Ruta Lee

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Ruta Lee

Born Ruta Mary Kilmonis
May 30, 1936 (1936-05-30) (age 72)
Montreal, Canada
Other name(s) Rita Kilmonis
Ruta Kilmonis
Years active 1953-present
Spouse(s) Webster B. Lowe (February 14, 1976-present)
Official website

Ruta Lee (born May 30, 1936) is a Canadian actress and dancer who appeared as one of the brides in the film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. She is also best known for a being a "regular" on a number of game shows, including Hollywood Squares, What's My Line?, and as Alex Trebek's co-host on High Rollers.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Early life

Lee was born Ruta Mary Kilmonis in Montreal, Canada, the only child of Lithuanian immigrants. In 1948 her family moved to Los Angeles where she attended high school and began studying acting and appearing in high school plays.[1]

[edit] Career

Upon graduation, she landed an agent and appeared in an episode of Roy Rogers, followed by a spot on the series Adventures of Superman in 1953. That same year, she landed a role in the Academy Award-nominated musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.[1]After Seven Brides, Lee appeared in several films including Anything Goes (1956), Funny Face (1957), and Marjorie Morningstar (1958) with Natalie Wood. In 1962 she appeared in the comedy/western film Sergeants 3 opposite Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Peter Lawford.

In addition to films, Lee has appeared on numerous television shows such as Hawaiian Eye, The Twilight Zone, Gunsmoke, Maverick, The Flying Nun, The Wild Wild West, The Andy Griffith Show, and Gunsmoke. In the late 1960s, Lee appeared on The Lucy Show starring Lucille Ball, playing a substitute secretary to Mr. Mooney (played by Gale Gordon) when Lucy Carmichael is supposed to go on vacation. On another episode, when Lucy becomes a temporary secretary to Milton Berle for the weekend, Lee appears as herself. In a memorable scene from this episode, Lucy opens the door when the doorbell rings, gets a shock when she sees the famous Ruta Lee, and slams the door in her face. Later, Berle gets a salad dumped on his head when Lucy thinks he is having an affair with Ruta Lee.

During this period, Lee also began appearing regularly on game shows such as Hollywood Squares and Match Game.

[edit] Later career

During the early 1970s, Lee continued to appear in both films and television roles including stints on Love, American Style, The Mod Squad, and a role in the 1972 film The Doomsday Machine. By 1974, Lee grew frustrated by the lack of roles she was landing and took a job co-hosting the daytime game show High Rollers.[1]She remained with the show until 1976.

During the 1980s, she lent her voice to episodes of The Smurfs, in addition to roles on CHiPs, The Love Boat, Charles in Charge. In 1989, she played the role of Sally Powers in the tv movie Sweet Bird of Youth with Elizabeth Taylor. In the 1990s, Lee continued to appear in episodic television, most notably in the series Roseanne. Lee appeared as the girlfriend of Roseanne Connor's (Roseanne Barr) mother, Bev Harris (Estelle Parsons), who had disclosed that she was gay.[2]

In 2006, Lee received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to the television industry.[3]

In February 2008, Lee appeared as Clairee in a production of Steel Magnolias with Sally Struthers at the Casa Mañana Theatre in Fort Worth, Texas.[4]

[edit] Charity

In addition to acting, Lee is also known as a defender of human rights. In 1964, Lee called then Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev asking him to pardon her grandmother, Ludvise Kamandulis.[1]Lee's grandmother had been in an internment camp in Siberia since World War II.[4] The pardon was granted and Lee's grandmother was allowed out of the country to live with Lee in California.[1]

Lee has been involved with the charitable organization The Thalians for over fifty years.[1] In addition to raising money for troubled youth and mental health organizations, Lee, who is also a board chairperson, has co-produced the annual Ball of the Thalians with Debbie Reynolds for over fifty years.[5]

[edit] Personal life

In 1976, Lee married Texas restaurant executive Webster B. Lowe.[1] The couple divide their time between their homes in Hollywood, Palm Springs, Fort Worth, and Las Hadas, Mexico.[6]


[edit] Filmography

  • Hootenanny Hoot (1963)
  • Bullet for a Badman (1964)
  • The Doomsday Machine (1972)
  • Cracking Up (Voice, 1983)
  • Pterodactyl Woman from Beverly Hills (1994)
  • Funny Bones (1995)
  • Pretty When You Cry (2001)
  • Quiet Kill (2004)
  • Sadie and the Slot Machines (2006)
  • A Christmas Too Many (2007)
  • For Better or for Worse (2008)

[edit] Television

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g The Private Life & Times of Ruta Lee
  2. ^ Christine, Sparta. "Emergence from the closet", USA Today, 2003-03-11. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  3. ^ "Ruta Lee gets star on Hollywood Walk", USA Today, 2006-10-11. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  4. ^ a b Lowry, Mark. "Homecoming queen", Star-Telegram, 2008-02-08. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  5. ^ Going For the Gold...51st Anniversary Ball of the Thalians, October 7, 2006
  6. ^ Ruta Lee Official Biography

[edit] External links


Persondata
NAME Lee, Ruta
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kilmonis, Ruta Mary
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actress, dancer
DATE OF BIRTH May 30, 1936
PLACE OF BIRTH Montreal, Canada
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH
Languages