| Audrey Meadows | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Audrey Cotter |
| Born | February 8, 1922 Wuchang, China |
| Died | February 3 1996 (aged 73) Los Angeles, California |
| Spouse(s) | Robert F. "Bob" Six (1961-1986, his death) |
Audrey Meadows Cotter Six (February 8, 1922 – February 3,1996) was an Emmy Award-winning American actress best known for playing the deadpan housewife Alice Kramden on the 1950s American television comedy The Honeymooners.
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Biography
Early life
Audrey Meadows was born on February 8, 1922 in Wu-ch'ang (now Wuchang), China to Episcopal missionaries Rev. James Cotter and his wife, Ida. According to the Social Security Death Index[1], Audrey was born in 1922. Her sister, actress Jayne Meadows, long claimed to have been born in 1926, but was really born in 1920. Thus Audrey was long-regarded as the elder sister, when she was really the younger. The year of birth on Meadows' gravestone is inaccurate.
Career
Shortly after Audrey's birth, the family returned to their home in Sharon, Connecticut. After high school, Audrey moved to New York City and became a singer in the Broadway show Top Banana before becoming a regular on the Bob and Ray Show. She was then hired to play Alice on The Jackie Gleason Show after the original Alice (Pert Kelton) was blacklisted. Pert Kelton had originated the role of Alice when The Honeymooners was a skit on Gleason's variety show, but lost the role due to the blacklist, and her absence was explained away as due to her health. Audrey retained the role when The Honeymooners became a half-hour situation comedy on CBS. She then returned to play Alice after a long hiatus, when Gleason produced occasional Honeymooners specials in the 1970s. Meadows had auditioned for Gleason and was initially turned down for being too chic and pretty for the drab Alice. Meadows later submitted a photo of herself as plain and decidedly un-chic, which won her the role. She and Gleason remained close friends for the rest of their lives. After the show's run, Meadows played in a number of films, worked with Dean Martin on his variety hour, and then returned to situation comedy in the 1980s playing the mother-in-law on Too Close for Comfort. She had a notable appearance in an episode of The Simpsons, "Old Money", where she did the voice of Bea Simmons, Grampa Simpsons' girlfriend; her character died in that episode.
Marriage
On August 24, 1961, Meadows married Robert F. "Bob" Six, President of Continental Airlines, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Their marriage was happy, but childless. Audrey served as Director of the First National Bank of Denver for eleven years, the first woman to hold this position, and was also an Advisory Director of Continental Airlines. Bob died in 1986.
Death
In 1995, Audrey, a life-long chain smoker, was diagnosed with lung cancer, but declined treatment. She was apparently estranged from her sister and her sister's family and had not been on speaking terms with them for at least a year. Jayne Meadows was unaware of her Audrey's illness and first learned her sister was hospitalized when she was on a Hollywood soundstage appearing on an episode of the short-lived sitcom High Society. She rushed to the hospital but Audrey was already in a coma. Audrey died on February 3, 1996, just five days before her 74th birthday. She is interred in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California, although she was not known to be a Roman Catholic. In October 1994, Meadows published her memoirs, entitled, Love, Alice.
External links
- Audrey Meadows at the Internet Movie Database
- Audrey Meadows - Alice biographical article from a Honeymooners fan site.
- Audrey Meadows.com - official site for the actress. Features biography, photo gallery, and more.
- Audrey Meadows' Gravesite
- Audrey Meadows at TV.com
