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Maxine Stuart, 94, Dies; Acted on Stage, Film and TV
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Matthew Kruk
Jun 18, 2013, 12:18:35 AM6/18/13
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http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
The New York Times
June 17, 2013
Maxine Stuart, 94, Dies; Acted on Stage, Film and TV
By MARGALIT FOX
Maxine Stuart's stage, film and television career spanned more than six decades,
including a recurring role on the soap opera "The Edge of Night" and a guest
spot on a memorable episode of "The Twilight Zone."
But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction books
"84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in the 1930s
and '40s.
Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in "84,"
as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is an
epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a London
bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft as Ms.
Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in 1962,
recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in tandem with
Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
The warm, adventurous, impecunious friendship of the two young women began in
the late 1930s in the backstage ladies' room of the Morosco Theater, after Ms.
Hanff saw one of the many flops in which Ms. Stuart seemed condemned to appear.
Her description of Ms. Stuart's daily life - the voice and diction lessons
(which entailed screaming "Oh, NO!" at top volume in the bathroom of her parents'
apartment); the audition rounds; the elation of being cast; the deflation of
closing - is a window onto the existence of a working, and sometimes
out-of-work, actor in the years before television devoured Broadway.
The book is also a visitors' manual to a vanished New York - the New York of
Schrafft's, the Automat and residential hotels for nice young women - in which
it was actually possible to live by the young Ms. Stuart's credo, "Nothing
should cost anything."
In Ms. Stuart's resourceful hands, even Broadway cost nothing. Several nights a
week, the two friends, wearing no coats, would arrive at a theater of their
choice in time for the Act 1 intermission.
On the sidewalk, they mingled with audience members who had gone outside to
smoke. (Even in the coldest weather, no self-respecting New York theatergoer on
a cigarette break bothered with a coat.)
Drifting inside, the young women made for the best seats without coats on them
and sat down. They saw many plays - minus the first acts - and caught many
colds.
Maxine Shlivek was born on June 28, 1918, in Deal, N.J., and reared in Lawrence,
on Long Island, and Manhattan.
Her film credits include "Days of Wine and Roses" (1962) and "Private Benjamin"
(1980). On television, she portrayed the stenographer Grace O'Keefe on "The Edge
of Night."
Ms. Stuart was seen on dozens of other shows, including "Perry Mason," "Dr.
Kildare," "Chicago Hope" and "The Wonder Years," for which she received a 1989
Emmy nomination as Kevin's piano teacher.
She had a pivotal guest role in "Eye of the Beholder," a "Twilight Zone" episode
first broadcast in 1960. Ms. Stuart played a hospital patient - her face, never
seen, is swathed in bandages - who endures repeated failed operations in an
attempt to correct her freakish appearance.
When the bandages are removed, doctors pronounce the latest operation a failure
too. The patient's face is disclosed to be that of a beautiful woman, from that
point on played by Donna Douglas. The doctors and nurses are revealed to have
hideous, porcine faces.
That Ms. Stuart was deemed not pretty enough to play the unveiled patient in a
show about beauty as a socially constructed concept was an irony not lost on
her, she said in interviews.
After a brief early marriage that ended in divorce, Ms. Stuart married Frank
Maxwell, an actor. Their marriage ended in divorce; Ms. Stuart's third husband,
David Shaw, a playwright and screenwriter, died in 2007.
Ms. Stuart is survived by three daughters, Chris Ann Maxwell, who confirmed her
mother's death, at her home in Beverly Hills, Calif.; Ellen Shaw Agress; and Liz
Shaw Baron; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. Ms. Hanff died in 1997,
at 80.
Before moving to Los Angeles in the late 1950s, Ms. Stuart made repeated, if
short-lived, outings on the New York stage.
"Maxine appeared in 11 Broadway plays, most of which opened on a Tuesday night,"
Ms. Hanff wrote. "On Wednesday came the flop notices, on Thursday an empty
house, on Friday the closing notice went up, on Saturday the show closed and on
Sunday Maxine slept it off."
"And so, on Monday," Ms. Hanff continued, "she was once more to be found in her
parents' apartment on West End Avenue ready to resume the normal daily life of a
glamorous young actress by screaming 'Oh, NO!' in the bathroom."
The New York Times
June 17, 2013
Maxine Stuart, 94, Dies; Acted on Stage, Film and TV
By MARGALIT FOX
Maxine Stuart's stage, film and television career spanned more than six decades,
including a recurring role on the soap opera "The Edge of Night" and a guest
spot on a memorable episode of "The Twilight Zone."
But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction books
"84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in the 1930s
and '40s.
Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in "84,"
as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is an
epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a London
bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft as Ms.
Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in 1962,
recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in tandem with
Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
The warm, adventurous, impecunious friendship of the two young women began in
the late 1930s in the backstage ladies' room of the Morosco Theater, after Ms.
Hanff saw one of the many flops in which Ms. Stuart seemed condemned to appear.
Her description of Ms. Stuart's daily life - the voice and diction lessons
(which entailed screaming "Oh, NO!" at top volume in the bathroom of her parents'
apartment); the audition rounds; the elation of being cast; the deflation of
closing - is a window onto the existence of a working, and sometimes
out-of-work, actor in the years before television devoured Broadway.
The book is also a visitors' manual to a vanished New York - the New York of
Schrafft's, the Automat and residential hotels for nice young women - in which
it was actually possible to live by the young Ms. Stuart's credo, "Nothing
should cost anything."
In Ms. Stuart's resourceful hands, even Broadway cost nothing. Several nights a
week, the two friends, wearing no coats, would arrive at a theater of their
choice in time for the Act 1 intermission.
On the sidewalk, they mingled with audience members who had gone outside to
smoke. (Even in the coldest weather, no self-respecting New York theatergoer on
a cigarette break bothered with a coat.)
Drifting inside, the young women made for the best seats without coats on them
and sat down. They saw many plays - minus the first acts - and caught many
colds.
Maxine Shlivek was born on June 28, 1918, in Deal, N.J., and reared in Lawrence,
on Long Island, and Manhattan.
Her film credits include "Days of Wine and Roses" (1962) and "Private Benjamin"
(1980). On television, she portrayed the stenographer Grace O'Keefe on "The Edge
of Night."
Ms. Stuart was seen on dozens of other shows, including "Perry Mason," "Dr.
Kildare," "Chicago Hope" and "The Wonder Years," for which she received a 1989
Emmy nomination as Kevin's piano teacher.
She had a pivotal guest role in "Eye of the Beholder," a "Twilight Zone" episode
first broadcast in 1960. Ms. Stuart played a hospital patient - her face, never
seen, is swathed in bandages - who endures repeated failed operations in an
attempt to correct her freakish appearance.
When the bandages are removed, doctors pronounce the latest operation a failure
too. The patient's face is disclosed to be that of a beautiful woman, from that
point on played by Donna Douglas. The doctors and nurses are revealed to have
hideous, porcine faces.
That Ms. Stuart was deemed not pretty enough to play the unveiled patient in a
show about beauty as a socially constructed concept was an irony not lost on
her, she said in interviews.
After a brief early marriage that ended in divorce, Ms. Stuart married Frank
Maxwell, an actor. Their marriage ended in divorce; Ms. Stuart's third husband,
David Shaw, a playwright and screenwriter, died in 2007.
Ms. Stuart is survived by three daughters, Chris Ann Maxwell, who confirmed her
mother's death, at her home in Beverly Hills, Calif.; Ellen Shaw Agress; and Liz
Shaw Baron; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. Ms. Hanff died in 1997,
at 80.
Before moving to Los Angeles in the late 1950s, Ms. Stuart made repeated, if
short-lived, outings on the New York stage.
"Maxine appeared in 11 Broadway plays, most of which opened on a Tuesday night,"
Ms. Hanff wrote. "On Wednesday came the flop notices, on Thursday an empty
house, on Friday the closing notice went up, on Saturday the show closed and on
Sunday Maxine slept it off."
"And so, on Monday," Ms. Hanff continued, "she was once more to be found in her
parents' apartment on West End Avenue ready to resume the normal daily life of a
glamorous young actress by screaming 'Oh, NO!' in the bathroom."
Louis Epstein
Jun 18, 2013, 9:24:25 PM6/18/13
to
Matthew Kruk <nob...@home.com> wrote:
> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
a third person somehow connectable to Helene Hanff?
> She had a pivotal guest role in "Eye of the Beholder," a "Twilight Zone"
> episode first broadcast in 1960. Ms. Stuart played a hospital patient - her
> face, never seen, is swathed in bandages - who endures repeated failed
> operations in an attempt to correct her freakish appearance.
>
> When the bandages are removed, doctors pronounce the latest operation a
> failure too. The patient's face is disclosed to be that of a beautiful woman,
> from that point on played by Donna Douglas. The doctors and nurses are
> revealed to have hideous, porcine faces.
>
> That Ms. Stuart was deemed not pretty enough to play the unveiled patient in
> a show about beauty as a socially constructed concept was an irony not lost
> on her, she said in interviews.
I recall reading about this.
Stuart was said to be cast strictly for her voice,which was expected to
be her whole performance,but she made her role much more despite spending
her screen time bandaged and confined to bed.
Douglas was said to be cast strictly for her face,with her voice expected
to be dubbed,but she had observed Stuart's performance and did the voice
herself without needing to be dubbed.
Each performer was considered to be one-note,but wasn't.
-=-=-
The World Trade Center towers MUST rise again,
at least as tall as before...or terror has triumphed.
> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
>
>
> But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction books
> "84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
> deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in the 1930s
> and '40s.
>
> Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in "84,"
> as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is an
> epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a London
> bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft as Ms.
> Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
>
> In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in 1962,
> recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in tandem with
> Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
So with the recent death of Helen Hanft,will triad-fans be looking for
>
> But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction books
> "84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
> deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in the 1930s
> and '40s.
>
> Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in "84,"
> as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is an
> epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a London
> bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft as Ms.
> Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
>
> In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in 1962,
> recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in tandem with
> Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
a third person somehow connectable to Helene Hanff?
> She had a pivotal guest role in "Eye of the Beholder," a "Twilight Zone"
> episode first broadcast in 1960. Ms. Stuart played a hospital patient - her
> face, never seen, is swathed in bandages - who endures repeated failed
> operations in an attempt to correct her freakish appearance.
>
> When the bandages are removed, doctors pronounce the latest operation a
> failure too. The patient's face is disclosed to be that of a beautiful woman,
> from that point on played by Donna Douglas. The doctors and nurses are
> revealed to have hideous, porcine faces.
>
> That Ms. Stuart was deemed not pretty enough to play the unveiled patient in
> a show about beauty as a socially constructed concept was an irony not lost
> on her, she said in interviews.
Stuart was said to be cast strictly for her voice,which was expected to
be her whole performance,but she made her role much more despite spending
her screen time bandaged and confined to bed.
Douglas was said to be cast strictly for her face,with her voice expected
to be dubbed,but she had observed Stuart's performance and did the voice
herself without needing to be dubbed.
Each performer was considered to be one-note,but wasn't.
-=-=-
The World Trade Center towers MUST rise again,
at least as tall as before...or terror has triumphed.
Brad Ferguson
Jun 18, 2013, 10:34:09 PM6/18/13
to
In article <kpr189$r1j$1...@reader1.panix.com>, Louis Epstein
That episode of TZ is one of my favorites -- not because of the reveal,
but because of the first few minutes, where the ugly doctors and nurses
are disguised by shadows and so forth. The look of it is just so
damned eerie. That kind of work was not typical on TV then.
but because of the first few minutes, where the ugly doctors and nurses
are disguised by shadows and so forth. The look of it is just so
damned eerie. That kind of work was not typical on TV then.
Hyfler/Rosner
Jun 19, 2013, 8:31:02 AM6/19/13
to
On 6/18/13 9:24 PM, Louis Epstein wrote:
> Matthew Kruk <nob...@home.com> wrote:
>> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
>>
>>
>> But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction books
>> "84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
>> deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in the 1930s
>> and '40s.
>>
>> Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in "84,"
>> as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is an
>> epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a London
>> bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft as Ms.
>> Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
>>
>> In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in 1962,
>> recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in tandem with
>> Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
>
> So with the recent death of Helen Hanft,will triad-fans be looking for
> a third person somehow connectable to Helene Hanff?
Just to clarify.
> Matthew Kruk <nob...@home.com> wrote:
>> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
>>
>>
>> But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction books
>> "84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
>> deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in the 1930s
>> and '40s.
>>
>> Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in "84,"
>> as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is an
>> epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a London
>> bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft as Ms.
>> Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
>>
>> In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in 1962,
>> recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in tandem with
>> Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
>
> So with the recent death of Helen Hanft,will triad-fans be looking for
> a third person somehow connectable to Helene Hanff?
The writer, who died in 1997, is Helene Hanff. The actress, who died
earlier this month, is Helene Hanft.
As an aside, I was walking home on 72nd street last night, and passed
the post-war building that the writer lived in. There's a wonderful
plaque on the building about her. Surprised me.
Charles Richmond
Jun 19, 2013, 4:12:35 PM6/19/13
to
"Louis Epstein" <l...@main.put.com> wrote in message
news:kpr189$r1j$1...@reader1.panix.com...
(http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0359815/) are two different people. Maxine
Stuart's friend was Helene Hanff, who died in 1997. Helen Hanft died
recently on May 30, 2013.
--
numerist at aquaporin4 dot com
news:kpr189$r1j$1...@reader1.panix.com...
> Matthew Kruk <nob...@home.com> wrote:
>> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
>>
>>
>> But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction
>> books
>> "84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
>> deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in
>> the 1930s
>> and '40s.
>>
>> Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in
>> "84,"
>> as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is
>> an
>> epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a
>> London
>> bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft
>> as Ms.
>> Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
>>
>> In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in
>> 1962,
>> recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in
>> tandem with
>> Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
>
> So with the recent death of Helen Hanft,will triad-fans be looking for
> a third person somehow connectable to Helene Hanff?
>
Helen Hanft (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0359834/) and Helene Hanff
>> http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/18/arts/television/maxine-stuart-94-dies-acted-on-stage-film-and-tv.html?ref=obituaries
>>
>>
>> But she was equally well known to readers of Helene Hanff's nonfiction
>> books
>> "84, Charing Cross Road" and "Underfoot in Show Business" as Ms. Hanff's
>> deliciously dizzy sidekick in their attempts to make it on Broadway in
>> the 1930s
>> and '40s.
>>
>> Ms. Stuart, who died on June 6 at 94, makes several cameo appearances in
>> "84,"
>> as the book is known to its ardent fans. First published in 1970, it is
>> an
>> epistolary memoir of Ms. Hanff's long correspondence with the staff of a
>> London
>> bookshop. (In the 1987 film version of the book, starring Anne Bancroft
>> as Ms.
>> Hanff, Ms. Stuart is played by Jean De Baer.)
>>
>> In "Underfoot," Ms. Stuart is a genuine co-star. That book, published in
>> 1962,
>> recounts Ms. Hanff's years in New York as a struggling playwright in
>> tandem with
>> Ms. Stuart's as a struggling actress.
>
> So with the recent death of Helen Hanft,will triad-fans be looking for
> a third person somehow connectable to Helene Hanff?
>
(http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0359815/) are two different people. Maxine
Stuart's friend was Helene Hanff, who died in 1997. Helen Hanft died
recently on May 30, 2013.
--
numerist at aquaporin4 dot com
Louis Epstein
Jun 19, 2013, 4:51:21 PM6/19/13
to
would be looking for the death of a third person "connectable to"
Helene Hanff,after the deaths of the person with a similar name
and the person who was a longtime friend.
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