Mary Carvellas (May 3, 1924 – October 18, 2013), better known as Mary Carver , was an American actress whose career spanned more than 60 years. She may be best known for her role as matriarch Cecilia Simon on the series Simon & Simon appearing in 153 episodes from 1981 to 1989 over eight seasons.
17-666: Carver was born in Los Angeles, the daughter of John and Carmen (née Delmar) Carvellas. Carver graduated from Hollywood High School and Los Angeles City College. Carver appeared in the Broadway production of Out West of Eighth in 1951. She appeared on Broadway in The Shadow Box in 1977 and in Fifth of July during the 1980s. Her films included From Here to Eternity (1953), Pay or Die (1960), I Never Promised You
34-573: A Rose Garden (1977), Protocol (1984), Best Seller (1987), Arachnophobia (1990), and Safe (1995). Her television roles included Simon & Simon , The Donna Reed Show , ER , The Guardian , Gunsmoke (1956 title character-“Anne” - in “Chester’s Mail Order Bride” - S1E34), Lou Grant , Lux Video Theatre , The Man from U.N.C.L.E. , Mannix , Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman , McCloud , Quincy, M.E. , The Rockford Files , Star Trek: Enterprise , and The Twilight Zone . In addition to acting, Carver taught within
51-539: A book by Morosco and a score by Earl Carroll . The Shuberts lost the building in the Great Depression , and City Playhouses, Inc. bought it at auction in 1943. It was sold in 1968 to Bankers Trust Company and, after a massive "Save the Theatres" protest movement led by Joe Papp and supported by various actors and other theatrical folk failed, it was razed in 1982, along with the first Helen Hayes ,
68-416: A daughter who in fact is long dead." It is a normal day for each of these characters; getting to learn their individuality is the heart of the play. The act flows between the serious and the humorous. The first act reveals that each of the three characters is radically different. They are connected by their futures, whether they are terminal or not. As the act ends, Joe and Maggie are beginning to talk, Agnes
85-489: A deeper conversation about their future. Agnes reveals a secret about her sister Claire. We learn that she died some years ago in an accident in Louisiana. Over the past two years, Agnes has been writing letters to her mother from her sister, and the interviewer presents her with some hard questions. More is learned about the characters' lives before they became ill, material that makes their current situation more poignant. By
102-460: A planned high school production of the play in Tucson, Arizona was cancelled due to the play's "language." Critics of the move charged that the play was being censored for its treatment of homosexuality. In response, actors including William Baldwin , Christopher Reeve , Mercedes Ruehl , Harry Hamlin , Blair Brown and Estelle Parsons staged a reading of the play in Tucson produced by People For
119-530: A tool for each of the patients and their families to relay their feelings about their situation; the characters speak bluntly to the interviewer. Each of the families is introduced in this section of the play. When Joe’s wife Maggie and son Steve arrive, it quickly becomes apparent that Maggie is avoiding dealing with the prospect of her future without Joe. She refuses to enter their cabin, and Steve has no idea of his father’s impending death. Brian takes an aloof approach to his illness; he wants to live each day until
136-579: Is a play written by actor Michael Cristofer . The play made its Broadway debut on March 31, 1977. It is the winner of the 1977 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play . The play was made into a telefilm, directed by Paul Newman in 1980. The play takes place over 24 hours in three separate cottages on the grounds of a large hospital in the United States. Within the three cabins are three patients: Joe, Brian and Felicity, who are to live with their respective families as they have reached
153-595: Is struggling to connect to her mother, and Brian and Beverly are dancing. It is nearing evening. Joe is still coaxing Maggie to come into the cabin, Brian and Beverly are reminiscing, Mark is becoming frustrated by his lover's jollity, and Agnes is beginning to talk to the interviewer. As the act continues, cracks are shown in Brian’s brutal forthrightness about his illness and Mark's feelings about his impending death. Beverly provides some raw insight within her seemingly scattered exterior. Joe and Maggie continue to struggle to have
170-566: The American Way . Cristofer adapted the play for a television movie in 1980, directed by Paul Newman . The cast featured John Considine (Interviewer), James Broderick (Joe), Valerie Harper (Maggie), Christopher Plummer (Brian), Ben Masters (Mark), Joanne Woodward (Beverly), Melinda Dillon (Agnes), and Sylvia Sidney (Felicity). The film premiered at the Deauville Film Festival on September 9, 1980. It
187-815: The Mark Taper Forum). The play opened on Broadway on March 31, 1977 at the Morosco Theatre and closed on December 31, 1977, after 315 performances. The play was directed by Gordon Davidson with scenery by Ming Cho Lee , costumes by Bill Walker, and lighting by Ronald Wallace. The cast featured Josef Sommer (Interviewer), Simon Oakland (Joe), Vincent Spano (Steve), Joyce Ebert (Maggie), Laurence Luckinbill (Brian), Mandy Patinkin (Mark), Patricia Elliott (Beverly), Rose Gregorio (Agnes), and Geraldine Fitzgerald (Felicity). Mary Carver replaced Fitzgerald on April 30, 1977, and Clifton James replaced Oakland on May 23, 1977. In 1993,
SECTION 10
#1732801817325204-596: The Morosco Theatre was designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp for the Shubert family , who constructed it for Oliver Morosco in gratitude for his helping them break the monopoly of the Theatrical Syndicate . It had approximately 955 seats. After an invitation-only preview performance on February 4, 1917, it opened to the public the next day with a production of Canary Cottage , a musical with
221-566: The end of the act, no moral conclusions have been drawn, no one has died, and no one is going to live forever. The audience thinks not about each person's impending death but what to do with this "moment" that each has to live. The Shadow Box premiered in a production of the Center Theatre Group at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in the 1975-1976 season, and it was directed by Gordon Davidson (artistic director of
238-414: The end of their treatment. They have agreed to be part of a psychological program where they live within the hospital grounds and have interviews with a psychiatrist. It is morning, and Joe is sitting in the interview area talking to the interviewer. We are introduced to the idea that he is dying and that his family is about to arrive, whom he hasn’t seen for most of his treatment. The interviewer acts as
255-434: The last. Rather than skirt the issues, he confronts them with a dark humor. His young gay lover Mark is with him at the camp. Beverly, Brian's "trashy but devoted ex-wife," arrives. The third family is Felicity and her daughter Agnes. Felicity is "an old woman who drifts between senility and combative lucidness." Her daughter Agnes is "a mousy, browbeaten spinster who tries to keep her mother happy with fictional letters from
272-543: The theater department of the University of Southern California. Carver married film director Joseph Sargent in 1952. They had two daughters, Athena Sargent and voice actress Lia Sargent , and divorced in 1968. Carver died on October 18, 2013, following a brief illness at her home in Woodland Hills, California. She was 89 years old. She was survived by her daughters. The Shadow Box The Shadow Box
289-510: Was nominated for a Golden Globe and three Emmy Awards : Outstanding Drama Special, Teleplay adaption (Cristofer), and Director (Newman). Source: PlaybillVault Morosco Theatre The Morosco Theatre was a Broadway theatre near Times Square in New York City from 1917 to 1982. It housed many notable productions and its demolition, along with four adjacent theaters, was controversial. Located at 217 West 45th Street,
#324675