Alexandra Hay
Alexandra Hay (July 24, 1947 – October 11, 1993) was an American actress of the 1960s and 1970s best known for her roles in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Skidoo, and Model Shop.
Alexandra Hay | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Alexandra Lynn Hay July 24, 1947 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Died | October 11, 1993 (aged 46) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Years active | 1967–1978 |
| Known for | Her performances in the films Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Skidoo, and Model Shop |
Early life and modeling
Born Alexandra Lynn Hay, she was a native of Los Angeles and attended Arroyo High School in El Monte, California.
In the early 1960s, Hay booked modeling jobs through her agent William Adrian. At 15, she was featured as the "American Beauty" for the May–June 1963 issue of DIG magazine.
Her mother died on August 25, 1963, when Hay had recently turned 16. In 1964, she moved to Europe. In an interview, Hay described her time in Europe: "I modeled in London to earn a living, and I had a ball. That was in 1964 when London was exploding – all the excitement about the Beatles and The Beat – I nearly blew my mind."
Mainstream career
On October 29, 1966, the Los Angeles Times reported "Columbia's New Talent Program has developed another young actress, Alexandra Hay, who has been signed to a long-term exclusive contract by the studio."[1]
Hay's first credited role was in an episode of The Monkees entitled "Monkee Mother" (episode 27, original airdate March 20, 1967). Her career continued with small roles in the 1967 movies Guess Who's Coming to Dinner and The Ambushers.[2] In the former, she portrayed a carhop who takes an ice cream order from Spencer Tracy’s character.[3]
The Beard arrests
Hay played the role of Jean Harlow in Michael McClure's controversial play The Beard. She was arrested on 14 nights for lewd conduct and later acquitted by the California Supreme Court on the basis that the First Amendment places strict limitations on the application of criminal laws to live theatrical performances.[4][5]
Later career
Hay was chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association to be Miss Golden Globe for the 1968 Golden Globe Awards ceremony,[6] which was held at the Ambassador Hotel's Cocoanut Grove on February 12, 1968.[7]
Hay's feature film credits include How Sweet It Is! (1968), Skidoo (1968), Model Shop (1969),[8] The Greatest Mother of 'em All (1969), The Forests Are Nearly All Gone Now (1971; shelved), Fun and Games (1971) (released in the U.S. as 1000 Convicts and a Woman),[9] The Love Machine (1971),[10] How to Seduce a Woman (1974), How Come Nobody's on Our Side? (1974), That Girl from Boston (1975; shelved), Short Letter to the Long Goodbye (1978), and The One Man Jury (1978).
Hay had television roles in episodes of CBS Playhouse, Mission: Impossible, Love, American Style, Dan August, Thriller, Kojak, The Manhunter, The Streets of San Francisco, and Police Story. She also appeared in the television movies The F.B.I Story: The FBI Versus Alvin Karpis, Public Enemy Number One and The Screaming Woman.
Hay was photographed by Mario Casilli for a February 1974 Playboy magazine pictorial entitled "Alexandra the Great."[11]
Death
Hay died on October 11, 1993, at age 46 of arteriosclerotic heart disease. She was cremated by The Alpha Society and her ashes were scattered at sea off Marina del Rey, California on October 19, 1993.[12]
Film and television credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | The Monkees | Clarisse | S1:E27, "Monkee Mother" | |
| 1967 | Guess Who's Coming to Dinner | Carhop | ||
| 1967 | The Ambushers | Quintana's Secretary | Uncredited | |
| 1967 | Star Spangled Salesman | Blonde Girl | Uncredited | |
| 1968 | How Sweet It Is! | Gloria | ||
| 1968 | Skidoo | Darlene Banks | ||
| 1969 | Model Shop | Gloria | ||
| 1969 | CBS Playhouse | Gayle | episode: Shadow Game (CBS Playhouse) | |
| 1969 | Mission: Impossible | Lynn | episode: The Code | |
| 1969 | The Greatest Mother of 'em All | Tricia Murdock | Alexandra Hay's first leading role. This is a completed and self-contained 30-minute short film that Robert Aldrich made to both showcase Hay's talent and to raise money for a feature-length version of the story. A feature version was never made. The short film - while preserved - is presently unreleased. | |
| 1970 | Love, American Style | Erica | segment: Love and Mr. Nice Guy | |
| 1970 | Dan August | Eadie Parker | episode: Invitation to Murder | |
| 1971 | The Love Machine | Tina St. Claire | ||
| 1971 | 1000 Convicts and a Woman | Angela Thorne | Leading role. Original title: "Fun and Games" | |
| 1971 | The Forests Are Nearly All Gone Now | June Michels | Leading role. During post-production, the film was shelved by writer/director Clyde Ware for personal reasons. Nearly 20 years later, Ware incorporated roughly half of the "Forests" footage into his film "Another Time, Another Place" (1989). | |
| 1972 | The Screaming Woman | Evie Carson | TV movie | |
| 1973 | Thriller | Tessa Nelson | episode: A Place to Die. Leading role. | |
| 1974 | How to Seduce a Woman | Nell Brinkman | Premiered at the 1973 Atlanta International Film Festival. This is an anthology film composed of five stories, with Hay being the female lead of her segment. | |
| 1974 | Kojak | Elena Rozelle | episode: Down a Long and Lonely River | |
| 1974 | The Manhunter | Terri Jordan | episode: The Man Who Thought He Was Dillinger | |
| 1974 | How Come Nobody's on Our Side? | Brigitte | Filmed in 1971 | |
| 1974 | The F.B.I. Story: The FBI Versus Alvin Karpis, Public Enemy Number One | Vicky Clinton | TV movie | |
| 1974 | The Streets of San Francisco | Lori | episode: For Good or Evil | |
| 1975 | That Girl from Boston | Willa Starch | Alexandra Hay's final leading role. This film, a comedy based on a popular novel by Robert H. Rimmer, was shelved either during or after post-production. It is presently considered to be a lost film. | |
| 1975 | Police Story | Sharon | episode: The Cutting Edge | |
| 1978 | Short Letter to the Long Goodbye | Claire Madison | Broadcast on West German television - not distributed in the United States. | |
| 1978 | The One Man Jury | Tessie | Final role. A pivotal scene of Hay's was deleted and the "Dead on Arrival" re-release cut of the film deleted another scene. | |
| 1989 | Another Time, Another Place | June Michels | A 1989 film that repurposes roughly 50% of Alexandra Hay's performance from the shelved 1971 feature film "The Forests Are Nearly All Gone Now." Though completed, "Another Time, Another Place" ran into distribution problems and was only released as an extremely limited VHS in 1992. |
References
- Martin, Betty (October 29, 1966). "Movie Call Sheet". Los Angeles Times. p. 37. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- Pitts, Michael R. (2010). Columbia Pictures Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Films, 1928–1982. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-7864-4447-2.
- Crowther, Bosley (December 12, 1967). "Screen: 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner' Arrives". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- "Play Ruled Exempt From Lewdness Law". Los Angeles Times. January 31, 1970. p. 8. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
- Supreme Court, California. "Barrows v. Municipal Court (Jan. 30, 1970)". Justia.com. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
- https://www.goldenglobes.com/ambassador-missmr-golden-globe
- https://www.goldenglobes.com/articles/1968-drama-heat-night
- Canby, Vincent (February 12, 1969). "Screen: 'Model Shop' Looks Out on Los Angeles". The New York Times. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
- Thompson, Howard (August 18, 1972). "The Screen: 'Boxcar Bertha' Tops Local Double Bill". The New York Times. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
- Jarlett, Franklin (1990). Robert Ryan: A Biography and Critical Filmography. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 260. ISBN 0-7864-0476-0.
- Lisanti, Tom (2008). Glamour Girls of Sixties Hollywood: Seventy-Five Profiles. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-7864-3172-4.
- Wilson, Scott (2016). Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d Ed. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 326. ISBN 978-0-7864-7992-4.