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Paula Prentiss

 
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Paula Prentiss

Biography

Texas native Paula Prentiss was the daughter of an Italian-born oil company labor relations man. Her reputation as a cut-up at Virginia's Randolph Macon School would haunt her in "I knew her when" magazine articles for the rest of her life. She buckled down long enough to study drama at Northwestern University, where she met future husband Richard Benjamin. In 1960, Prentiss was signed by MGM, which groomed her for stardom in such films as Where the Boys Are (1960), The Honeymoon Machine (1961), and The Horizontal Lieutenant (1963). Her unique comic gifts and offbeat personality would seem to make her more suited to screwball supporting parts than romantic leads, though she's certainly had her share of both. In 1967, Prentiss co-starred with husband Dick Benjamin in He and She, a TV sitcom which, despite low ratings, accrued a loyal cult following. She continued popping up in excellent film roles into the 1980s, as well as appearing in TV movies like MADD: Mothers Against Drunk Driving (1983). Paula Prentiss is the older sister of actress Ann Prentiss. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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Paula Prentiss

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Paula Prentiss

Prentiss with husband Dick Benjamin (left) and Jack Cassidy from He & She, 1967.
Born Paula Ragusa
March 4, 1938 (1938-03-04) (age 73)
San Antonio, Texas, USA
Years active 1960–2007
Spouse Richard Benjamin (1961–present; 2 children)

Paula Ragusa (born March 4, 1938), better known by her stage name Paula Prentiss, is an American actress well-known for her film roles in Where the Boys Are, Man's Favorite Sport?, The Stepford Wives, What's New Pussycat?, The Black Marble, and The Parallax View and her co-starring role in the television situation comedy He and She.

Contents

Early life

Prentiss was born Paula Ragusa in San Antonio, Texas, the daughter of Paulene (née Gardner) and Thomas J. Ragusa, who was a Social Sciences professor at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio. Prentiss' father was of Italian descent. Prentiss was always the tallest person in her school classes.[1][2][3][4] In 1958, while attending Northwestern University's school of drama, she met someone taller: her future husband, Richard Benjamin, who also impressed her with his sophistication.[3] While still a student at Northwestern, she was discovered and offered a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film contract.[3][5] Prentiss initially intended to be a doctor, but somehow became involved with theater while at Northwestern.[6]

Career

Prentiss first became known as a comedic actress with such films as Where the Boys Are, The Honeymoon Machine, Bachelor in Paradise, and The Horizontal Lieutenant, where she was teamed with actor Jim Hutton.

She later starred with Rock Hudson in Man's Favorite Sport?, in The World of Henry Orient and What's New, Pussycat? with Peter Sellers, Catch-22 and Last of the Red Hot Lovers with Alan Arkin, In Harm's Way with John Wayne and Kirk Douglas, Move with Elliott Gould, The Parallax View with Warren Beatty, and Billy Wilder's last film Buddy Buddy with Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau.

For one season (1967–1968), Paula starred with her husband, Richard Benjamin, in the CBS sitcom He & She. Although not a big ratings success, the stylish series was considered ahead of its time in humor and sophistication. It is viewed as a landmark sitcom and a thematic precursor to the crop of MTM-style sitcoms to emerge a couple of seasons later. Prentiss was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Comedy.

Personal life

Prentiss and actor/director Richard Benjamin married on October 26, 1961; her career was soaring while Benjamin still struggled for acting roles.[3][7] In 1965, while filming What's New, Pussycat in Paris, Paula suffered a nervous breakdown which kept her out of films for five years, returning to work with Benjamin in the short-lived television series, He and She.[3][7] The couple also appeared together in Catch-22 (1970) and Saturday the 14th (1981), as well as various plays.[6][8]

They have two adult children, Ross and Prentiss, and live in the Hollywood Hills.

Ann Prentiss, her sister, was also an actress.

Filmography

References

  1. ^ "The Word Online:2000-2001". University of the Incarnate Word. http://www.uiw.edu/thewordonline/fall01/devoverview.html. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  2. ^ "In Memoriam: Summer 2001". University of the Incarnate Word. http://www.uiw.edu/thewordonline/summer01/memoriam.html. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  3. ^ a b c d e "Paula Prentiss Biography". Cratonkiwi. http://home.comcast.net/~cratonkiwi/paulaprentiss/bio.htm. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  4. ^ "Paula Prentiss". Filmbug. http://www.filmbug.com/db/195505. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  5. ^ "Paula Prentiss". MovieActors.com. http://www.movieactors.com/actors/paulaprentiss.htm. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  6. ^ a b O'Haire, Patricia (22 September 1998). "An Off-B'way Power Couple: Paula Prentiss and Richard Benjamin". New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/entertainment/1998/09/22/1998-09-22_an_off-b_way__power__couple_.html. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  7. ^ a b Armstrong, Lois (23 February 1976). "Dick Benjamin & Paula Prentiss: Their Sunshine Boy Is the Baby Who 'Made Us Grow Up'". People. http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20066194,00.html. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 
  8. ^ "Paula Prentiss". Internet Broadway Database. http://www.ibdb.com/person.php?id=87036. Retrieved 19 December 2010. 

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