Kim Darby
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| Kim Darby | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 8, 1947 Los Angeles, California |
Kim Darby (born July 8, 1947) is an American actress.
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[edit] Biography
Darby was born Deborah Zerby in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of professional dancers Inga and Jon Zerby. Her father insisted on calling her "Derby" Zerby because he believed it was a great stagename.
[edit] Career
Darby began acting at age fifteen and has appeared in many films and television shows. Her first appearance was as a dancer in the 1963 film Bye Bye Birdie. Among her best known roles are True Grit (1969), Better Off Dead (1985), and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995). After starring in True Grit, film critics predicted that she was at the beginning of a long career as a great actress. In fact, she has made almost no films of note since. This has caused some critics to put her in the same category as Bo Derek (in 10) and Maria Schneider (in Last Tango in Paris), because all three actresses made spectacular splashes in their first films, but never acted in successful films again.
Her TV roles included an appearance in the 1960s hit TV series Ironside and a guest appearance in the first season of Star Trek as Miri in "Miri". She also appeared as Angel in the classic two-part Gunsmoke episode "Vengeance." Darby also appeared in the 1972 movie The People, which also starred William Shatner, reuniting them from their Star Trek appearance.
Darby also had the central role of Sally Farnham in the 1973 made-for-TV horror film Don't Be Afraid of the Dark. Kim Darby has made numerous guest appearances, including in such TV shows as Crazy Like a Fox, The Love Boat, Riptide, and Becker. In the late 1980s she began to teach acting in the Los Angeles area and has been an instructor in the Extension Program at the University of California since 1992. She continues to make guest appearances on television and to make occasional films.
[edit] Personal life
She has been married five times, three times to well-known people in Hollywood. Her first marriage was to actor James Stacy (1968-1969). They had one child. Her second marriage was to B-movie actor James Westmoreland (aka Rad Fulton) (February to March 1970). Her fourth marriage was the longest, and was to producer William (Bill) Tennant.
[edit] Partial filmography
- Bye Bye Birdie (1963)
- Ironside (1967), television pilot film for the series of the same name
- True Grit (1969)
- Generation (1969)
- The Strawberry Statement (1970)
- Norwood (1970)
- The Streets of San Francisco (1972), made-for-TV pilot for the TV series
- Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark (1973, TV)
- The One and Only (1978)
- Better Off Dead (1985)
- Teen Wolf Too (1987)
- Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)
- News Break (2000)
- Mockingbird Don't Sing (2001)
- You Are So Going to Hell (2004)
- Cold Ones (2006)
[edit] See also
- What's Up, Doc?, for Darby's odd connection with the film
[edit] External links
- Kim Darby at the Internet Movie Database
- Kim Darby article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki
- Home Page
- Feature by the Scriptwriters Network
