Rita Gam (born Rita Eleanore MacKay; April 2, 1927 – March 22, 2016) was an American film and television actress and documentary filmmaker. She won the Silver Bear for Best Actress.
Background Gam was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Belle (née Fately), who was born in Romania, and Milton A. MacKay, who was born in France to parents from Romania. Her father died in New York in 1931 and her mother remarried. Gam took the surname of her stepfather, Benjamin J. Gam.
Career
Gam was a model before she ventured into acting. Her acting career began on Broadway and in television, after which she moved on to films. Her Broadway credits included There's a Girl in My Soup, The Insect Comedy, A Flag is Born, and A Temporary Island.
She appeared first in the 1952 film noir The Thief, which starred Ray Milland. In October 1952, she signed a long-term MGM contract. Another notable role was Herodias in 1961's King of Kings.
Gam was also an occasional panelist on the televised CBS game show What's My Line? during the 1950s and early 1960s.
She shared the Silver Bear for Best Actress award with Viveca Lindfors at the 1962 Berlin Film Festival, for their performances in Tad Danielewski's No Exit.
In 1963, Gam was a leading member of the Minnesota Theatre Company in the opening season of the Tyrone Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. Gam appeared in a few more American films before working in Europe. She returned to the U.S. to appear in small parts in films, including Klute in 1971, before taking up documentary filmmaking.
In 2003, she appeared in the rotating cast of the off-Broadway stage reading of Wit & Wisdom. In 2004, she appeared in one of a series of ads for the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Personal life and death Gam's first husband was director Sidney Lumet, whom she married in 1949. The marriage ended in divorce in 1955.
In 1956, Gam was a bridesmaid at the wedding of Grace Kelly to Prince Rainier in Monaco.LIFE Magazine, May 5, 1952, p. 144 Gam married publisher Thomas Guinzburg on March 23, 1956, in New York City; the marriage ended in divorce in 1963.Staff. "RITA GAM REMARRIED; Film Actress Is Wed Here to Thomas H. Guinzburg", The New York Times, March 24, 1956; accessed September 13, 2010.
Gam died on March 22, 2016, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, from respiratory failure.
Books Gam was the author of two books, Actress to Actress and Actors: A Celebration.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes1952The GirlNo dialog; MacGuffin1953SaadiaSaadia1954Night PeopleRicky Cates1954Sign of the PaganKubra1956Magic FireCosima Liszt1956MohawkOnida1958Sierra BaronFelicia Delmonte1959Wild Cats on the BeachRita Eldmont1959HannibalSylvia1961King of KingsHerodias1962No ExitEstelleAlso known as Sinners Go to Hell1971KluteTrina1971Shoot OutEmma1971Such Good FriendsDoria1974Helena Boardman1974Law and DisorderWoman in Cab1987DistortionsMildred Tyson1989MidnightHeidi1996Rowing ThroughIris Biglow1997MonacoShort, Voice, (final film role)
Television Year Title Role Notes1950Believe It or Not!"The Secret of Nefertiti"1951Lights OutGirl"The Pattern"1951Trapped"The Nobody"1951Somerset Maugham TV Theatre"Appearances and Reality"1951Danger"Marley's Ghost", "Inherit Murder"1951Lux Video TheatreLeah"A Child Is Born"1952Cameo Theatre"Dark of the Moon"1952Casey, Crime Photographer"Blackmail"1952TV film1954Anna"Nightmare in Algiers"1954Woman in Commercial"The Jam Session Show", "San Diego Naval Training Center Show"1955Ford TheatreMimi"Mimi"1955Kraft Television Theatre"Trucks Welcome"1956Front Row CenterAnna Deasy"Deadlock"1956Screen Directors PlayhouseLotti"Affair in Sumatra"1956Westinghouse Studio OneRain"The Laughter of Giants"1957Comedian"3.11"1958DuPont Show of the Month"The Bridge of San Luis Rey"1958Armchair TheatreElsie"Time of Your Life"1960Polly Chalmers"The Women of Hadley", "Revolt in Hadley"1964FestivalYelena"Uncle Vanya"1964Voyage to the Bottom of the SeaDetta"The Mist of Silence"1966Rosita"The Honeymooners: You're in the Picture"1966Family AffairLouise Marshall"Beware the Other Woman"1968Hidden FacesMimi JaffeTV series1973McMillan & WifePam Crane"The Devil You Say"1974MannixDr. Ernestine Waldo"Race Against Time: Parts 1 & 2"1975Matt Helm"Now I Lay Me Down to Die"1976Harry ONaomi Cline"Book of Changes"1977Love of LifeNita RayTV series1978Greatest Heroes of the BibleXantha"The Story of Noah: Parts 1 & 2"1979Cynthia Zakarian"Guilt"1981Tales of the UnexpectedLisa Brisson"Completely Foolproof"1983Romance TheatreMitzi"Love in the Present Tense: Parts 1-5"1983Tucker's WitchBeatrice"Formula for Revenge"1983Dora CoburnTV series
References
External links
Rita Gam at the University of Wisconsin's Actors Studio audio collection