Marlo Thomas
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This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2012) |
| Marlo Thomas | |
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 Thomas in 2008 |
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| Born | Margaret Julia Thomas November 21, 1937 Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Occupation | Actress, producer, activist, philanthropist |
| Years active | 1960–present |
| Spouse(s) | Phil Donahue (1980–present) |
Margaret Julia "Marlo" Thomas (born November 21, 1937) is an American actress, producer, and social activist known for her starring role on the TV series That Girl (1966–1971) and her award-winning feminist children's franchise, Free to Be... You and Me. She also serves as National Outreach Director for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
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Early life [edit]
Thomas was born in Detroit, Michigan, the eldest child of comedian Danny Thomas (1912–1991) and his wife, the former Rose Marie Cassaniti (1914–2000). On her mother's side, she is also the granddaughter of drummer and percussionist, Marie "Mary" Cassaniti (1896–1972). Her brother, Tony Thomas, is a television and film producer, and her sister, Terre Thomas, is a former actress. Her father was Lebanese American and her mother was Italian American.[1]
Marlo Thomas was raised in Beverly Hills, California. Her parents called her Margo as a child, though she soon became known as Marlo, she told The New York Times, because of her childhood mispronunciation of the nickname. She attended Marymount High School in Los Angeles. Thomas graduated from the University of Southern California with a teaching degree; "I wanted a piece of paper that said I was qualified to do something," she said. She was also a member of the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta.[2]
Career [edit]
Early career [edit]
Thomas was a regular on The Joey Bishop Show from 1961 to 1962, playing Joey's star-struck sister, Stella Barnes. She followed the series with guest appearances on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The Donna Reed Show, Ben Casey, My Favorite Martian, and Bonanza.[3] It was at this time that she had rhinoplasty surgery to reduce the size of her nose.
In 1967, she and her father Danny Thomas provided the voices of Caleb and his daughter Bertha in the Rankin-Bass animated adaption of Charles Dickens classic novella The Cricket on the Hearth.
That Girl [edit]
Thomas signed a contract with ABC in 1966, to star in the network's newest sitcom, That Girl. Thomas played Ann Marie, a beautiful and up-and-coming actress who's the girlfriend to Donald Hollinger (played by Ted Bessell). The series told the day-to-day struggles of Ann: holding different temp jobs and how she desperately wants a career on Broadway. The series was the first television show to focus on a single girl who doesn't live with her parents.
That Girl became popular for its opening theme in which ended with someone saying "...that girl", in which Ann then appears on the screen and the words "That Girl" appear over a freeze-frame shot of Ann. The sequence was different for every episode and usually indicated what the episode was going to be about. This motif was abandoned in season five and was replaced with lyrics.
Despite being a solid ratings performer on ABC, That Girl never reached the overall top 30. Thomas requested ending the show after season four, even though it was still in the top 35. ABC convinced her to do one more year. In the beginning of season five, Ann and Donald get engaged but never marry. Thomas didn't want to send a message to young girls that marriage was their main goal. The series was cancelled in 1971, after 136 episodes. During the show's five-year-run, Thomas won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Emmy four times.
Later career [edit]
After That Girl, eager to expand her horizons, Thomas attended the Actors Studio,[4] where she would study with Lee Strasberg until his death in 1982, and subsequently with Strasberg's disciple Sandra Seacat. Writing in 2010, Thomas expressed gratitude to both individuals.[5]
While honing her craft at the Actors Studio, Thomas remained active on other fronts. In 1972, she released a children's book, Free to Be... You and Me, which was inspired by her young niece Dionne Gordon. She went on to create multiple recordings and television specials of and related to that title: Free to Be... You and Me (1972 and 1974) and Free to Be... A Family (1987), with Christopher Cerf.
In 1973, Marlo Thomas joined Gloria Steinem, Patricia Carbine, and Letty Cottin Pogrebin as the founders of the country’s first women’s fund, the Ms. Foundation for Women. The organization was created to deliver funding and other resources to organizations that were presenting women’s voices in communities nationwide.
Adept at drama as well as comedy, Thomas appeared in the television movies It Happened One Christmas (1977) (a remake of It's a Wonderful Life with Thomas in the rewritten James Stewart role),[6] Nobody's Child (1986),[5] and The Lost Honor of Kathryn Beck (1984) while she starred in films Jenny (1970) and Thieves (1977).
Thomas's Broadway theatre credits include Thieves (1974), Social Security (1986, in which she also toured), and The Shadow Box (1994). In 1993 she toured in Six Degrees of Separation. In 2007, she starred as Doreen in Elaine May's comedy Roger Is Dead at George Street Playhouse. She returned to George Street Playhouse in the spring of 2008 in Arthur Laurents's play New Year's Eve with Keith Carradine and Natasha Gregson Wagner.
Thomas appeared as Margaret (as the client with a vicious dog) in an uncredited role in the film Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999).
Marlo Thomas is also active with the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, where she serves as the national outreach director. She is donating all royalties from her 2004 book and CD, Thanks & Giving: All Year Long (also produced with Cerf), to the hospital, which was started by her late father, Danny Thomas. The organization helps gravely ill young children.
Thomas has further supported charity through her publications of the two volumes of The Right Words at the Right Time.[7][8]
In recent years, Thomas has made guest appearances on Ally McBeal, Friends (as Rachel's mother, Sandra Green), as well as on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (she played Judge Mary Conway Clark, a mentor of ADA Casey Novak). She also appeared in the 2000 comedy Playing Mona Lisa.
From October 2011 to January 29, 2012, Thomas starred in a Broadway play called George Is Dead written by Elaine May, which was part of an anthology play, Relatively Speaking, which also featured plays written by Ethan Cohen (Talking Cure) and Woody Allen (Honeymoon Motel).[9]
In 2012, she co-starred in the film LOL, opposite Miley Cyrus and Demi Moore.
She currently narrates the series Happily Never After on Investigation Discovery.
Thomas is a contributor to Web site wowOwow.com and edits MarloThomas.com at the Huffington Post.
Honors [edit]
Thomas is the recipient of four Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Jefferson Award and the George Foster Peabody Award.
In 1996, she was awarded the Women in Film Lucy Award in recognition of her excellence and innovation in her creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television.[10]
Personal life [edit]
After her relationship with playwright Herb Gardner, Thomas married talk show host Phil Donahue in 1980.[11] Through the marriage, she has five stepchildren.
Filmography [edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Jenny | Jenny | Nominated - Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress |
| 1977 | Thieves | Sally Cramer | |
| 1990 | In the Spirit | Reva Prosky | |
| 1993 | Falling Down | KTLA Reporter | |
| 1997 | The Real Blonde | Blair | |
| 1998 | Starstruck' | Linda Phaeffle | |
| 1999 | Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo | Margaret | uncredited |
| 2000 | Playing Mona Lisa | Shelia Goldstein | |
| 2012 | In the Woods | ||
| 2012 | LOL | Gran |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis | Frank's Girlfriend | Episode: "The Hunger Strike" |
| 1960 | 77 Sunset Strip | Amina | Episode: "The Fanatics" |
| 1961 | Zane Grey Theater | Laurie Dubro | Episode: "Honor Bright" |
| 1961 | Thriller | Susan Baker | Episode: "The Ordeal of Dr. Cordell" |
| 1961 | The Danny Thomas Show | Stella Mason | Episode: "Everything Happens to Me" |
| 1961–1962 | The Joey Bishop Show | Stella | 10 episodes |
| 1962 | Insight | Jeanne Brown | Episode: "The Sophomore" |
| 1964 | Arrest and Trial | Angela Tucci | Episode: "Tigers Are for Jungles" |
| 1964 | Bonanza | Tai Lee | Episode: "A Pink Cloud Comes from Old Cathay" |
| 1964 | My Favorite Martian | Paula Clayfield | Episode: "Miss Jekyll and Hyde" |
| 1964 | Wendy and Me | Carol | Episode: "Wendy's Anniversary for --?" |
| 1964 | McHale's Navy | Cynthia Prentice | Episode: "The Missing Link" |
| 1965 | Valentine's Day | Stacy | Episode: "Follow the Broken Pretzel" |
| 1965 | The Donna Reed Show | Louise Bissell | Episode: "Guests, Guests, Who Needs Guests?" |
| 1965 | Two's Company | Caroline Sommers | Unsold pilot |
| 1965 | Ben Casey | Claire Schaeffer | Episode: "Three Li'l Lambs" |
| 1966–1971 | That Girl | Ann Marie | 137 episodes Golden Globe Award for Best Actress on Television (1967) TV Land Award for Favorite Fashion Plate - Female (2004) Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (1967-1971) Nominated - TV Land Award for Hippest Fashion Plate - Female (2003) |
| 1967 | Cricket on the Hearth | Bertha (voice) | TV movie |
| 1973 | The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie | Anne Marie (voice) | Episode: "That Girl in Wonderland" |
| 1973 | Acts of Love and Other Comedies | Various | TV movie |
| 1976 | The Practice | Judy Sinclair | Episode: "Judy Sinclair" |
| 1977 | It Happened One Christmas | Mary Bailey Hatch | TV movie |
| 1984 | The Lost Honor of Kathryn Beck | Kathryn Beck | TV movie |
| 1985 | Consenting Adult | Tess Lynd | TV movie Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1986 | Nobody's Child | Marie Balter | TV movie Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film |
| 1991 | Held Hostage: The Sis and Jerry Levin Story | Lucille 'Sis' Levin | TV movie |
| 1994 | Ultimate Betrayal | Adult Sharon Rodgers | TV movie |
| 1994 | Reunion | Jessie Yates | TV movie |
| 1996 | Roseanne | Tina Beige | Episode: "Satan, Darling" |
| 1996 | Friends | Sandra Green | Episode: "The One with the Lesbian Wedding" Episode: "The One with the Two Parties" Episode: "The One with the Baby Shower" Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series (1996) |
| 1999 | Frasier | Sophie (voice) | 3 episodes |
| 2000 | Ally McBeal | Lynnie Bishop | Episode: "Tis the Season" Episode: "Love on Holiday" |
| 2002 | Two Against Time | Julie Portman | TV movie |
| 2004 | Deceit | Ellen McCarthy | TV movie |
| 2004 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Judge Mary Clark | 4 episodes |
| 2007 | Ugly Betty | Sandra Winthrop | Episode: "Something Wicked This Way Comes" |
| 2012 | The New Normal | Nancy Niles | Episode: "Baby Proofing" |
| 2012 | "The Dr. Oz Show" | Herself | Episode: "Dr. Oz Takes on TV's Sextuplet Toddlers!" |
References [edit]
- ^ http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/articles/web-extras/2010/nov/03/guest-picks-marlo-thomas/
- ^ Judy Stone (4 September 1966). "And Now—Make Room for Marlo". The New York Times (NYTimes.com). Retrieved 2012-01-02.
- ^ Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh (12 October 1981). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows 1946 – Present. Ballantine Books. ISBN 978-0-345-29588-0.
- ^ Judith Michaelson (7 November 1992). "Q&A with Marlo Thomas: 'In the Prime of My Craft Now'". The New York Times (NYTimes.com). Retrieved 2012-09-07.
- ^ a b Thomas, Marlo (2010). "Obsession". Growing Up Laughing: My Story and the Story of Funny. New York: Hyperion. p. 210. ISBN 0-13-367870-9.
- ^ Leonard Maltin, ed. (October 1990). TV Movies Video Guide 1991 Edition. Signet Books. ISBN 0-451-16748-1.
- ^ Thomas, Marlo (2002). The Right Words at the Right Time. New York: Atria Books. ISBN 0-7434-4650-X.
- ^ Thomas, Marlo (2006). The Right Words at the Right Time (Volume II ed.). New York: Atria Books. ISBN 0-7434-9743-0.
- ^ Matthew Blank (22 November 2011). "Relatively Speaking Star Marlo Thomas". Playbill (Playbill.com). Retrieved 2012-01-02.
- ^ "Past Recipients". Women in Film. Retrieved 2012-01-02.
- ^ Katie Kelly (11 March 1973). "Marlo Thomas: 'My Whole Life I've Had My Dukes Up". The New York Times (NYTimes.com). Retrieved 2012-01-02.
External links [edit]
- Marlo Thomas at the Internet Movie Database
- Marlo Thomas at the Internet Broadway Database
- Marlo Thomas at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
- Marlo Thomas at wowOwow
- All About Marlo Thomas at StJude.org
- Our History at Ms. Foundation for Women
- Marlo Thomas at AOL
- Marlo Thomas Book Signing, Oak Brook, IL, October 26, 2010
- Relatively Speaking web site
- Marlo Thomas Video produced by Makers: Women Who Make America
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- 1937 births
- Actresses from Los Angeles, California
- Actors Studio alumni
- American film actresses
- American people of Italian descent
- American people of Lebanese descent
- American stage actresses
- American television actresses
- Bell Records artists
- A&M Records artists
- Kid Rhino Records artists
- Grammy Award-winning artists
- Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute alumni
- Living people
- People from Detroit, Michigan
- People from Westport, Connecticut
- University of Southern California alumni
- St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
- 20th-century American actresses
- 21st-century American actresses
