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Madlyn Rhue

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Madlyn Rhue
Rhue in 1961
Born
Madeline Roche

(1935-10-03)October 3, 1935
DiedDecember 16, 2003(2003-12-16) (aged 68)
Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1958–1996
SpouseTony Young (1962–1970) (divorced)

Madlyn Soloman Rhue (née Madeline Roche,[1] October 3, 1935 – December 16, 2003) was an American film and television actress.

Life and career

Rhue was born in Washington, DC, graduated from Los Angeles High School, and studied drama at Los Angeles City College.

Rhue's professional name was an adaptation of the title of the film 13 Rue Madeleine (1947).[1] She debuted in show business at age 17 as a dancer at the Copacabana night club in New York City.[2]

From the 1950s to the 1990s, Rhue appeared in some 20 films, including Operation Petticoat , The Ladies Man, A Majority of One, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), Kenner (1969), and Stand Up and Be Counted (1972). She also was a guest star in dozens of television series. Rhue played the spouse of another character portrayed by Ricardo Montalbán in a 1960 episode of Bonanza, "Day of Reckoning". That year, she also played the title role of Marian Ames in the Perry Mason episode "The Case of the Wayward Wife". Later in the 1960s, her appearances included the classic Star Trek episode "Space Seed" (1967) as Lt. Marla McGivers, Khan Noonien Singh's (Montalbán) love interest.[3]

Rhue portrayed Marjorie Grant in Bracken's World (1969–70)[4] and Hilary Madison in Executive Suite (1976–1977).[4]: 316 

Her other guest appearances included Cheyenne (1955), Have Gun – Will Travel, Gunsmoke, Rawhide (1963), The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (as Consuela Sandino in episode "The Dark Pool"), The Untouchables, The Rebel, Perry Mason, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Fugitive, Ironside, The Wild Wild West, Mannix, Hawaii Five-O, Mission: Impossible, Fantasy Island, and Charlie's Angels (as Georgia in "Angels on the Street" in 1979). She also appeared in the television movie Goldie and the Boxer, and made appearances on the game show The Match Game (1974–76). In 1960, Rhue appeared in Route 66 Season 3 Episode 9.

In the early 1960s, Rhue was injured in an automobile accident that resulted in lost teeth and a cut lower lip. She was hospitalized before returning to acting.[5]

In 1962, Rhue married actor Tony Young[6] and acted with him in the Western He Rides Tall.[7] They divorced in 1970.[6]

In 1977, Rhue was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.[8] She continued to work, including a role in Days of Our Lives, but by 1985, she needed a wheelchair and was limited to roles that did not require her to walk or stand, such as recurring roles in Murder, She Wrote and Houston Knights.[9] Angela Lansbury created a role for her when she heard that Rhue was at risk of losing her insurance because she could no longer work enough hours.[10] Her illness prevented her from reprising her Star Trek role as Lt. Marla McGivers in the film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), and the character was ultimately written out of the script, as director Nicholas Meyer did not wish to recast the part.[3]

She eventually became completely incapacitated by multiple sclerosis and died from pneumonia at the age of 68 at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills in Los Angeles, California.[8]

Rhue adhered to Judaism her entire life, and during her marriage to Young, she partook in Catholicism for a period of time up until she and he divorced.[11] She was also a registered Republican who supported the administrations of Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush.[12]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1959 The Miracle nun who warns Teresa about her singing love songs Uncredited
1959 Operation Petticoat Lieutenant Reid, NC, USAR
1961 The Ladies Man Miss Intellect
1961 A Majority of One Alice Black
1962 Escape from Zahrain Laila
1963 It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World Secretary Schwartz
1964 He Rides Tall Ellie Daniels
1968 Kenner Anasuya
1972 Stand Up and Be Counted Gloria Seagar

References

  1. ^ a b Buck, Jerry (September 28, 1989). "Actress Madlyn Rhue doesn't let MS slow her". The Springfield News-Leader. Missouri, Springfield. Associated Press. p. 18. Retrieved July 28, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  2. ^ Rosenbert, Howard (August 14, 1987). "Stricken with MS, Madlyn Rhue still a working actress". The Los Angeles Times. California, Los Angeles. p. 72. Retrieved July 28, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ a b DeCandido, Keith (May 23, 2017). "Star Trek The Original Series Rewatch: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan". Tor.com-Blog. Tor.com. Retrieved May 25, 2017.
  4. ^ a b Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 129. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
  5. ^ Glazer, Barney (August 11, 1961). "Barney Glazer's Hollywood". The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle. Wisconsin, Milwaukee. p. 2. Retrieved July 28, 2018 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ a b Lentz, Harris M., III (2004). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2003: Film, Television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture. McFarland. pp. 325–326. ISBN 9780786417568. Retrieved 29 July 2018.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "He Rides Tall (1964) - IMDb".
  8. ^ a b "Madlyn Rhue, 68; TV Actress Kept Working With Multiple Sclerosis". Los Angeles Times. December 18, 2003. Retrieved 2013-08-10.
  9. ^ "After Years of Lying, Actress Madlyn Rhue Reveals Truth About Her Multiple Sclerosis". People. 28 (20). November 16, 1987. Retrieved 2013-08-11.
  10. ^ "Madlyn Rhue, 68; TV Actress Kept Working with Multiple Sclerosis". 18 December 2003.
  11. ^ An Interview With Madlyn Rhue, Skip E. Lowe, 1996
  12. ^ An Interview With Madlyn Rhue, Skip E. Lowe, 1996