Bridgette Andersen

Bridgette Andersen
Andersen in Savannah Smiles in 1982.
Born	Marriah Bridget Andersen July 11, 1975 Inglewood, California, USA
Died	May 18, 1997 (aged 21) Los Angeles, California, USA
Cause of death	Overdose of alcohol and drugs
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1982–1987

Bridgette Andersen (July 11, 1975 – May 18, 1997) was an American child actress best known as the title role of the 1982 comedy Savannah Smiles.

Early life and career

Born Marriah Bridget Andersen in Inglewood, California to Frank Glass and Teresa Andersen, Bridgette Andersen (as she was known professionally) was raised in Malibu, California, and from an early age, she showed exceptional intelligence. By age two, she decided she wanted to be an actress and eventually began a career as a child model before breaking into acting at age seven in the 1982 TV movie, Washington Mistress. Later that year, Andersen appeared in her most memorable role as the title character in Savannah Smiles, followed by roles in Family Ties, Remington Steele, and as a young Mae West in the TV biopic of the actress' life.

In 1983, Andersen appeared as Celia in the short lived sitcom Gun Shy, and was also nominated for a Young Artist Award for her role in Savannah Smiles. She followed up with a role in the horror film, Nightmares. She was nominated for a second time for a Young Artist Award for her role in Gun Shy the following year.

Throughout the mid-1980s, Andersen continued to appear in episodic television, TV movies and features films, including: A Summer to Remember in 1985, Hotel, Fever Pitch with Ryan O'Neal, The Golden Girls, and The Parent Trap II with Hayley Mills.

By 1987, Andersen's roles were infrequent with her only appearances being in an episode of CBS Summer Playhouse and an independent film entitled Too Much. One of Andersen's last roles was a small part in a Pepsi commercial that aired during Super Bowl XXX on January 28, 1996. Her last acting role was in the independent feature Locker 28. However, the film has never been released.

Death

Andersen was reportedly not close to her family and had little contact with them. During her teen years, she struggled with an addiction to heroin, and at the time of her death, was attempting to stay clean while working at Erehwon Health Food Store in Los Angeles, California.

On May 18, 1997, Andersen died of an accidental overdose of alcohol and heroin.^[1] She was 21 years old. Her funeral service was held on May 25, 1997 at Malibu United Methodist Church. Andersen was cremated and her ashes were scattered at Zuma Beach in Malibu, California.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1982	Savannah Smiles	Savannah
1983	Nightmares	Brooke Houston	Segment: "Night of the Rat"
1985	Fever Pitch	Amy
1987	Too Much	Susie

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1982	Washington Mistress	Jenny	Television movie
1982	King's Crossing	Mimi Hadary	Episode: "Triangle"
1982	Mae West	Mae (Age 7)	Television movie
1982	Family Ties	Young Mallory	Episode: "A Christmas Story"
1983	Gun Shy	Celia	Main role, 6 episodes
1983	Fantasy Island	Jane Ashley	Episode: "Random Choices/My Mother, the Swinger"
1983	Faerie Tale Theatre	Gretel	Episode: "Hansel and Gretel"
1984	Remington Steele	Angel Gallen	Episode: "Blood Is Thicker Than Steele"
1984	The Mississippi	Abigail Marshall	Episode: "Abigail"
1984	The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D.	Alison Lattimer	Television movie
1985	A Summer to Remember	Jill	Television movie
1985	Hotel	Lindsay Pomeroy	Episode: "Lost and Found"
1986	The Golden Girls	Charley	Episode: "The Truth Will Out"
1986	Between Two Women	Kate Petherton	Television movie
1986	The Parent Trap II	Mary Grand	Television movie
1987	CBS Summer Playhouse	Jamie	Episode: "Doctors Wilde"

Award nominations

Year	Award	Category	Title of work	Result
1983	Young Artist Award	Best Young Motion Picture Actress	Savannah Smiles	Nominated
1984	Young Artist Award	Best Young Actress in a Comedy Series	Gun Shy	Nominated
1985	Young Artist Award	Best Young Actress - Guest in a Television Series	The Mississippi	Nominated
1986	Young Artist Award	Exceptional Performance by a Young Actress in a Television Special or Mini-Series	A Summer to Remember	Nominated

References

1. Find A Grave

External links

• Bridgette Andersen at the Internet Movie Database
• Bridgette Andersen at AllMovie

Bridgette Andersen at Find a Grave