| Kate Fleming | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | October 6, 1965 |
| Died | December 14, 2006 (aged 41) Seattle, Washington |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | audio book narrator, producer |
| Spouse | Charlene Strong |
Kathryn Ann "Kate" Fleming (October 6 1965 - December 14 2006)[1] was an American award-winning audio book narrator and producer. She was the owner and executive producer at Cedar House Audio, an audio production company specializing in spoken word that is located in Seattle, Washington, United States. Fleming died when a flash flood trapped her inside her Madison Valley basement studio during the Hanukkah Eve Wind Storm of 2006. She is survived by her partner of nine years, Charlene Strong.[2][3][4][5][6][7] Fleming was born in Arlington, Virginia. She grew up in the Washington, D.C. area and graduated from the College of William and Mary in 1987 (Bachelor of Arts, Religion). Fleming studied at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky and was an alumna of the 1987/1988 Apprentice Company.[8] After a stint as a professional actor, she branched into audio books in the mid-1990s. Fleming recorded well over 200 titles, many under the stage name Anna Fields.[9] In 2004, Fleming won the Audie Award for Unabridged Fiction for her performance of Ruth Ozeki's All Over Creation. In a July 1 2005 interview with the William & Mary Alumni Association, Fleming noted several of her favorite narration projects:[10]
- Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
- The Falls by Joyce Carol Oates
- Baker Towers by Jennifer Haigh
- And, “Any title” by Louise Erdrich
Death
Fleming died on December 14, 2006 in a freak accident. A storm quickly flooded her basement and she became trapped in a room with no windows, she was unable to open the door and escape. Fleming's partner, Charlene, made heroic attempts to remove the door to the basement, but was unable to as she was nearly killed. Kate drowned before firefighters were able to rescue her.[3]
References
- ^ Rourke, Mary. "Kate Fleming, 41; Narrator was a star in the audio book world", The Los Angeles Times, 2006-12-24. Retrieved on 2007-01-26.
- ^ Nalder, Eric; Vanessa Ho. "Flash flood killed Madison Valley woman", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2006-12-15. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ a b Green, Sara Jean; Sharon Pian Chan, Nancy Bartley, and Sanjay Bhatt. "Audiobook star killed in basement flood", The Seattle Times, 2006-12-16. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ Rowe, Claudia. "Kate Fleming, 1965-2006: Actress a star in the world of audio books", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2006-12-18. Retrieved on 2006-12-18.
- ^ Nalder, Eric. "Halted drainpipe project continues to soak neighborhood", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2006-12-16. Retrieved on 2006-12-18.
- ^ Nalder, Eric; Claudia Rowe. "Fleming's neighbors long complained about drains", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2006-12-19. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
- ^ Nalder, Eric. "High volume of water, trouble calls fed tragedy", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2006-12-22. Retrieved on 2006-12-22.
- ^ Apprentice/Intern Alumni Directory. Actors Theatre of Louisville. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ Holley, Joe; Jane Horwitz. "Actress, Voice-Over Artist Kate Fleming, 41; Drowned in Studio During Seattle Flooding", The Washington Post, 2006-12-20. Retrieved on 2006-12-22.
- ^ "Alumni Q&A: Kate Fleming '87", The William & Mary Alumni Association, 2005-07-01. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
External links
- Cedar House Audio
- AudioFile magazine Golden Voices profile
- An obituary on the lesbian site AfterEllen.com
- Book World Loses Narrator Kate Fleming December 19, 2006 on National Public Radio; Two minutes and 52 seconds. (Windows Media Player, RealPlayer).
- Add your voice to the chorus calling for equality and dignity, Guest column by Charlene Strong, Seattle Times, August, 9, 2007
- In tragedy's wake, an unlikely activist is born, Seattle Gay News, November 16, 2007
- "for my wife" movie trailer"
