Phyllis Thaxter
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Phyllis Thaxter
Biography
The daughter of a Supreme Court judge, Phyllis Thaxter followed the example of her mother, a former actress. Thaxter made her first stage appearance, at the Ogunquit (Maine) Playhouse. In her teens, she received on-the-job training with the Montreal Repertory. On Broadway from 1938, she appeared in such popular plays as What a Life!, There Shall Be No Night, and Claudia. Signed to an MGM contract in 1944, Phyllis was often wasted in traditional faithful-wife roles, but on occasion was permitted a wider acting range in such parts as the schizophrenic heroine of Arch Oboler's Bewitched (1944). While at MGM, Phyllis married James Aubrey, who later ascended to the presidency of CBS-TV (andstill later, took over MGM); the union lasted until 1962, producing a daughter, actress Skye Aubrey. Sidelined by an attack of infantile paralysis in 1952, Thaxter made a slow, steady stage, screen and TV comeback in character parts, frequently accepting roles that would challenge her physical limitations. In 1978, after a long absence from the screen, Phyllis Thaxter was cast as Ma Kent in Superman: The Movie. ~ Hal Erickson, RoviRelated Videos:
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Phyllis Thaxter
Filmography:
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Phyllis Thaxter
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Phyllis Thaxter
| Phyllis Thaxter | |
|---|---|
 From the film Bewitched (1945) |
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| Born | Phyllis St. Felix Thaxter November 20, 1921 Portland, Maine, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1944–1992 |
| Spouse |
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Phyllis St. Felix Thaxter (born November 20, 1921) is an American actress.
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Contents
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Early life
Phyllis Thaxter was born in Portland, Maine, to Maine Supreme Court Justice Sidney Thaxter and his wife, a former actress.
Career
Phyllis worked on Broadway in the 1930s. In 1944, she signed a contract with Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Her movie debut was opposite Van Johnson in the war-time film Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo. In 1948, she played a cattle owner's daughter alongside Barbara Bel Geddes in Blood on the Moon. At MGM, she routinely portrayed the ever-patient wife to a number of leading men. She moved to Warner Brothers in the 1950s, but usually played the same type of roles.
Thaxter's career stalled after an attack of infantile paralysis in 1952. She made a comeback in television series such as Rawhide, Wagon Train and Cannon, The Twilight Zone, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. In 1978, Thaxter was cast along with Glenn Ford as Ma and Pa Kent in Superman.
Personal life
Author Patricia Bosworth, in her biography of Montgomery Clift, tells of Thaxter's close relationship with Clift in the early 1940s, writing that they "seemed so close that a great many people assumed they would eventually marry."[citation needed] While at MGM, Thaxter married James T. Aubrey, Jr., who later became president of CBS-TV and MGM. They divorced in 1962. Their daughter is Skye Aubrey, who acted in many made-for-TV films in the 1970s.
Partial filmography
- Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)
- Bewitched (1945)
- Week-End at the Waldorf (1945)
- Tenth Avenue Angel (1946)
- The Sea of Grass (1947)
- Living in a Big Way (1947)
- Blood on the Moon (1948)
- Act of Violence (1948)
- No Man of Her Own (1950)
- The Breaking Point (1950)
- Jim Thorpe -- All-American (1951)
- Fort Worth (1951)
- Springfield Rifle (1952)
- Wagon Train 1959
- Women's Prison (1955)
- The World of Henry Orient (1964)
- The Invaders (TV series), Season 2/21, Episode: "The Peacemaker" (1968)
- Superman (1978)
External links
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