Peggie Castle

Peggie Castle

Actress Peggie Castle
Born Peggy Blair
(1927-12-22)December 22, 1927
Appalachia, Virginia, U.S.
Died August 11, 1973(1973-08-11) (aged 45)
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Cause of death Cirrhosis
Other names Peggy Castle
Peggie Call
Occupation Actress
Spouse(s) Revis Call
(m. 1945; div. 1950)
Robert H. Rains
(m. 1951; div. 1954)
William McGarry
(m. 1955; div. 1969)
Arthur Morganstern
(m. 1971–73)
Children Erin McGarry

Peggie Castle (December 22, 1927 – August 11, 1973) was an American actress who specialized in playing the "other woman" in B-movies. She was also billed under the names Peggy Castle and Peggie Call.

Early years

Castle was born Peggy Blair in Appalachia in Wise County in far southwestern Virginia. She changed her last name from Blair "because there was another actress named Blair at the first studio in which she worked."[1]

Her father, Doyle H. Blair,[1] was at one point "an industrial relations director for a large corporation"[2] and later business manager for Donald O'Connor.[1] She took lessons in drama when she was 8 years old.[1] She attended Mills College[3] for two years.[4]

Radio

Castle's first work as an actress came in the soap opera Today's Children. Then a spot on Radio Theatre in 1947 brought her a screen test offer from 20th Century Fox.[4]

Film

Castle was discovered by a talent scout while eating in a restaurant in Beverly Hills. She was signed to a seven-year contract with Universal-International and made her film debut in the 1947 film When a Girl's Beautiful. In 1949, she was named "Miss Cheesecake" by the Southern California Restaurant Association. Later that year, the Junior Chamber of Commerce named Castle "Miss Three Alarm".[5][6] She later appeared in such films as Payment on Demand (1951), " The Prince Who Was A Thief 1951"Invasion U.S.A. (1952), 99 River Street (1953), and Arrivederci Roma (1957).

Television

In the 1950s, Castle moved into television. She appeared in multiple guest roles on Fireside Theater, Cheyenne, and The Restless Gun. In 1957 she played defendant Sally Fenner in the Perry Mason episode, "The Case of the Negligent Nymph."

From 1959 to 1962, she co-starred in the television western series Lawman — her first continuing series.[1] Her role as saloon owner Lily Merrill[7] brought out a new dimension of Castle's talent. She stated "For the first time in my life I'm a singer — that's the producer's opinion, not mine."[1]

Her final onscreen role was a guest appearance in a 1966 episode of The Virginian.

Personal appearances

In 1960, Castle and Peter Brown (who also was a regular in Lawman) traveled to rodeos, performing as a song-and-dance team. Castle stressed, "We're very careful not to sing any romantic songs," treating the act more like a brother-sister team.[8] The duo's stops included St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Albuquerque.[8]

Personal life

Castle was married four times. Her first marriage was to Revis Call. They married in 1945 and divorced in 1950.[5] She married Universal publicist Robert H. Raines January 4, 1951. They divorced April 29, 1954.[9] Her third marriage was to producer/director William McGarry in 1955. They had a daughter, Erin, before divorcing in 1969.[10] Castle's fourth and final marriage was to Arthur Morganstern in 1971. They remained married until Morganstern's death in April 1973.

Recognition

For her contribution to the television industry, Peggie Castle has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6230 Hollywood Boulevard.[6] It was dedicated February 8, 1960. (This source lists the address as 6266 Hollywood Boulevard.)[11]

Death

In her later years, Castle developed alcoholism.[12] On August 11, 1973, her third husband, William McGarry found her body on the couch of her Hollywood apartment. Her death was later determined to be caused by cirrhosis.[13]

Selected filmography

From Invasion USA trailer
John Russell and Peggie Castle in ABC's Lawman (1959)
Russell and Castle in Lawman (1962)
Film
Year Title Role Notes
1947 When a Girl's Beautiful "Koko" Glayde Credited as Peggy Call
1949 Mr. Belvedere Goes to College Jean Auchincloss Uncredited
1950 Buccaneer's Girl Cleo 1951
1951 Payment on Demand Diana Ramsey
1951 Air Cadet Pat
1951 Bright Victory Eleanor Uncredited
1951 The Golden Horde Lailee 1952 Invasion U.S.A. Carla Sanford
1952 Fireside Theater Ann Episode: "A Kiss for Aunt Sophie" 1953 I, the Jury Charlotte Manning Shown in 3-D[2]
1953 99 River Street Pauline Driscoll
1954 The Yellow Tomahawk Katherine
1954 The White Orchid Kathryn Williams
1954 Overland Pacific Ann Dennison
1954 The Long Wait Venus
1954 Jesse James' Women Waco Gans
1955 Finger Man Gladys Baker
1955 Tall Man Riding Reva
1955 Target Zero Ann Galloway Korean War UN worker
1956 Miracle in the Rain Millie Kranz
1956 Quincannon, Frontier Scout Lesley Selander
1957 Beginning of the End Audrey Aimes
1958 Arrivederci Roma Carol Ralston
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1952–1954 Fireside Theater Various roles 3 episodes
1956 The Millionaire Candy Caldwell Episode: "The Candy Caldwell Story"
1956 Four Star Playhouse Molly Barry Episode: "Success Story"
1956 Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater Jenny Episode: "A Quiet Sunday in San Ardo"
1956 Cheyenne Mississippi Episode: "Fury at Rio Hondo"
1957 Conflict Lila Prescott Episode: "The Money"
1957 Gunsmoke Nita Tucker Episode: "Chester's Murder"
1957 Perry Mason Sally Fenner Episode: "The Case of the Negligent Nymph"
1958 The Texan Charlotta Rivera Episode: "The First Notch"
1958 77 Sunset Strip Valerie Stacey Episode: "The Well-Selected Frame"
1959 Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Joan Barry Episode: "The Big Drop"
1959 Markham Ann Jennings Episode: "Deadline Date"
1959–1962 Lawman Lily Merrill 105 episodes
1966 The Virginian Melissa Episode: "Morgan Starr"

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Anderson, Robert (November 7, 1959). "Showdown in Laramie!". Chicago Tribune. p. 25. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Spillane Thriller On Lowe Screen". The Post-Standard. September 9, 1953. p. 14. Retrieved September 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ Yarbrough, Gloria (September 3, 1949). "Hollywood News". The Indiana Gazette. p. 14. Retrieved September 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 "Lily of 'Lawman' Began on Radio". Express and News. June 24, 1961. p. 7. Retrieved September 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 Zylstra, Freida (July 23, 1950). "Star of the Week". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. C7.
  6. 1 2 "Hollywood Star Walk". latimes.com. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
  7. ↑ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television. Penguin Books USA, Inc. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8. P. 472.
  8. 1 2 "Peter Brown, Peggy Castle on Rodeo Circuit". The Daily Register. June 20, 1960. p. 5. Retrieved September 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Peggy Castle Granted Divorce From Raines". The Corpus Christi Caller-Times. April 30, 1954. p. 30. Retrieved September 18, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Burroughs Hannsberry, Karen (2009). Femme Noir: Bad Girls of Film. McFarland. pp. 44, 49. ISBN 0-786-44682-X.
  11. ↑ "Peggie Castle". Hollywood Walk of Fame. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  12. ↑ Brode, Douglas; Parker, Fess (2009-10-19). Shooting Stars of the Small Screen: Encyclopedia of TV Western Actors (1946-present). University of Texas Press. p. 80. ISBN 0-292-71849-7.
  13. ↑ "Actress Peggie Castle Dies at 45". The Milwaukee Journal. August 12, 1973. p. 1. Retrieved February 4, 2013.
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