Polly Bergen Biography (1930-)

Original name, Nellie Paulina Burgin; born July 14, 1930, in Knoxville, TN; daughter of William Hugh (a construction engineer) and Lucy (maiden name, Lawhorn) Burgin; married Jerome Courtland (an actor), 1949 (divorced, 1955); married Freddie Fields (an agent and motion picture company executive), February13, 1957 (some sources cite 1956; divorced, 1975); married Jeffrey Endervelt,June 25, 1982 (divorced, 1991); children: (second marriage) Pamela K. Fields, Peter Fields; (stepdaughter) Kathy.

Nationality: American
Gender: Female
Occupation: Actress, singer, writer, producer, business executive
Birth Details: July 14, 1930; Knoxville, Tennessee, United States

Famous Works

CREDITS
Stage Appearances
Member of the ensemble, John Murray Anderson's Almanac, Imperial Theatre, New York City, 1953
Allyn Macy, Champagne Complex, Cort Theatre, New York City, 1955
Elizabeth Bennett, First Impressions, Alvin Theatre, New York City, 1959
Melissa Gardner, Love Letters, Edison Theatre, New York City, thenSan Francisco, CA, both 1990
The Women (staged reading; benefit performance), Lucille Lortel Theatre, New York City, c. 1999
Sing One, Act Two (cabaret performance), Feinstein's at the Regency, New York City, 2000
"The Songs of Comden and Green" (tribute), Lyrics and Lyricists, Theatre at the 92nd Street Y, New York City, 2000
Carlotta Campion, Follies, Roundabout Theatre, New York City, 2000then Belasco Theatre, New York City, 2001
Nothing Like a Dame (benefit performance), Martin Beck Theatre, New York City, 2001
Appeared as Joanne in a South Beach benefit performance of Company. As a teenager, appeared with small bands in and around Los Angeles; appeared in cabaret performances at the Thunderbird Hotel, Las Vegas, NV, and the Persian Room, Plaza Hotel, New York City. Also appeared in cabaret performancesin Atlantic City, NJ; Lake Tahoe, CA; and the Coconut Club, Beverly Hills, CA.
Film Appearances
(As Polly Burgin) Cantina singer, Across the Rio Grande, 1949
Voice of radio and jukebox singer, Champion, 1949
Helen, At War with the Army, Paramount, 1950
Betty Hunter, That's My Boy, Paramount, 1951
Molly Quade, Warpath, Paramount, 1951
Mary Turner, The Stooge, Paramount, 1952
Alice Owens, Escape from Fort Bravo, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1953
Carol Maldon, Fast Company, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1953
Janet Tunner, Cry of the Hunted, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1953
Ruth Danvers, Arena, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1953
Half a Hero, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1953
Peggy Bowden, Cape Fear, Universal, 1962
Bianca Steele Arden, Move Over Darling, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1963
Lorna Melford, The Caretakers (also known as Borderlines),United Artists, 1963
Leslie McCloud, Kisses for My President (also known as Kisses for the President), Warner Bros., 1964
Technical advisor, A Guide for the Married Man, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1967
Sotto a chi tocca! (also known as Besos para ella, punetazos para todos and Vier froehliche Rabauken), 1972
Estelle Stone, Making Mr. Right, Orion, 1987
Barbara Cutler, Mother, Mother, 1989
Mrs. Vernon-Williams, Cry-Baby, Universal, 1990
Mrs. Unterveldt, Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde, Savoy Pictures, 1995
Miss Maybry, Once upon a Time ... When We Were Colored, Republic Pictures, 1996
Television Appearances
Series
The Alan Young Show, CBS, 1950-1953
Host, The Best in Mystery, NBC, 1954
Vocalist, The Blue Angel, CBS, 1954
Host, Pepsi-Cola Playhouse, ABC, 1954-1955
Guest host, Upbeat, CBS, 1955
Panelist, To Tell the Truth, CBS, 1956-1961
Host, The Polly Bergen Show, NBC, 1957-1958
Panelist, To Tell the Truth, 1969
Doris Campbell, Baby Talk (also known as Look Who's Talking), ABC, 1991
Miniseries
Vera Keppler, 79 Park Avenue (also known as Harold Robbins' 79Park Avenue), NBC, 1977
Rhoda Henry, The Winds of War, ABC, 1983
Rhoda Henry, War and Remembrance: The Final Chapter, ABC, 1989
Movies
Title role and performer of songs "Exactly Like You" and "Once I Had a True Love," Belle Sommers, 1962
Sylvia Carter, Death Cruise, ABC, 1974
Mona Briarly, Murder on Flight 502, ABC, 1975
Dorothy Goodwin, Telethon, ABC, 1977
Dana Greenberg, How to Pick Up Girls, ABC, 1978
Marion Carmody, Born Beautiful, NBC, 1982
The Fall of the House of Usher, NBC, 1982
Laura Lee Webster, She Was Marked for Murder (also known as Deadly Vows and Marked for Murder), NBC, 1988
Vivien Langford, Addicted to His Love (also known as Sisterhood), ABC, 1988

Mrs. Thetford (some sources cite Emily Stepford), The Haunting of Sarah Hardy, USA Network, 1989
Myra Gilbert, My Brother's Wife (also known as Just Good Friends and Middle Ages), ABC, 1989
Carol Bernard, Lightning Field (also known as The Lightning Incident), USA Network, 1991
Cleo Storrs, Lady against the Odds (also known as Dol Bonner and Hand in the Glove), NBC, 1992
Barbara Fox, Perry Mason: The Case of the Skin-Deep Scandal (alsoknown as Perry Mason: The Case of the Unhappy Birthday), NBC, 1993
Janet, Leave of Absence, NBC, 1994
Murial, In the Blink of an Eye, 1996
For Hope, ABC, 1997
Television Work
Movies
Executive producer (with others) and creator, Leave of Absence, NBC, 1994
Television Appearances
Specials
The Maurice Chevalier Show, NBC, 1956
Spring Holiday, CBS, 1956
The Rosalind Russell Show, NBC, 1959
The Bob Hope Show, NBC, 1960
The Jack Benny Hour, CBS, 1960
Host (with others), Just Polly and Me, CBS, 1960
Yves Montand on Broadway, NBC, 1962
A Special Hour with Dinah Shore, NBC, 1964
Danny Thomas: America, I Love You, NBC, 1968
Host, The Polly Bergen Special, syndicated, 1969
Host (with others), Not for Women Only, syndicated, 1972
Li'l Abner in Dogpatch Today, NBC, 1978
Clairee Belcher, Steel Magnolias, CBS, 1990
Ruby Bee Hanks, Arly Hanks Mysteries, CBS, 1994
Episodic
"Autumn in New York," Schlitz Playhouse of the Stars, CBS, 1952
"The Haunted Heart," Schlitz Playhouse of the Stars, CBS, 1952
"Falling Star," The Elgin TV Hour, ABC, 1954
"Fatal in My Fashion," Studio One, CBS, 1954
"Rendezvous in Paris," Appointment with Adventure, CBS, 1955
"San Francisco Fracas," The Elgin Hour, ABC, 1955
"Foundation," Star Stage, NBC, 1956
"Letter from the Queen," General Electric Theatre, CBS, 1956
"Spring Holiday," Arthur Godfrey and His Friends, CBS, 1956
Helen Morgan, "The Helen Morgan Story," Playhouse 90, CBS, 1957
"The Best House in the Valley," Lux Playhouse, NBC, 1958
"The Great Gold Mountain," The United States Steel Hour, CBS, 1960
Crystal Coe, "You Can't Trust a Man," Alfred Hitchcock Presents, NBC, 1961
Kitty Albright, "The Kitty Albright Story," Wagon Train, NBC, 1961
"The Dark Side of the Mirror," Dr. Kildare, NBC, 1963
"Tissue of Hate," The Dick Powell Show, NBC, 1963
Just Polly and Me, CBS, 1964
"The Loving Cup," Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theater, NBC, 1965
The Andy Williams Show (two episodes), NBC, 1965
The Andy Williams Show, NBC, 1966
Suzy Hunter, "An Echo of Theresa" (also known as "Anatomy of Terror" and"Thriller: An Echo of Theresa"), Thriller, ABC, 1973
Dina Carroll-Winer, "The Adventure of the Tyrant of Tin Pan Alley," Ellery Queen, NBC, 1976
"The Understudy/Married Singles/Lost and Found," Love Boat, ABC, 1977
"The Spoonmaker Diamond," Love Boat, ABC, 1982
"Lady of the House," Fantasy Island, ABC, 1984
Dr. Jocelyn Laird, "School for Scandal," Murder, She Wrote, CBS, 1985
Hotel, ABC, 1985
"Joey's Mother-in-Law," My Two Dads, NBC, 1988
"Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star," Crazy about the Movies, Cinemax, 1991
"Who Killed the Starlet?" Burke's Law, CBS, 1994
Stella, "Deconstructing Harry," Touched by an Angel, CBS, 1998
Also appeared in episodes of The Bell Telephone Hour, NBC; TheDean Martin Show, NBC; The Dinah Shore Show, NBC; The Ed Sullivan Show, CBS; The Mike Douglas Show, syndicated; The Perry ComoShow, CBS; The Red Skelton Show, CBS; The Steve Allen Show, NBC; and The Tonight Show, NBC.
Pilots
The Guy Mitchell Show, CBS, 1957
Jo Burns, The Million Dollar Face, NBC, 1981
Mrs. Vance, Velvet, ABC, 1984
Other Television Appearances
Sandy Gilman, The Surrogate, 1995
RECORDINGS
Albums
Polly Bergen, Jubilee, 1951
Little Girl Blue, Kem, 1951
Bergen Sings Morgan, Columbia, 1957
The Party's Over, Columbia, 1958
Polly Bergen Sings the Hit Songs from Do Re Mi and Annie Get Your Gun, Columbia, 1958
(With Bill Bergen) Polly and Her Pop, Columbia, c. 1958
All Alone by the Telephone, Columbia, 1959
My Heart Sings, Columbia, 1959
Pop Hit Party, Volume III, Columbia, 1959
Polly Bergen's Four Seasons of Love, Columbia, 1960
Country Girl, Harmony, c. 1960
Act One, Sing Two, Phillips, 1963
WRITINGS
Teleplays
Movies
Story, Leave of Absence, NBC, 1994
Nonfiction
The Polly Bergen Book of Beauty, Fashion, and Charm, Prentice-Hall(Englewood Cliffs, NJ), 1962
Polly's Principles: Polly Bergen Tells You How You Can Feel and Look as Young As She Does, Peter H. Wyden (New York City), 1974
(With Kathrin Perutz) I'd Love To, but What'll I Wear?, Wyden Books (New York City), 1977

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