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// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Jane Connell a good connector? Yes, she's a great con-nell.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jane Connell
Connell as Hepzibah with Cesar Romero in Bewitched, 1970
Born
Jane Sperry Bennett

(1925-10-27)October 27, 1925
Berkeley, California, U.S.
DiedSeptember 22, 2013(2013-09-22) (aged 87)
Englewood, New Jersey, U.S.
OccupationsActress, singer
Spouse
​
(m. 1948)​
Children2

Jane Sperry Connell (pronounced con-NELL, née Bennett; October 27, 1925 – September 22, 2013)[1] was an American actress and singer.

Connell is best known for originating the role of Agnes Gooch in the 1966 stage musical and 1974 film musical versions of Auntie Mame.

Early years

[edit]

Connell was born in Berkeley, California,[1] to Louis Wesley and Mary (née Sperry) Bennett.[2] She majored in drama at the University of California, Berkeley where she met her future husband.[3]

Career

[edit]

Connell began her career with her husband Gordon, entertaining in San Francisco night clubs such as The Purple Onion and the Hungry I. Eventually the couple moved to New York City, where Connell made her Off-Broadway debut in the 1955 revival of The Threepenny Opera, a long-running hit at the Theatre de Lys. In the London production of Once Upon a Mattress, Connell starred as Winifred, the role that Carol Burnett had originated in New York.[4] Her Broadway debut came in the role of Mrs. Peachum in Threepenny Opera (1955).[1]

Connell's most prominent success came in 1966 when she was cast as Agnes Gooch in the original Broadway production of Jerry Herman's Mame. She recreated the role in the 1974 screen adaptation after Lucille Ball, the film's star, became dissatisfied with Madeline Kahn, who originally had been signed to play Gooch.[5]

Only four-foot-eleven, Connell was described as a master of the large comic gesture in The Oxford Companion to American Theatre, which described her as "a tiny woman with a giant, squeaking voice".[6]

Connell was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in Me and My Girl (1986).[7] Additional Broadway credits include New Faces of 1956 (1956); Drat! The Cat! (1965); Dear World (1969), once again supporting Angela Lansbury; the short-lived 1983 revival of Mame, in which Lansbury reprised her 1966 lead role; Lend Me a Tenor (1989); Crazy for You (1992); and Moon Over Buffalo (1995), starring Carol Burnett; The Full Monty (2000), succeeding Kathleen Freeman, who died during her run in the show, and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (2001).[1]

Jane and Gordon Connell enjoyed extensive theatre careers. They appeared together on Broadway in Lysistrata (November 1972), starring Melina Mercouri in the title role. She appeared in New York City Center Encores! production of Call Me Madam (February 1995), and the Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall concert presentation of Noël Coward's Sail Away (November 1999).

Jane Connell's film roles included Ladybug Ladybug (1963), Trilogy (1969), Kotch (1971), Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976), House Calls (1978), Rabbit Test (1978), Robot in the Family (1994) and Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde (1995).[8] Her decades of television work included six appearances on Bewitched, where she variously played Mother Goose, Martha Washington, Queen Hepzibah and, in a memorable turn as Queen Victoria, often uttered the phrase "We are not amused." She also appeared on Green Acres, All in the Family, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Love, American Style, M*A*S*H, Maude, Good Times, Law & Order and many more.[9][10]

Connell portrayed Jane in the comedy series Stanley (1956).[11]: 1009  She was a regular on the children's series Mr. Mayor (1964)[11]: 701  and the situation comedy The Dumplings.[11]: 292  From 1991 to 1994, she had the recurring role of social worker Roberta Domedian on the sitcom Big Brother Jake.[11]

Family

[edit]

She married Gordon Connell, an actor and musician, in 1948. They remained married until her death in 2013. The couple had two daughters.[12]

Death

[edit]

Jane Connell died on September 22, 2013, aged 87, at the Lillian Booth Actors Home of the Actors Fund in Englewood, New Jersey from undisclosed causes.[13] She was survived by her husband (who died in 2016) and two daughters, Melissa and Maggie.[12]

Filmography

[edit]

Television

[edit]
YearTitleRoleNotes
1956–1957StanleyJane/Mary/Ruth9 episodes
1960–1961Play of the WeekBaby Doll Dalls2 episodes
1963The Patty Duke ShowMrs. CoglanEpisode: The Conquering Hero
1967–1972BewitchedMartha/Hepzibah/Mother Goose6 episodes
1970The Mary Tyler Moore ShowKaren NorrisEpisode: Divorce Isn't Everything
1971That GirlLauraEpisode: Chef's Night Out
1971Green AcresWoman/Clara Burton3 episodes
1972Love, American StyleRita Baker/Sadie2 episodes
1974–1976ABC Afterschool SpecialsAunt Peggy/Duenna2 episodes
1976The DumplingsBridget McKenna10 episodes
1976Mary Hartman, Mary HartmanNurse4 episodes
1976MaudeSallyEpisode: The Game Show
1976All's FairMotherEpisode: Happy Anniversary: Part 1
1977All In The FamilySybil GooleyEpisode: Edith's 50th Birthday: Part 1
1978Good TimesMrs. FlickerEpisode: Write On, Thelma
1978C.P.O. SharkeyMrs. HollandEpisode: Captain's Right Hand Man
1979VisionsVinnyEpisode: Ladies in Waiting
1980M*A*S*HRed Cross Worker Betty HalpernEpisode: Old Soldiers
1985Tales from the DarksideGrandmaEpisode: Grandma's Last Wish
1985Another WorldPeg2 episodes
1998Law & OrderMrs. HodgeEpisode: Burden
1999Great PerformancesMotherEpisode: Crazy For You

Stage

[edit]
YearTitleRoleNotes
1956New Faces of 1956Edna/Miss Hat/Old LadyEthel Barrymore Theatre, Broadway
1959Pieces of EightEuphrosyne/Portia/SimperingJulian Monk Theatre, Off-Broadway
1960Once Upon a MattressWinnifredAdelphi Theatre, West End
1962FortunaChristinaMaidman Playhouse, Off-Broadway
1962 The Golden AppleLovey MarsYork Playhouse, Off-Broadway
1965Drat! The Cat!Matilda Van GuilderMartin Beck Theatre, Broadway
1966MameAgnes GoochWinter Garden Theatre, Broadway
1969Dear WorldGabrielle, the Madwoman of MontmartreMark Hellinger Theatre, Broadway
1972LysistrataGammaBrooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway
1983MameAgnes GoochGershwin Theatre, Broadway
1985Oh, Boy!Aunt Penelope BuddCarnegie Hall
1986Me and My GirlMariaMarquis Theatre, Broadway
1989Lend Me a TenorJuliaRoyale Theatre, Broadway
1992Crazy For YouMotherShubert Theatre, Broadway
1995Call Me MadamGrand Duchess SophieNew York City Center, Off-Broadway
1995Moon Over BuffaloEthelMartin Beck Theatre, Broadway
1999Sail AwayMrs. SweeneyCarnegie Hall
2000The Student PrinceGrand Duchess AnastasiaPaper Mill Playhouse
2001The Adventures of Tom SawyerWidow DouglasMinskoff Theatre, Broadway
2001The Full MontyJeanette Burmeister (Replacement)Eugene O'Neill Theatre, Broadway

Awards and nominations

[edit]
Year Organization Category Work Result Ref.
1987 Tony Awards Best Featured Actress in a Musical Me and My Girl Nominated [14]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 3 4 "Jane Connell". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on 19 April 2019. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  2. ↑ 1847-Current results for Jane Bennet © 2006-2021 Ancestry. Retrieved January 14, 2021
  3. ↑ Lewis, Emory (January 19, 1975). "The petite clown is a big success". The Record. New Jersey, Hackensack. p. B-17. Retrieved 19 April 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Barnes, Mike (2013-09-24). "Broadway Star Jane Connell Dies at 87". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-06-22. For a London production of Once Upon a Mattress in 1960, Connell starred as the wacky Princess Winifred, the role that brought Burnett stardom on Broadway.
  5. ↑ Michael Karol (2004), Lucy A to Z: The Lucille Ball Encyclopedia, iUniverse, ISBN 978-0-595-29761-0
  6. ↑ Jane Connell obituary in playbill.com Archived 2014-02-23 at the Wayback Machine; accessed December 11, 2013.
  7. ↑ Albrecht, Ernest (May 31, 1987). "Nomination surprises Jane Connell, who'd like to go home with 'Tony'". The Central New Jersey Home News. New Jersey, New Brunswick. p. G 5. Retrieved 19 April 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Barnew, Mike (2013-09-24). "Broadway Star Jane Connell Dies at 87". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2020-04-06. She starred in director Frank Perry's Cold War drama Ladybug Ladybug (1963) and also appeared in such films as Kotch (1971), Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood, House Calls (1978), the Joan Rivers-scripted and directed Rabbit Test (1978) and Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde (1995).
  9. ↑ JANE CONNELL Masterworks Broadway. Sony Music Entertainment 2021. Retrieved January 14, 2021
  10. ↑ Jane Connell, Agnes Gooch of ‘Mame,’ Is Dead at 87 John Schwartz. New York Times. September 25, 2012. Retrieved January 14, 2021
  11. 1 2 3 4 Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 99. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
  12. 1 2 Jane Connell obituary, New York Times, September 26, 2013; accessed December 11, 2013.
  13. ↑ Notice of death of Jane Connell, broadwayworld.com, September 23, 2013.
  14. ↑ "The Tony Award Nominations". www.tonyawards.com. Retrieved 2025-10-15.
[edit]
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