Suzanne Pleshette Biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Suzanne Pleshette
OCCUPATION: Film Actress, Theater Actress, Television Actress
BIRTH DATE: January 31, 1937
DEATH DATE: January 19, 2008
EDUCATION: High School for the Performing Arts, New York, Syracuse University, Finch College
PLACE OF BIRTH: Brooklyn, New York
PLACE OF DEATH: Los Angeles, California

Best Known For

Suzanne Pleshette was an Emmy Award-nominated actress known for roles in films like The Geisha Boy and The Birds, as well as the television series The Bob Newhart Show.

Quiz

Think you know about Biography?

Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.

Play Now

Print Cite This

Suzanne Pleshette

APA Style

Suzanne Pleshette. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 07:39, May 18, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943.

Harvard Style

Suzanne Pleshette. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943 [Accessed 18 May 2013].

MLA Style

"Suzanne Pleshette." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 18 2013, 07:39 http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943.

MHRA Style

"Suzanne Pleshette," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943 [accessed May 18, 2013].

Chicago Style

"Suzanne Pleshette," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943 (accessed May 18, 2013).

CBE/CSE Style

Suzanne Pleshette [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 18] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943.

Bluebook Style

Suzanne Pleshette, http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943 (last visited May 18, 2013).

AMA Style

Suzanne Pleshette. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/suzanne-pleshette-265943. Accessed May 18, 2013.

Synopsis

Born on January 31, 1937, in Brooklyn, New York, Suzanne Pleshette made her film debut in Jerry Lewis's The Geisha Boy and later starred as a schoolteacher in The Birds. She forged a career on Broadway with productions like Compulsion and The Miracle Worker and went on to star on television's The Bob Newhart Show, for which she earned two Emmy Award nominations, as well as on Will & Grace. She died in Los Angeles,

California, on January 19, 2008.

Early Career

Suzanne Pleshette was born on January 31, 1937, in Brooklyn, New York. Her father, Eugene Pleshette, was a stage manager, network executive and manager of the Paramount Theater in Brooklyn during the big band era. Her mother, under the stage name "Geraldine Rivers," was an artist and dancer.

Pleshette began her acting career on the stage in the 1950s after attending New York's High School for the Performing Arts and Syracuse University. She then moved into film and TV roles, often getting parts because of her husky voice. In 1958, Pleshette appeared on Broadway with Maureen Stapleton and Eli Wallach in the play The Cold Wind and the Warm. She also made her film debut that year with Jerry Lewis in The Geisha Boy.

In 1961, she was nominated for an Emmy Award for her appearance as Julie Lawler on the TV show Dr. Kildare. Pleshette also appeared in numerous TV shows, including Have Gun Will Travel, Playhouse 90 and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

She also replaced Anne Bancroft in the role of Annie Sullivan in The Miracle Worker, opposite Patty Duke as Helen Keller in 1961. After receiving excellent reviews, she toured extensively in the role.

Film Breakthrough

Pleshette got a big break on film in 1963 when Alfred Hitchcock cast her in The Birds. The Golden Globes named her "Best Female Newcomer." She also performed in about two dozen other films, including Disney movies such as The Ugly Dachshund, Blackbeard's Ghost and The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin.

Pleshette was the producers' original choice for the role of Catwoman on the 1966 TV show Batman. When negotiations broke down, the part went to Julie Newmar.

Bob Newhart

But it was her role as Emily Hartley that brought her the most acclaim, including two Emmy nominations. Pleshette played a schoolteacher to Bob Newhart's psychologist character in The Bob Newhart Show. The situation comedy revolved around their careers and off-beat friends, as well as Bob's patients. The married couple was childless, a novelty at the time in television. The highly rated show ran from 1972 to '78.

Pleshette was also nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her role as Leona Helmsley in the TV-movie Leona Helmsley: Queen of Mean (1990). She also appeared on the sitcoms Will & Grace and 8 Simple Rules.

Personal Life

Pleshette was married three times. First up was actor Troy Donahue on January 4, 1964, her co-star in Rome Adventure (1962). They divorced only eight months later.