Elaine Stritch

Elaine Stritch (born on February 2, 1925) is an Irish-American actress and singer.

Stritch was born in Detroit, Michigan to a wealthy, devoutly Roman Catholic family. She is the niece of Samuel Cardinal Stritch, Archbishop of Chicago.

Career

Stritch trained at the Dramatic Workshop of the New School for Social Research in New York City under Erwin Piscator; other students at the Dramatic Workshop at this time included Marlon Brando and Bea Arthur.

Her Broadway debut came in the revue Angel in the Wings. Stritch was also standby to Ethel Merman for the Irving Berlin musical Call Me Madam and, at the same time, appeared in the 1952 revival of Pal Joey, singing "Zip", a pivotal number. At the end of 1952, Stritch led the national tour of Call Me Madam, in Merman's role. In 1954, she appeared in another revival, of On Your Toes, with an interpolation from the show Present Arms, "You Took Advantage Of Me," added especially for Stritch. She played a non-singing role in Bus Stop in 1955, then starred in two new musicals, Goldilocks and Sail Away.

Stritch became known as a singer with a brassy, rough voice who could portray brash characters. After over a decade of successful runs in shows in New York, Stritch moved to London, England in 1972, where she starred in the West End production of Company.

Television

Stritch decided to stay in London to work on stage and in British television, having married John Bay, a younger Canadian actor she had met there. For the British television network ITV she appeared in the London Weekend Television comedy series Two's Company opposite Sir Donald Sinden. She played Dorothy, an American living in Britain who was famous for her lurid and sensationalist thriller novels. Sinden played Robert, her butler, who disapproved of practically everything Dorothy did; this was the essence of the series, the culture clash between Robert's very British stiff-upper-lip attitude and Dorothy's devil-may-care New York view of life. Two's Company was exceptionally well-received in Britain, despite being buried in the 'graveyard slot' of Sundays at 10:30 p.m. Stritch and Sinden also sang the theme tune to the programme.

She made other appearances on British television, notably in Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected (1978–1989). Although she appeared several times in different roles, perhaps her most memorable appearance was in the story "William and Mary", in which she played the wife of a man who has cheated death by having his brain preserved. As Roald Dahl said in his introduction to the episode, humour should always be used in horror stories, in order to provide light to the shade, and that was why Stritch had been cast—"...an actress who knows a lot about humour."

She became a darling of the British chat show circuit, appearing with Michael Parkinson and Terry Wogan many times, usually ending the appearance with a song. She also appeared on BBC One's iconic children's series, Jackanory, reading, amongst other stories, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl.

Stritch has many other television credits, including a number of dramatic programs in the 1950s and 1960s which featured Broadway-style writing and acting, including Studio One. More recently, she has been seen on One Life To Live and recurring roles on Law & Order and 3rd Rock from the Sun.

Return to stage

After John Bay's death from brain cancer in 1982, Stritch returned to America. After a lull in her career and struggles with alcoholism, Stritch began performing again in earnest in 1990. Among her appearances were roles in a revival of the musical Show Boat, a one-night only concert of her 1970 hit Company and in Edward Albee's play A Delicate Balance.

In 2002, Stritch began performing in her one woman show, Elaine Stritch At Liberty. The show was a summation of Stritch's life and career, and she performed the show to great acclaim. In 2005 and again in 2006 she has performed a cabaret act at the Carlyle Room at the Hotel Carlyle in NYC (where she is a resident). The 90 minute show consists of a selection of songs from her vast Broadway repertoire (including "The Ladies Who Lunch" from 'Company"), as well as a rendition of the Theme from the Sopranos (Woke Up This Morning) which brought the house down. In between the musical numbers, Ms. Stritch keeps the audience captivated with stories from the world of stage and screen, tales from her everyday life, and deeply personal glimpses of her private tragedies and triumphs.

Feature films

Although her work has primarily been on the stage, Stritch has also made many appearances in films, most recently in films such as Woody Allen's September and Small Time Crooks, Monster-In-Law, and Autumn in New York.

Awards and other recognition

Stritch has been nominated for the Tony Award four times as an actress:

• Best Featured Actress in a Play for Bus Stop, 1956
• Best Actress in a Musical for Sail Away, 1962, as Mimi Paragon
• Best Actress in a Musical for Company, 1971
• Best Actress in a Play for A Delicate Balance, 1996

In 2002, her one-woman show Elaine Stritch At Liberty won the Tony for Best Special Theatrical Event. The awards ceremony, and Stritch's acceptance speech, became notable for its length; in an effort to minimize her speaking time, the orchestra kept playing with the intention to drown her out, but Stritch was tenacious about continuing her speech. [1]

The show itself, in addition to the rehearsal process and Stritch's backstage struggles with, among other things, alcoholism and diabetes, are documented in the D.A. Pennebaker film of the same name. The film went on to win several Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Variety or Music Program for Stritch, who famously quipped, "I know that most of you who just won an award are thinking 'Ha! I'm glad I won and you didn't!'".

Alcoholism

Stritch has been candid about her struggles with alcohol. She took her first drink at 13, and began using it as a crutch prior to performances to vanquish her stage fright and insecurities. Her drinking worsened after Bay's death, and she sought help after experiencing issues with effects of alcoholism, as well as the onset of diabetes. Elaine Stritch At Liberty discusses this topic at length. [2]

Trivia

• Stritch's voice and vocal delivery are spoofed in the Forbidden Broadway songs "The Ladies Who Screech" and "Stritch", parodies of "The Ladies Who Lunch" and "Zip", songs she performed in the musicals Company and Pal Joey, respectively.
• Stritch was reportedly considered for the role of Dorothy on The Golden Girls, but, by her own admission, offended the producers by improvising profanity into the script. The role was subsequently cast with Bea Arthur.
• She is good friends with gossip columnist Liz Smith, and they share the same birthday, February 2, albeit two years apart.
• Stritch played the first Trixie Norton, the burlesque dancing wife of Art Carney's Ed Norton, on Jackie Gleason's first Honeymooners sketch on television, but she was replaced by the less glamorous-looking Joyce Randolph the following week.
• In 1982 Stritch appeared on an edition of the long running BBC Radio comedy series Just a Minute alongside Kenneth Williams, Clement Freud and Barry Cryer. Discoursing on such subjects as "Kangaroo Pie", "What Makes Me Fall About Laughing", "Keeping My Figure" and "The Most Important Thing In My Life", Stritch finished the game in second place, despite being routinely targeted by the other panellists. It was on this occasion that Stritch famously described Kenneth Williams as being able to make "one word into a three act play".

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