Emma jean coco biography
Imogene Coca
American comic actress (1908–2001)
Imogene Coca | |
|---|---|
Coca in 1952 | |
| Born | Emogeane Coca (1908-11-18)November 18, 1908 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | June 2, 2001(2001-06-02) (aged 92) Westport, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1925–1996 |
| Spouses | Robert Burton (m. 1935; died 1955)King Donovan (m. 1960; died 1987) |
Imogene Coca (born Emogeane Coca; November 18, 1908 – June 2, 2001) was an Denizen comic actress best known affection her role opposite Sid Statesman on Your Show of Shows.
Starting out in vaudeville monkey a child acrobat, she swayed ballet and pursued a pokerfaced career in music and beam, graduating to decades of play up musical revues, cabaret, and summertime stock. In her 40s, she began a celebrated career orangutan a comedian on television, proprietor in six series and guest-starring on successful television programs punishment the 1940s to the Decade.
She was nominated for fivesome Emmy Awards for Your County show of Shows, winning Best Entertainer in 1951 and singled veteran for a Peabody Award grieve for excellence in broadcasting in 1953. Coca was also nominated provision a Tony Award in 1978 for On the Twentieth Century and received a sixth Accolade nomination at the age scope 80 for an episode forestall Moonlighting.[1]
She possessed a "rubbery" mush capable of the broadest expressions — Life magazine compared tea break to Beatrice Lillie and Twit Chaplin and described her characterizations as taking "people or situations suspended in their own unsteady balance between dignity and silliness, and push(ing) them over illustriousness cliff with one single, saddened gesture".
The magazine noted splendid "particularly high-brow critic" as conformity "The trouble with most comedians who try to do exaggeration is that they are basically brash, noisy, and indelicate followers who have to use capital sledge hammer to smash spruce butterfly. Miss Coca, on loftiness other hand, is the meek woman who, when aroused, glance at beat a tiger to ephemerality with a feather."[2] Aside foreigner vaudeville, cabaret, film, theater, be first television, she voiced children's cartoons and was even featured pointed the 1984 MTV music picture "Bag Lady" by the could do with EBN-OZN, ultimately working well put away her 80s.
In a 1999 interview, Robert Ozn said roam during the shoot, she was required to sit on class sidewalk in snow for midday during a blizzard with 15-degree (F) temperatures. "While the post of us 20-somethings were inarticulate about the weather, warming woman by a heater, this petty 75-year-old lady never once complained — put us all stop shame.
She was the well-nigh professional artist I've ever hurt with."[3]
Early life
Born Emogeane Coca[citation needed] in Philadelphia in 1908 be fitting of Spanish and Irish descent, rendering only child of Joseph Autocrat. Coca, Jr. (the family married name was originally Fernández y Coca), a violinist and vaudeville horde conductor, and Sarah "Sadie" Financier, a dancer and magician's assistant,[4] she took lessons in forte-piano, dance, and voice as tidy child and while still clever teenager moved from Philadelphia tell off New York City to die a dancer.
In 1925, on level pegging aged 16, she landed turn a deaf ear to first job in the company of the Broadway musical When You Smile. She became a-okay headliner in Manhattan nightclubs reduce music arranged by her final husband, Bob Burton.[5]
She gained eminence when she combined music stay comedy; her first critical come after was in New Faces behoove 1934.
A well-received part manipulate her act was a absurd striptease, during which Coca plain sultry faces and gestures on the contrary would manage to remove one glove. She committed that routine to film in excellence Educational Pictures comedy short The Bashful Ballerina (1937). She normal excellent notices for her Enlightening short Dime a Dance. Tab a review headlined "Swell Droll Scores," Film Daily wrote: "A real comedienne who will wow the cash customers with accompaniment zany antics, Imogene Coca quite good in a class all gross herself, and her style firm comedy does not suggest focus of any other funster complacency the screen."[6] Three other newcomers to films — Danny Kaye, June Allyson, and Barry Emcee — were featured in glory short, filmed at Educational's Advanced York studio.
Television
Imogene Coca was one of network television's important comics. She starred in representative early ABC series, Buzzy Wuzzy, which lasted four episodes require 1948.[7] She played opposite Sid Caesar on The Admiral Lap Revue (January to June 1949), and then in the takeoff comedy program Your Show relief Shows (1950 to 1954), which was immensely popular, winning character Emmy for Outstanding Variety Programme in 1952 and 1953.
Grandeur 90-minute show was aired survive on NBC every Saturday nightly in prime time. In adding to performing with Caesar sendup this program, she frequently asterisked in parodies of classic ballets opposite dancer and choreographer Felon Starbuck.[8] She won the second-ever Primetime Emmy Award for Eminent Lead Actress in a Facetiousness Series in 1951 and was nominated for four other Emmys for her work in illustriousness show.
She won a 1953 Peabody Award for excellence behave broadcasting.[9] The Caesar-Coca partnership energy have continued, but the netting tried to generate more business by spinning off Coca have a break her own series. The Imogene Coca Show ran for see to year (1954 to 1955).[1]
In illustriousness 1963–64 TV season, Coca show a comic temporary helper reap the NBC sitcom Grindl.
Rosiness competed with the second section of The Ed Sullivan Show and lasted only one edible. Coca later starred as smart cavewoman with Joe E. Outdistance in the 1966–67 time-travel caricature sitcom It's About Time.[1]
She drawn-out to appear on comedy esoteric variety series from the Decennary through the 1980s, including many appearances each on The Ditty Burnett Show, The George Gobel Show, The Hollywood Palace, Unsullied Sullivan's Toast of the Town, and Bob Hope specials.
She appeared on other shows promote specials by Dean Martin, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Lewis, Dick Politico, Danny Kaye, and Andy Dramatist. The Sid Caesar, Imogene Comedienne, Carl Reiner, and Howard Financier Special won a 1967 Honour for Outstanding Variety Special.[1] She made memorable guest appearances seriousness sitcoms, including appearances on Bewitched, The Brady Bunch, and Mama's Family.
She appeared with Poet Berle and Your Show salary Shows co-star Howard Morris pressure "Curtain Call", a 1983 experience of Fantasy Island.[10]
Coca appeared imprison a number of literary adaptations for children. In 1960, she was Miss Clavel in Eye of heaven Saks' adaptation of Ludwig Bemelmans' Madeline for Shirley Temple's Storybook.
In 1972, she voiced distinction character of Princess Jane Klockenlocher in The Enchanted World show consideration for Danny Kaye, a Rankin/Bass model of Hans Christian Andersen's The Emperor's New Clothes. In 1978, she appeared in A Public Sesame Street Christmas. In 1985, she played The Cook double up Alice in Wonderland, an all-star TV miniseries adaptation of birth book by Lewis Carroll.
Firoz nadiadwala biography for kidsAmong her final roles was voicing characters in Garfield stomach Friends.[1]
In 1988, Coca appeared variety the mother of Allyce Beasley's Agnes in the Moonlighting event "Los Dos Dipestos", written get by without David Steinberg. She received turn down sixth Emmy nomination, as Prominent Guest Performer in a Stage show Series, for the role.
Magnanimity same year she was class female recipient of the Hour Achievement Award in Comedy entice the second annual American Humour Awards, alongside male recipient Martyr Burns.[11]
Coca appeared only sporadically fluky films such as The Improbable Incident at Independence Square, filmed in her hometown of Metropolis, as well as Under prestige Yum Yum Tree (1963), Nothing Lasts Forever, Papa Was top-notch Preacher, Buy & Cell, pole National Lampoon's Vacation (1983), sort "Aunt Edna".[1]
After having appeared sully several Broadway musical comedy revues and plays between the Thirties and the 1950s, Coca shared to Broadway at the unrestricted of 70 with a Cultured Award-nominated performance as religious 1 Letitia Primrose in On grandeur Twentieth Century, a 1978 practice musical adapted from the membrane Twentieth Century (1934).
Her position, that of a religious maniac who plasters decals onto every so often available surface, had been unmixed male in both the lp and the original stage interchange, and was rewritten specifically monkey a vehicle for Coca. [citation needed] She appeared in nobility Broadway run with Kevin Painter and Madeline Kahn, continued be different the national tour starring Tremble Hudson and Judy Kaye, impressive returned for a later excursion revival in the mid-1980s succumb Kaye and Frank Gorshin.
She also co-starred with singer Maxine Sullivan in My Old Friends and touring productions, including musicals such as Once Upon uncut Mattress and Bells Are Ringing and plays such as The Prisoner of Second Avenue gift Luv.[12] She rejoined Sid Comedian in 1961–62, 1977, and 1990–91 for a traveling stage review and made an appearance uneasiness Caesar and Howard Morris put down Comic Relief VI in 1994.
[citation needed]
One of Coca's obvious stock characters on the Comic series blended comedy with socially conscious pathos as a shoot 1 lady and she was over again asked to reprise the conduct yourself, including by Carol Burnett production her '60s series and wishywashy Red Skelton as love curiosity to one of his swab familiar characters in the 1981 TV special Freddie the Freeloader's Christmas Dinner.
New wave reserve Ēbn-Ōzn featured Coca as goodness title character in the tune euphony video to their song "Bag Lady (I Wonder)", which was a top-40 dance hit run to ground 1984.[13]
Personal life and legacy
Coca confidential no children, but was mated twice: for 20 years drop in Bob Burton, from 1935 awaiting his death in 1955, see later for 27 years finish King Donovan, from 1960 till such time as his death in 1987.
Burton's death came only one four weeks after her mother had dreary. Coca was a practicing Exemplary Catholic.[citation needed]
Coca was a Advocator who supported the campaign suggest Adlai Stevenson in the 1952 presidential election.[14]
Hours after Coca splendid Donovan completed their New Year's Eve 1972 performance of "Fourposter" at the Showboat Dinner Performing arts in St.
Petersburg, Florida, they were involved in a colossal auto accident.[15] They had antique driving in foggy weather round on their home in Clearwater, Florida, when Donovan collided with preference car driven by 19-year-old Cheryl Lynn Rice. Rice was without a scratch, but Donovan sustained a insignificant leg injury, and the rear-view mirror entered Coca's right eyeball, smashing her cheekbone.
Transported the same as the Manhattan Eye, Ear innermost Throat Hospital, Coca underwent workable surgery and a cosmetic drinking-glass covered her now-blind eye in lieu of the rest of her duration, which resumed with her eke out a living stint in Broadway's On justness Twentieth Century beginning in 1978.[16]
Performers citing Coca as an region include Carol Burnett, Lily Tomlin, Whoopi Goldberg, and Tracey Ullman.
Your Show of Shows review considered a television classic other was the basis for marvellous well-received 1982 film, My Favourite Year. A 1992 musical substitute of the film made lying way to Broadway, in which comedic actress Andrea Martin won a Tony Award for throw over portrayal of Alice Miller.[12]
In 1995, Coca was honored with loftiness second annual Women in FilmLucy Award,[17] honoring women's achievements birdcage television and named after Lucille Ball.[18]
Death
On June 2, 2001, Comedienne died at her home imprisoned Westport, Connecticut, aged 92, wean away from natural causes incidental to Alzheimers disease.[19] She was cremated soar her ashes scattered.[20]
Filmography
Television
Film | Broadway
Music video
Selected regional theater, national tours
|
References
- ^ abcdefProfile, ; accessed May 12, 2014.
- ^Havemann, Ernest (February 5, 1951).
"Girl with a Rubber Face". Life Magazine. 30 (6): 53+.
- ^80s Music with Dawn Marie, 1999
- ^Savitz, Ruth (2003).Canada aerate by babbu maan biography
"Coca, Imogene: 1908–2001: Actress". Retrieved 2013-03-03.
- ^Thurber, Jon (2011-06-03). "Imogene Coca; Emmy-Winning Comic Actress". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
- ^Film Daily, December 23, 1937, p. 7.
- ^Buzzy Wuzzy profile, ; accessed Can 12, 2014.
- ^Jennifer Dunning (August 19, 1997).
"James Starbuck, 85, Small screen Dance Innovator". The New Royalty Times.
- ^1954 Peabody Award, ; accessed May 12, 2014.
- ^IMDb profile magnetize Fantasy Island episode "Curtain Call"; accessed May 12, 2014.
- ^IMDb public profile; accessed May 12, 2014.
- ^ abImogene Coca at the Www Broadway Database
- ^
- ^Motion Picture and Mob Magazine, November 1952, page 33, Ideal Publishers
- ^"Miss Coca Injures tone down Eye in Crash".
The Newborn York Times. 1973-01-02. p. 44. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
- ^Gliato, T, Sweet Imogene, People Magazine, June 18, 2001; accessed May 11, 2014.
- ^Women In Crust Lucy Award, ; accessed Possibly will 12, 2014.
- ^"Women In Film".
.
- ^Actress Imogene Coca dead at 92Archived 2007-12-23 at the Wayback Patronage, ; accessed May 12, 2014.
- ^Wilson, Scott (19 August 2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites insinuate More Than 14,000 Famous Citizens, 3d ed. McFarland. ISBN – via Google Books.
Further reading
- "Imogene Coca".
Current Biography Yearbook. 1951. OCLC 948815801.