Darlene Conley
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| Darlene Conley | |
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| Born | July 18, 1934 Chicago, Illinois |
| Died | January 14, 2007 Los Angeles, California |
| Spouse(s) | Divorced |
| Notable roles | Sally Spectra on The Bold and the Beautiful and Rose DeVille on The Young and the Restless |
Darlene Conley (July 18, 1934 - January 14, 2007) was an American actress.
Conley's career spanned fifty years, but she was best known for her performances in daytime television, and in particular, for her portrayal of larger-than-life fashion industrialist Sally Spectra on The Bold and the Beautiful. Conley played the Emmy Award-nominated role from 1988 until her death.
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[edit] Biography and career
Conley, an Irish American, was born on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois.[1]
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Conley was employed with the travelling theater group the Chicago Uptown Circuit Players and Playwrights Company. She earned a bit part in the movie The Birds, which was followed by similar small roles in movies like Valley of the Dolls and Lady Sings the Blues.
[edit] Daytime television
Her performance as Rose DeVille on The Young and the Restless followed, with Conley playing many small roles on other soaps for most of the 1980s. An encore as Rose DeVille inspired William J. Bell to cast her as flamboyant fashion maven Sally Spectra on his newer serial. She earned two Outstanding Supporting Actress Daytime Emmy nominations.
She was friends with several actors who appeared on The Bold and the Beautiful, including Fabio, who has appeared on the show several times, usually under the guise of celebrating Sally's birthday. She was also friends with Phyllis Diller, who also appeared on the show as Sally's friend Gladys Pope.
[edit] Illness and death
Conley had been ill for several years due to a fall that broke several bones. She recovered from the fall and had returned to work (although she was usually seated during her scenes).
Reports surfaced in the media in the fall of 2006 that Conley had surgery and received treatment for stomach cancer. She died on January 14, 2007, three months after her diagnosis. In America, a tribute was shown at the end of the 26th January episode of The Bold & The Beautiful. John McCook gave a short tribute which was followed by a clip show of her memorable moments on the show. This tribute, although shown at the end of a different episode, aired in Australia on February 8.
The show's producers are deciding how to portray the fate of her character at the time of her death.[2][3]
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Times Staff and Wire Reports. "Darlene Conley, 72; actress in TV soaps, movies", Los Angeles Times, 2007-01-17. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.
- ^ "Actress Darlene Conley dies, aged 72", RTE, 16 January 2007. Retrieved on January 16, 2007. (in English)
- ^ Canadian Press. "Darlene Conley, longtime soap opera actress on 'Bold and the Beautiful,' dies", Regina Leader Post, January 16, 2007. Retrieved on January 16, 2007. (in English)
