Alice Pearce

Alice Pearce
As Gladys Kravitz in Bewitched
Born	October 16, 1917 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	March 3, 1966 (aged 48) Hollywood, California, U.S.
Cause of death	Ovarian cancer
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1943–1966
Spouse(s)	John Rox (1948–1957; his death) Paul Davis (1964–1966; her death)
Awards	Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Alice Pearce (October 16, 1917 – March 3, 1966) was an American actress. She was brought to Hollywood by Gene Kelly to reprise her Broadway performance in the film version of On the Town (1949). Pearce played comedic supporting roles in several films, before being cast as nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz in the television sitcom Bewitched in 1964. She won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series posthumously after the second season of the series. She died from ovarian cancer in 1966.

Early life and career

Pearce was born in New York City, the only child of Margaret Clark and Robert E. Pearce.^[1] Her father was a foreign banking specialist, and her family moved to Europe when she was 18 months old. They lived in Brussels, Antwerp, Rome, and Paris.^[2] At age nine, she fell off a swing after losing her grip and landed on her chin. This left her with an undeveloped chin. She returned to the United States as a teenager, and boarded at the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, New York.^[3] She graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1940, with a degree in drama.^[1][4]

She began working in nightclubs as a comedian and was cast in the original Broadway production of On the Town (1944–1946). Gene Kelly was so impressed by her that she became the only cast member to be included in the film version in 1949.^[5] Her comedic performance was well received by critics and public alike, and she was given her own television variety show, The Alice Pearce Show.^[6] More movie roles followed, and she made appearances on Broadway, where she met her husband, director Paul Davis, during a production of Bells Are Ringing.

During the 1953–1954 television season, Pearce was seen regularly on ABC's Jamie, which starred Brandon deWilde.^[6] In 1964, Pearce was originally approached to play the part of Grandmama in the ABC television comedy series The Addams Family. She turned down the part, which went to veteran actress Blossom Rock. In 1964, Pearce joined the cast of Bewitched as the nagging and nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz. Pearce's scenes were almost entirely reactions to the witchcraft she had witnessed at the house across the street. Her hysterical accusations against Samantha, played by Elizabeth Montgomery, and the disbelief of her husband Abner (George Tobias), provided a common thread through many of the series' early episodes. She played the role until her death in 1966, and was replaced by Sandra Gould.^[7] Pearce was posthumously awarded an Emmy Award for this role; Davis accepted this award on her behalf.^[8]

Personal life

Pearce was married twice; in 1948, she married composer John Rox. In 1957, Rox died of a heart attack.^[3] In 1964, she married stage manager Paul Davis, with whom she remained until her death.^[2] Pearce had no children.

Pearce was a good friend of actor and photographer Cris Alexander. When Alexander was working on the illustrations for Patrick Dennis's bestseller Little Me he asked Pearce to appear in the work as Winnie, the reform school friend of Belle Poitrine, the biography's subject. She also appeared as several characters in Dennis' and Alexander's later project, First Lady: My Thirty Days at the White House.

Death

Pearce was diagnosed with terminal cancer before Bewitched began. She kept her illness a secret,^[9] although her rapid weight loss was quite evident during the second season of the sitcom. She died from ovarian cancer toward the end of the second year of Bewitched at the age of 48. Pearce was cremated and her ashes were scattered at sea.

Selected filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1949	On the Town	Lucy Schmeeler
1949	The Alice Pearce Show	Host	Unknown episodes
1951	Lux Video Theatre	Nina	Episode: "Dames Are Poison"
1952	The Belle of New York	Elsie Wilkins
1953	The Motorola Television Hour	Hagga	Episode: "The Thirteen Clocks"
1953	Broadway Television Theater	Miss Dale Ogden Lady Emily Lyons	Episode: The Bat by Mary Roberts Rinehart and Avery Hopwood Episode: The Bishop Misbehaves by Frederick J. Jackson
1953–1954	Jamie	Annie Moakum	3 episodes
1953–1954	Take It from Me	Neighbor	Also known as The Jean Carroll Show[10]
1955	How to Be Very, Very Popular	Miss "Syl" Sylvester
1955	Alice in Wonderland	Dormouse	Television movie
1956	The Opposite Sex	Olga
1961	The Twilight Zone	Mrs. Nielsen	Episode: "Static"
1962	Lad: A Dog	Hilda, the Nurse
1962	Dennis the Menace	Lucy Tarbell[6]	2 episodes
1963	My Six Loves	Bus Driver
1963	Tammy and the Doctor	Millie Baxter, Nurse
1963	The Thrill of It All	Irving's wife
1963	The Donna Reed Show	Adele Collins	Episode: "A Touch of Glamour"
1964	Dear Heart	Miss Moore
1964	Hazel	Miss Elsie	Episode: "Hot Potato ala Hazel"
1964	The Disorderly Orderly	Miss Fuzzibee, Talkative Patient
1964	Kiss Me, Stupid	Mrs. Mulligan
1964–1966	Bewitched	Gladys Kravitz	27 episodes
1965	Dear Brigitte	Unemployment Office Clerk
1965	Bus Riley's Back in Town	Woman Customer / Housewife
1966	The Glass Bottom Boat	Mabel Fenimore	Alternative title: The Spy in Lace Panties
1967	Vacation Playhouse	Music Teacher	Episode: "My Boy Googie" Aired posthumously

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Title of work	Result
1966	Emmy Award	Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Comedy	Bewitched	Won
2003	TV Land Awards	Nosiest Neighbor	Bewitched	Won

References

1. "Alice Pearce". TV Land. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved November 7, 2015.
2. "Finally the Center of Attention". TV Guide 13 (52): 13–14. December 25–31, 1965. ISSN 0039-8543.
3. Shearer, Lloyd (October 11, 1964). "Alice Pearce: The Chinless Wonder". Reading Eagle. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
4. "Alice Pearce". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Associated Press. March 4, 1966. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
5. Green, Stanley (1999). Hollywood Musicals Year by Year. Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 156. ISBN 978-0-634-00765-1. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
6. Terrace, Vincent (November 6, 2008). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2 ed.). McFarland & Company. pp. 25, 252, 525. ISBN 978-0-7864-8641-0. Retrieved October 3, 2015.
7. "Sandra Gould Played Gladys Kravitz". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. July 28, 1999. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
8. Handsaker, Gene (May 23, 1966). "Miss Stanwyck, Cosby Are Top Performers". Nashua Telegraph. Associated Press. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
9. "Terminal Illness". The Gettysburg Times. March 19, 1966. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
10. Leszczak, Bob (November 2, 2012). Single Season Sitcoms, 1948–1979: A Complete Guide. McFarland & Company. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-7864-9305-0. Retrieved October 3, 2015.

External links

• Alice Pearce at the Internet Broadway Database
• Alice Pearce at the Internet Movie Database

"Alice Pearce". Find a Grave. Retrieved September 14, 2010.