Eleanor Audley

Eleanor Audley

Birth name: Eleanor Zellman
Born: November 19, 1905
Died: November 25, 1991 (at age 86)
Birthplace: New York City, New York, U.S.
Popularity:
Biography

Eleanor Audley (born Eleanor Zellman; November 19, 1905 - November 25, 1991) was an American actress who was a familiar radio and animation voice, in addition to her TV and film roles. She is best remembered on television as Eunice Douglas on the CBS sitcom Green Acres (1965-69); and for providing Disney animated films with the voices of Lady Tremaine from Cinderella (1950); and Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty (1959).

Stage

Audley was born Eleanor Zellman in New York City, New York on November 19, 1905.

Audley made her Broadway debut in the 1926 production of Howdy, King. Other stage appearances include: On Call (1928); Pigeons and People (1933); Thunder on the Left (1933); Kill That Story (1934); Ladies' Money (1934); Susan and God (1937); and In Bed We Cry (1943).

Radio

Audley worked extensively in the 1940s and '50s in Hollywood radio on such shows as Escape; Suspense; My Favorite Husband (as Liz Cooper's mother-in-law, Leticia Cooper); The Story of Dr. Kildare (as receptionist Molly Byrd); and Father Knows Best (as Anderson family neighbor, Elizabeth Smith). In 1954, she played the stepmother in an episode which included a re-imagining of the Cinderella story for the weekly western series, The Six Shooter, which starred James Stewart.

Film

Audley's film appearances include: No Way Out (1950); Three Secrets (1950); Gambling House (1950); Starlift (1951); With a Song in My Heart (1952); Untamed (1955); Cell 2455, Death Row (1955); All That Heaven Allows (1955); The Unguarded Moment (1956); Full of Life (1956); Jeanne Eagels (1957); Voice in the Mirror (1958); Home Before Dark (1958); The FBI Story (1959); The Pleasure of His Company (1961); The Second Time Around (1961); Wives and Lovers (1963); The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964); Kisses for My President (1964); I'll Take Sweden (1965); Never a Dull Moment (1968); and Hook, Line and Sinker (1969).

Animation

In the animated film industry, Audley was best known for giving her distinctive, powerful, chilling voice to Lady Tremaine, Cinderella's evil stepmother in the 1950 Disney animated film Cinderella; and Aurora's evil fairy godmother, Maleficent, in Disney's 1959 version of Sleeping Beauty. For these films, animators Frank Thomas and Marc Davis made the characters' facial features and expressions resemble Audley's. She was the live-action model for both characters. Audley had initially turned down the role of Maleficent because she was battling tuberculosis at the time.

To promote Cinderella, Audley voiced the Evil Queen in the 1949 Disney audiobook release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs with Ilene Woods voicing Snow White. Audley voiced the Evil Queen in a 1953 radio version of Disney's Snow White for an episode of the radio program, The Railroad Hour.

In 1960, Audley appeared on Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color TV miniseries, The Swamp Fox.

In 1969, Audley provided the voice of Madame Leota in the Haunted Mansion attractions in Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

Television

From 1954 until 1970, Audley appeared regularly on television, including: I Love Lucy; Crossroads; The People's Choice; Richard Diamond, Private Detective; Perry Mason; Dennis the Menace; Hazel; Pete and Gladys; The Real McCoys; The Twilight Zone; Mr. Lucky; The Dick Van Dyke Show (as Parent-Teacher Association head, Mrs. Billings); The Beverly Hillbillies (as Potts School headmistress, Millicent Schuyler-Potts); Mister Ed (as Wibur Post's aunt, Martha); and My Three Sons (as Steven Douglas's mother-in-law, Mrs. Vincent).

Audley was a series regular on Green Acres from 1965 to 1969, playing Oliver Douglas's disapproving mother, Eunice Douglas. When the cast were reunited for a 1990 TV movie, Return to Green Acres, Audley, who suffered from failing health, could not appear.

Death

Audley died at the age of 86 from respiratory failure, in North Hollywood, California on November 25, 1991. She is interred at Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery.

Work

Film roles

  • The Story of Molly X (1949) - Parole Board Member (uncredited)
  • Cinderella (1950) - Lady Tremaine
  • No Way Out (1950) - Wife (uncredited)
  • Pretty Baby (1950) - Miss Brindel
  • Three Secrets (1950) - Warden (uncredited)
  • Gambling House (1950) - Mrs. Livingston
  • Starlift (1951) - Mrs. Louise Williams (uncredited)
  • With a Song in My Heart (1952) - Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
  • Prince of Players (1955) - Actress as Mrs. Montchesington (uncredited)
  • Untamed (1955) - Lady Vernon (uncredited)
  • Cell 2245, Death Row (1955) - Blanche
  • All That Heaven Allows (1955) - Mrs. Humphrey (uncredited)
  • The Toy Tiger (1956) - Woman in Reading Room (uncredited)
  • The Unguarded Moment (1956) - Mr. Pendleton's Secretary
  • Full of Life (1956) - Mrs.Jameson
  • Spoliers of the Forest (1957) - Mrs. Walters
  • Jeanne Eagels (1957) - Sob Sister at Party (uncredited)
  • Voice in the Mirror (1958) - Speaker at Soup Kitchen (uncredited)
  • Step Down in Terror (1958) - Mrs. Brighton
  • Home Before Dark (1958) - Mrs. Hathaway
  • Sleeping Beauty (1959) - Maleficent
  • The FBI Story (1959) - Mrs. King (uncredited)
  • A Summer Place (1959) - Waiting Guest at Molly's College (uncredited)
  • Waldo (1960)
  • The Gun of Zangara (1960) - Mrs. Cross (uncredited)
  • The Pleasure of His Company (1961) - Mrs. Thompson (uncredited)
  • The Second Time Around (1961) - Mrs. Trask
  • Wives and Lovers (1963) - Fan at Sardi's (uncredited)
  • The Wheelers Dealers (1963) - Art Critic (uncredited)
  • The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964) - Mrs. Cartwright (uncredited)
  • Kisses for My President (1964) - School Principal Osgood (uncredited)
  • I'll Take Sweden (1965) - Mrs. Dow (uncredited)
  • The Far Out West (1967) - Mrs. Teasley (uncredited)
  • Never a Dull Moment (1968) - Matron (uncredited)
  • Hook, Line and Sinker (1969) - Mrs. Durham

TV roles

  • Studio 57 (1954) - Miss Hunt
  • The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse (1955)
  • Front Row Center (1955) - Carlotta Vance
  • Damon Runyon Theater (1955) - Cynthia
  • Celebrity Playhouse (1955)
  • Our Miss Brooks (1956) - Mrs. Pryor
  • The 20th Century-Fox Hour (1956) - Governor's Wife - Mrs. Hammond - Mrs. Morgan
  • Climax! (1956)
  • Screen Directors Playhouse (1956) - Judith Brenner
  • The People's Choice (1956) - Moderator - Mrs. Price
  • The Adventures of Jim Bowie (1956) - Miss Peabody
  • Father Knows Best (1956) - Saleslady - Woman giving spare change (uncredited) - Bookstacker in Library
  • Crusader (1956) - Mrs. Watson
  • The Gray Ghost (1957) - Mrs. Maddox
  • How to Marry a Millionaire (1957) - Gertrude Van Dyne
  • Cavalcade of America (1957) - Mrs. Littlefield
  • Lux Video Theatre (1956) - Mrs. Lane, (1957) - Aunt Ada
  • The Ford Television Theatre (1955) - Tina, (1957) - Constance Perkins
  • I Love Lucy (1957) - Eleanor Spaulding - Flower Judge
  • Crossroads (1957) - Mrs. Sand
  • The Lineup (1957) - Maryanne Carstaires
  • The Old Testament Scriptures (1958) - Naomi
  • The Millionaire (1955) - Cynthia Simple, (1958) - Glori Van Enter - Columnist
  • Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre (1958) - Mrs. Emily Trumbull
  • The Loretta Young Show (1954) - Miss Bennett, (1958) - Edith Landow
  • The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1956) - The Lady Customer, (1957) - Mrs. Crowley - Mrs. Winthrop, (1958) - The Saleslady
  • Frontier Doctor (1958) - Hattie Black
  • The Real McCoys (1959) - Dr. Kirkwood
  • The Ann Sothern Show (1959) - Mrs. Thompson
  • Mike Hammer (1959) - Mrs. Milford
  • Hennesey (1959)
  • Richard Diamond, Private Detective (1959) - Mrs. Deneken
  • General Electric Theatre (1954) - Woman in Restaurant, (1955-1956), (1959) - Alice Martin
  • Johnny Midnight (1960) - Mrs. Rice
  • Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (1960) - Mrs. Videau
  • The Twilight Zone (1960) - Mrs. Whitney (uncredited)
  • The Gale Storm Show: Oh Susanna (1956) - Passenger, (1957) - Mrs. Gardiner, (1960) - Bess Pomeroy
  • The Untouchables (1960) - Mrs. Cross
  • The Man From Blackhawk (1960) - Comtesse De Vilon
  • Dennis the Menace (1960) - Mrs. Pompton
  • Peter Gunn (1960) - Laura Scott
  • Mr. Lucky (1960) - Mrs. Dubois
  • Make Room for Daddy (1960) - Mrs. Willoughby
  • Shirley Temple's Storybook (1960) - Miss Collingwood
  • Perry Mason (1958) - Lois Gilbert, (1960) - Headmistress Lorimer
  • The Tab Hunter Show (1961) - Columnist
  • The Best of the Post (1962) - Mrs. Hill (as Elinor Audley)
  • Ichabod and Me (1962)
  • The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis (1961-1962) - Irma Lumpkin
  • Pete and Gladys (1961) - Mrs. Brenner, (1962) - Mrs. Clibber
  • The Detectives (1962) - Liz Roberts
  • The Joey Bishop Show (1961)- Mrs. Willoughby, (1962) - Fashion Announcer - Mrs. Fitch - Clubwoman
  • Have Gun - Will Travel (1960) - Cynthia Palmer, (1961) - School Teacher, (1963) - Mrs. Randolph Quincy
  • The Dick Powell Theatre (1963) - Lady
  • The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961) - Party Goer, (1962-1963) - Mrs. Billings
  • The New Phil Silvers Show (1963) - Mrs. Osborne
  • Wagon Train (1958) - Mrs. Winston, (1961) - Mother Albright, (1963) - Minerva Ames
  • McHale's Navy (1964) - Mrs. Millicent Hardsey
  • The Beverly Hillbillies (1962-1963-1964) - Mrs. Millicent Schuyler-Potts
  • Many Happy Returns (1964) - Mrs. Atwood
  • Bob Hope Presents The Chrysler Theatre (1964) - Mrs. Johnson - Lil Schaeffer - Buttercup Fuchsia
  • Mister Ed (1961-1965) - Aunt Martha
  • The Cara Williams Show (1965) - Mrs. Ashford
  • The Farmer's Daughter (1964) -Simone, (1965) - Mildred
  • The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (1965) - Mrs. Laura Farnham
  • The Jack Benny Program (1965) - Mrs. Lewis
  • Kentucky Jones (1965) - Mrs. Edgerton
  • Peyton Place (1965) - Miss Martha (uncredited)
  • O.K. Crackerby! (1965) - Mrs. Ameila Willoughby
  • Hazel (1961) - Customer, (1962) - Mrs. Totter, (1963) - Mrs. Loretta Green, (1965) - Mrs. Hardy
  • The Lucy Show (1965) - The Columnist
  • The Big Valley (1965) - Mother Callahan
  • My Brother the Angel (1965) - Mrs. Ettinger
  • Honey West (1966) - Mrs. Carlton Murdock
  • Summer Fun (1966) - Mother-in-law
  • The Bob Hope Show (1956-1957-1966)
  • The Phyllis Diller Show (1966) - Mrs. Fenwick
  • Pistols 'n' Petticoats (1966-1967) - Mrs. Teasley
  • Green Acres (1965-1969) - Mother Eunice Douglas
  • My Three Sons (1969-1970) - Mrs. Vincent
  • The Wonderful World of Disney (1977) - Lady Tremaine (archived) - Maleficent (archived)
  • Disney's Wonderful World (1979) - Matron (archived)
  • The Wonderful World of Disney (1983) - Lady Tremaine (archived) - Maleficent (archived)

Radio appearances

  • Escape (1942-1954)
  • Suspense (1947-1954)
  • My Favorite Husband (1949 -1951) - Mrs. Leticia Cooper
  • The Story of Dr. Kildare (1949) - Molly Byrd
  • Father Knows Best (1949 -1954) - Mrs. Elizabeth Smith
  • The Railroad Hour (1953) - Evil Queen
  • The Six Shooter (1954) - Mrs. Abbey Ames

Theme parks

  • Haunted Mansion - Madame Leota (voice)
  • HalloWishes - Madame Leota (voice)

Discography

  • Walt Disney's Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs (1949, RCA/Camden) - Evil Queen

Stage appearances

  • Howdy, King - "as guest in hotel", Dec 13, 1926 - Jan 1927
  • On Call - as "Mary Randall", Nov 9, 1928 - Jan 1929
  • Pigeons and People - as "Elinore Payne", Jan 16, 1933 - Nov 1933
  • Thunder on the Left - as "Ruth Brook", Oct 31, 1933 - Nov 1933
  • Kill That Story - as "Millicent", Aug 29, 1934 - Dec 1934
  • Ladies' Money - as "Claire Touhey", Nov 1, 1934 - Dec 1934
  • Susan and God - as "Charlotte Marley", Oct 7, 1937 - Jun 1938 - Dec 13, 1943 - Dec 18, 1943
  • In Bed We Cry - as "Claire Dangerfield", Nov 14, 1943 - Dec 23, 1944

[ Source: Wikipedia ]


Terms Privacy Join Contact
Contact Any Star FanPal • 2024