Diana Van der Vlis

Diana Van der Vlis (June 9, 1935 - October 22, 2001) was a Canadian-American stage, screen and television actress best known for her characters Dr. Nell Beaulac on the ABC soap opera Ryan's Hope and Kate Hathaway Prescott on the CBS soap opera Where the Heart Is. Two other roles on daytime dramas that she played were Sherry Rowan on Ryan's Hope and Susan Ames Carver on The Secret Storm, when she was a substitute for Judy Lewis in the role.

Van der Vlis studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) in London and acted in Canada before moving to New York City in 1956. She made her Broadway debut opposite Walter Pidgeon in the hit The Happiest Millionaire. Her subsequent Broadway productions include leading or featured roles in Comes a Day, A Mighty Man is He, A Shot in the Dark, On an Open Road and The Waltz of the Toreadors.

Diana appeared in the movies The Girl in Black Stockings (1957), X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes (1963), The Incident (1967), The Swimmer (1968) and Lovespell (1981). She also appeared in a 1967 TV film, Ghostbreakers.

Van der Vlis guest-starred on numerous primetime TV shows, including Kraft Theatre, Naked City, Tactic, U.S. Steel Hour, DuPont Show of the Month, The DuPont Show of the Week, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Great Ghost Tales, Brenner, Checkmate, East Side/West Side, Route 66, Dr. Kildare, Flipper, Mr. Broadway, The Defenders, 12 O'Clock High, The Invaders, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., T.H.E. Cat, The FBI, and The Fugitive.

She was a naturalized U.S. citizen and mother of actor Matthew Powers.

On October 22, 2001, she died in Montana due to a cardiac arrest caused by a pulmonary embolism, following a brief illness.

Partial filmography

• The Girl in Black Stockings (1957) - Louise Miles
• X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes (1963) - Dr. Diane Fairfax
• The Incident (1967) - Helen Wilks
• The Swimmer (1968) - Helen Westerhazy
• Lovespell (1981) - Alix

External links

• Diana Van der Vlis on IMDb
• Diana Van der Vlis at Find a Grave