Polly Bergen

• Born: July 04, 1930, Knoxville, TN
• Active: '50s, '60s
• Genres: Vocal Music
• Instrument: Vocals
• Representative Albums: "Bergen Sings Morgan/The Party's Over," "All Alone by the Telephone," "Act One-Sing, Too"

Biography

Actress/singer Polly Bergen was born July 14, 1930 in Knoxville, TN, making her radio debut at the age of 14 and honing her craft on the summer stock circuit before journeying to Hollywood in 1949. She soon made her feature debut in Across the Rio Grande, quickly followed by roles in no less than three Dean Martin/Jerry Lewis comedies -- At War with the Army, That's My Boy and The Stooge. Increasing dissatisfaction with the roles coming her way prompted Bergen to walk away from a lucrative movie contract in 1953, however, and she soon made her Broadway debut in the revue John Murray Anderson's Almanac; upon recovering from throat surgery, two years later she also recorded her self-titled debut LP for Jubilee, followed later that year by Little Girl Blue. She jumped to Columbia for 1957's Bergen Sings Morgan, and continued recording for the label until the early 1960s; in the meantime she also maintained her stage career, additionally finding success in the business world through a series of ventures including Polly Bergen Cosmetics, Polly Bergen Jewelry and Polly Bergen Shoes. In 1960, she also authored the first of three books, Fashion and Charm. Bergen returned to film in the 1961 noir classic Cape Fear, although in the decades she was perhaps best known for her many television appearances, including a starring role in the 1983 miniseries The Winds of War and its 1988 sequel War and Remembrance. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

All Alone by the Telephone/Four Seasons of Love Buy this CD	Early Years Buy this CD	Polly and Her Pop/Sings the Hit Songs from DoReMi and Annie Get Your Gun Buy this CD	My Heart Sings [Bonus Tracks] Buy this CD	Bergen Sings Morgan/The Party's Over Buy this CD
My Heart Sings Buy this CD	Act One-Sing, Too Buy this CD

• Born: Jul 14, 1930 in Knoxville, Tennessee
• Occupation: Actor
• Active: '50s-'90s
• Major Genres: Drama, Comedy
• Career Highlights: The Caretakers, Kisses for My President, Cape Fear
• First Major Screen Credit: At War With the Army (1950)

Biography

A radio performer from the age of 14, Polly Bergen went the summer stock-nightclub route before heading for Hollywood in 1949. During her first months in the entertainment capitol, Bergen married actor Jerome Courtland, a union that was over virtually before it began; her later marriage to agent Freddie Fields endured for nearly 20 years. Though she could take some pride in having survived three Martin and Lewis films (At War With the Army, That's My Boy and The Stooge), Bergen chafed at the nondescript movie parts being offered her, and in 1953 walked out of a very lucrative studio contract. She headed for New York, where, while headlining in the Broadway revue John Murray Anderson's Almanac, she strained her voice and was forced to undergo a painful throat operation. Another serious career set-back occurred in 1959 when, while starring in the musical First Impressions, she nearly lost her life during a difficult pregnancy.

Gamely surviving these and other personal travails, Bergen rose to stardom via her stage performance, her one-woman cabaret act, and her many TV appearances, notably her Emmy-winning turn in The Helen Morgan Story (1957). In 1962, she gave films a second chance when she played a North Carolina housewife threatened with rape by rampaging ex-con Robert Mitchum in Cape Fear (1962) (over 20 years later, she and Mitchum played husband and wife in the popular TV miniseries The Winds of War and War and Remembrance). Her bravura portrayal of a mental patient in The Caretakers (1963) was quite an eye-opener for those familiar with Bergen only through her appearances on TV's To Tell the Truth. Less aesthetically successful was Kisses for My President (1964), in which Bergen starred as the first female Chief Executive.

Though busy with her show-business activities into the 1990s (she recently co-starred in the network sitcom Baby Talk), it is interesting to note that, in her Who's Who entry, Bergen lists herself as a business executive first, an actress second. There is certainly plenty of justification for this; over the last 40 years, she has maintained such successful business ventures as Polly Bergen Cosmetics, Polly Bergen Jewelry, and Polly Bergen Shoes; she has also been active as part-owner of and pitch person for Oil-of-the-Turtle cosmetics. Equally busy in nonprofit organizations, she has served with such concerns as the National Business Council and Freedom of Choice. Scarcely a year goes by without Bergen receiving an award or honorarium from a professional, charitable, political or civic organization. As if all this wasn't activity enough, Polly Bergen is also the author of three books: Fashion and Charm (1960), Polly's Principles (1974), and I'd Love to, but What'll I Wear? (1977). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored Buy this Movie	Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde Buy this Movie	The Lightning Incident Buy this Movie	Cry-Baby Buy this Movie
The Haunting of Sarah Hardy Buy this Movie	My Brother's Wife Buy this Movie	Making Mr. Right Buy this Movie	The Winds of War Buy this Movie

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