.
[11]
Books
[
edit
]
Gam was the author of two books,
Actress to Actress
and
Actors: A Celebration.
[12]
[13]
[5]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Film
[
edit
]
Television
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Judith Balaban Quine
(1990).
The Bridesmaids: Grace Kelly and Six Intimate Friends
. Pocket Books.
ISBN
9780671707705
. Retrieved
June 2,
2016
– via Internet Archive.
Rita Gam was born in Pittsburgh.
- ^
"Person Details for Rita Mackay in household of Milton Mackay, "United States Census, 1930"
"
.
FamilySearch
. Archived from
the original
on April 3, 2016
. Retrieved
March 23,
2016
.
- ^
"Person Details for Rita Gam in household of Benjamin J Gam, "United States Census, 1940"
"
.
FamilySearch
. Archived from
the original
on April 3, 2016
. Retrieved
March 23,
2016
.
- ^
"Person Details for Milton A. Mackay, "New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949"
"
.
FamilySearch
. Archived from
the original
on April 3, 2016
. Retrieved
March 23,
2016
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Rita Gam, actress - obituary"
.
The Telegraph
. April 10, 2016
. Retrieved
July 1,
2016
.
- ^
"Rita Gam"
.
Glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com
. Retrieved
April 27,
2014
.
- ^
"Berlinale 1962: Prize Winners"
.
Berlinale.de
. Archived from
the original
on November 24, 2015
. Retrieved
February 7,
2010
.
- ^
"Wit & Wisdom - Off-Broadway | Tickets, Reviews, Info and More"
.
Theatermania.com
. Archived from
the original
on June 14, 2012
. Retrieved
June 2,
2016
.
- ^
LIFE Magazine
, May 5, 1952, p. 144
- ^
Staff.
"RITA GAM REMARRIED; Film Actress Is Wed Here to Thomas H. Guinzburg"
,
The New York Times
, March 24, 1956; accessed September 13, 2010.
- ^
"Rita Gam Dead: Glamorous Actress Was 88"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. March 22, 2016
. Retrieved
June 2,
2016
.
- ^
Gam, Rita (1986).
Actress to Actress
. N. Lyons.
ISBN
0941130231
.
- ^
Gam, Rita (1988).
Actors: A Celebration
. St. Martin's Press.
ISBN
0312017456
.
External links
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Rita Gam
.
|
---|
1956?1975
| |
---|
1976?2000
| |
---|
2001?2020
| |
---|
|
---|
International
| |
---|
National
| |
---|
Academics
| |
---|
People
| |
---|
Other
| |
---|