Mary LaRoche explained

Birth Name:Mary Catherine La Roche
Birth Date:20 July 1920
Birth Place:Rochester, New York, U.S.
Death Place:Rochester, New York, U.S.
Occupation:Actress
Yearsactive:1939–1977
Spouse:
    Alma Mater:Eastman School of Music

    Mary LaRoche (also often credited Mary La Roche; July 20, 1920 – February 9, 1999) was an American actress and singer best known for her roles in the feature films Gidget (1959) and Bye Bye Birdie (1963) and for her performances as a guest star and supporting character on American television series between the early 1950s and mid-1970s, including on such popular series as The Twilight Zone, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Perry Mason, and Gunsmoke.

    Early years

    Born in Rochester, New York in 1920, Mary was the youngest of three daughters of Catherine R. (née Carney) and William P. La Roche. Her mother was of Irish descent, although she too had been born in New York.[1] Her father, a native of Canada, supported the family working as the manager of a local hotel and later as the proprietor of a restaurant in Rochester.[1] [2] Mary received training in piano and voice at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester and by age 10 she was already acting on radio programs.[3] She gained additional acting experience in Rochester with the Community Players[4] and the Paddy Hill Players.[5] In 1939, La Roche (later LaRoche) was a sectional winner in the radio talent-show competition Gateway to Hollywood.[5]

    Career

    LaRoche began singing and acting on and off Broadway in 1938. Over the next seven years she appeared in a number of Broadway musical comedies, including the 1942 operetta The Merry Widow[6] by Franz Lehár. She later was cast in various feature films during the 1950s and 1960s, including in the role of a singer in Catskills Honeymoon in 1950; Operation Mad Ball in 1957; Clark Gable's love interest in 1958's Run Silent, Run Deep; The Lineup, also released in 1958; Gidget in 1959, in which she portrays the mother of Sandra Dee's title character; The Ladies Man in 1961; Bye Bye Birdie in 1963, playing the part of Ann Margaret's mother; and The Swinger in 1966.

    LaRoche was very active too in television, usually in guest appearances in single episodes of a television series. She began performing on television as early as 1946, when she was part of a two-person skit that was broadcast on WBKB-TV in Chicago.[7] Then, between 1951 and 1977, she appeared in at least 37 different television series, including five appearances on Perry Mason, two episodes of The Twilight Zone and an episode of The Streets of San Francisco in 1976. One of LaRoche's more complex and dramatic characterizations on television is in the one-hour 1963 episode of Gunsmoke titled "Quint-Cident". In that episode of the classic Western, in a central role opposite Burt Reynolds, she portrays a beleaguered and mentally exhausted widow trying to survive alone on an isolated farmstead in Kansas during the late 1870s.

    Personal life

    LaRoche was married to actor John Hudson[8] and to actor-producer Sherwood Price.[9]

    Theater

    On Broadway

    International

    Select filmography

    Cinema

    Television

    Series

    Television films

    References

    Citations
    Bibliography

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Fourteenth Census of the United States: 1920", digital image of original enumeration page, William P. La Roche family, 9 January 1920, "Rochester City", Monroe County, New York. United States Census Bureau, Department of Commerce; National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Washington, D.C. FamilySearch archives (FSa).
    2. "Fifteenth Census of the United States: 1930", XXXX 1930, Rochester, New York; NARA. FSa.
    3. News: South Pacific's Vibrant Nellie Likes 'Washing Tha Man Out of Hair' . The Courier-Journal . August 8, 1955 . Kentucky, Louisville . 8. Newspapers.com. September 25, 2018.
    4. News: Community Players Get Results in Baffling Mystery Piece . Democrat and Chronicle . December 16, 1940 . New York, Rochester . 11. Newspapers.com. September 25, 2018.
    5. News: Paddy Hill Group To Give Play . Democrat and Chronicle . October 26, 1939 . New York, Rochester . 14. Newspapers.com. September 25, 2018.
    6. Web site: Mary La Roche . Internet Broadway Database . The Broadway League . September 25, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180925204227/https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/mary-la-roche-48682 . September 25, 2018.
    7. Television Reviews: Balaban & Katz . September 25, 2018 . Billboard . March 30, 1946 . 18.
    8. News: Winchell . Walter . Walter Winchell on Broadway . Des Moines Tribune . March 7, 1947 . Iowa, Des Moines . 10. Newspapers.com. September 25, 2018.
    9. News: Kleiner . Dick . Hollywood Gossip . Public Opinion . October 12, 1964 . Pennsylvania, Chambersburg . 6. Newspapers.com. September 25, 2018.
    10. Web site: South Pacific: Return of one of the Greats. Solomon. Les. Aussie Theater .com. October 18, 2011. September 14, 2018.
    11. Web site: Seventies and Eighties Made for TV Movies. Super Seventies. September 14, 2018.

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