Mary Frances Crosby (born September 14, 1959)[1] is an American actress, the only daughter of actor/singer Bing Crosby and his second wife Kathryn Grant. She played Kristin Shepard in the television series Dallas (1979–1981, 1991).[2]
Mary Crosby | |
|---|---|
 Crosby (left) and her family in a Christmas special, 1974 | |
| Born | Mary Frances Crosby September 14, 1959 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Spouses | Eb Lottimer
(m. 1978; div. 1989)Mark Brodka
(m. 1998) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Bing Crosby Kathryn Crosby |
| Relatives | Harry Crosby III (brother) Nathaniel Crosby (brother) Gary Crosby (half-brother) Phillip Crosby (half-brother) Dennis Crosby (half-brother) Lindsay Crosby (half-brother) Larry Crosby (uncle) Bob Crosby (uncle) Chris Crosby (cousin) Denise Crosby (niece) |
Personal life
editMary Frances Crosby was born on September 14, 1959, in Los Angeles, California, the second of three children of singer and actor Bing Crosby and actress Kathryn Grant. She graduated from high school at 15,[2] after which she entered the University of Texas at Austin, where she was a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority, but she never graduated. She is fluent in Spanish. She was married to Eb Lottimer from 1978 to 1989 and, since 1998, has been married to Mark Brodka, with whom she has two children.[citation needed]
Career
editCrosby made her television debut appearing in an episode of The Danny Thomas Hour in 1967. She appeared in the 1970 musical film Goldilocks with her family and performed with Betty White in the 1978 TV movie With This Ring.[3] She had supporting role in another television film A Guide for the Married Woman (1978) starring Cybill Shepherd and starred in the 1978 top-rated miniseries Pearl.[4] She guest-starred on Starsky & Hutch and CHiPs and had a series regular role in the 1979 comedy series Brothers and Sisters.[5]
Dallas
editCrosby played Kristin Shepard (Sue Ellen Ewing's scheming sister) on the prime time soap opera Dallas from 1979 to 1981, and a guest appearance in 1991. Her character is perhaps best remembered for her part in the cliffhanger ending of the 1979–1980 season of Dallas, titled "A House Divided", which was resolved in the fourth episode of the following season, "Who Done It".[6] In that highly watched episode, J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) was shot by an unknown assailant. Viewers had to wait all summer (and most of the fall due to a Hollywood actors' strike) to learn whether J.R. would survive, and which of his many enemies was responsible. In the summer of 1980, the advertising catchphrase, "Who shot J.R.?", was widely publicized.
Ultimately, Kristin Shepard was revealed to have been the person who pulled the trigger in the classic episode, which aired on November 21, 1980. It was one of the highest-rated episodes of a TV show ever aired.[7][8] Her character, Kristin Shepard, later made an appearance in the Dallas spin-off series Knots Landing in 1980, before a brief return to Dallas in 1981. Once again the focus of a highly rated cliffhanger, it was revealed in the season opening episode (October 9, 1981) that it was Kristin's body floating in the Southfork Ranch swimming pool. She returned for the final episode of Dallas in 1991, playing the same character in a vision experienced by J.R.
Later appearances
editAfter her breakthrough with Dallas, Crosby played the leading role in the television remake of Midnight Lace. It premiered on February 9, 1981 on NBC.[9] She went to England for starring in the ITV comedy-drama series, Dick Turpin opposite Richard O'Sullivan. Crosby also starred in the made-for-television movies Golden Gate (1981), The Big Easy (1982) and Confessions of a Married Man (1982). In 1983, she made her big screen debut in the action thriller film Last Plane Out distributed by New World Pictures.[10] The following year, she played a female leading role in the science fiction comedy film The Ice Pirates by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film was compared to Star Wars and received mostly negative reviews from critics.[11] She later made guest appearances on The Fall Guy, Glitter, Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense, Hotel and The Love Boat.
In 1985, Crosby starred in the ABC miniseries Hollywood Wives alongside Candice Bergen, Joanna Cassidy and Angie Dickinson based on the 1983 novel of the same name by Jackie Collins and produced by Aaron Spelling. The following year, Crosby played Isabel Truscott Hazard in another ABC miniseries North and South, Book II. Her other television films credits include Final Jeopardy (1985) and Stagecoach (1986). In 1987, she starred as Adele Strauss in the German biographical film Johann Strauss - Der König ohne Krone about Johann Strauss II.[12] She later appeared in films Tapeheads (1988), Deadly Innocents (1989), Body Chemistry (1990), Eating (1990), The Berlin Conspiracy (1992) and The Night Caller (1998). On television, she guest-starred in In the Heat of the Night, Freddy's Nightmares, Murder, She Wrote, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Dream On, Beverly Hills, 90210 and Orleans reuning with Dallas' Larry Hagman.
In 2004, Crosby appeared in the Dallas Reunion: The Return to Southfork, a television special celebrating of Dallas.[13] In 2005, she played Bennet C. Riley's wife in the Western film The Legend of Zorro. She later appeared in films Queen of the Lot (2010), Just 45 Minutes from Broadway (2012) and The M Word (2014).
Filmography
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Role | Episode/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | The Danny Thomas Hour | Joan | The Demon Under The Bed |
| 1978 | Starsky & Hutch | Leslie Slate | Strange Justice |
| 1978 | Pearl | Patricia North | TV miniseries |
| 1979 | CHiPs | Chris | Episode: Pressure Point |
| 1979 | Brothers and Sisters | Suzy Cooper | 12 episodes |
| 1979-1981 | Dallas | Kristin Shepard | 28 episodes |
| 1980 | Knots Landing | Kristin Shepard | Kristin |
| 1981 | Dick Turpin | Jane Harding | 5 episodes |
| 1982 / 1984 | The Fall Guy | Coleen Wilcox Sue Jackson Kim Donnelley |
Ready, Aim... Die! Strange Bedfellows Undersea Odyssey |
| 1982 / 1986 | The Love Boat | Megan Lewis Cora/Coral, the Mermaid Helen Elaine |
(1982) Pride of the Pacific/The Viking's Son/Separate Vacations/The Experiment/Getting to Know You: Part 1 and Part 2 (1984) Side by Side/A Fish Out of Water/Rub Me Tender (1986) Spain Cruise: The Matadors/Mrs. Jameson Comes Out/Love's Labors Found/Marry Me, Marry Me: Part 1 and Part 2 |
| 1983 | Automan | Ellen Fowler | Staying Alive While Running A High Flashdance Fever |
| 1984 | Cover Up | Merilee Taylor | Pilot |
| 1984 | Finder of Lost Loves | Blythe Stewart | Yesterday's Child As Mary Frances Crosby |
| 1984 | Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense | Ann Preston | Child's Play TV show known in the United States as Fox Mystery Theater |
| 1984 | Glitter | Karinova | On Your Toes |
| 1984 /1985 | Hotel | Maggie Blackwood Barbara Medford Natalie Rogers |
The Wedding Distortions Saving Grace |
| 1985 | Hollywood Wives | Karen Lancaster | TV miniseries |
| 1986 | North and South, Book II | Isabel Hazard | TV miniseries |
| 1987 | The New Adventures of Beans Baxter | Professor Vankleef | Beans' First Adventure |
| 1989 | In the Heat of the Night | J.D. Sinclaire | Sister, Sister |
| 1989/1990 | Freddy's Nightmares | Greta Nordhoff-Roscoe Greta Moss |
Lucky Stiff Easy Come, Easy Go |
| 1990 | Shades of L.A. | Jessica Pope | Where There's No Will, There's a Weigh-In |
| 1991 | Paradise | as K. C. Cavanaugh | The Search for K. C. Cavanaugh |
| 1991 / 1992 | Murder, She Wrote | Laura Corman Mariah Osborn |
Tainted Lady The Witch's Curse |
| 1993 | Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | Monique | Neverending Battle |
| 1994 | Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | Natima Lang | "Profit and Loss" |
| 1995 | Platypus Man | Beth Garland | 9 1/2 Days |
| 1995 | Pointman | Dr. Elizabeth Andreas | Ultimate Showdown |
| 1995 | Burke's Law | Heather Bonham | Who Killed the Tennis Ace? |
| 1995 | Dream On | Beverly | Flight of the Pedalbee |
| 1995-1996 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Claudia Van Eyck | Speechless Violated You Said It's Your Birthday Part 1 |
| 1997 | Mike Hammer, Private Eye | Sheryl Weathersby | A Penny Saved |
| 2004 | Dallas Reunion: The Return to Southfork | as herself/Kristin Shepard | TV special/Reunion |
Film
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Goldilocks and the Three Bears | Goldilocks | 30 minute animated TV film originally shown on NBC |
| 1978 | With This Ring | Lisa Harris | TV movie originally shown on CBS |
| A Guide for the Married Woman | Eloise | TV movie | |
| 1981 | Midnight Lace | Cathy Preston | |
| Golden Gate | Natalie Kingsley | ||
| 1983 | Confessions of a Married Man | Ellen | ABC TV movie shown on January 31, 1983 |
| Last Plane Out | Elizabeth Rush | ||
| 1984 | The Ice Pirates | Princess Karina | |
| 1985 | Final Jeopardy | Susan Campbell | NBC TV movie shown on December 8, 1985 |
| 1986 | Crazy Dan | Bonnie | TV movie shown on July 19, 1986 |
| Stagecoach | Mrs. Lucy Mallory | TV movie shown on May 18, 1986 | |
| 1987 | Johann Strauss: The King Without a Crown | Adele | |
| 1988 | Tapeheads | Samantha Gregory | |
| 1989 | Deadly Innocents | Beth/Cathy | |
| 1990 | Body Chemistry | Marlee Redding | |
| Quicker Than the Eye | Mary Preston | ||
| Corporate Affairs | Jessica Pierce | ||
| Eating | Kate | ||
| 1991 | Crack Me Up | Stacey | |
| 1992 | The Berlin Conspiracy | Ursula Schneider | |
| 1993 | Distant Cousins | Marcie | |
| 1994 | Men Who Hate Women & the Women Who Love Them | Jennifer | |
| 1997 | Cupid | Dana Rhodes | |
| 1998 | The Night Caller | Nikki Rogers | |
| 2000 | Sharing the Secret | Irene | |
| 2005 | The Legend of Zorro | Governor's Wife | |
| 2010 | Queen of the Lot | Frances Lambert Sapir | |
| 2012 | Just 45 Minutes from Broadway | Sharon Cooper | |
| 2013 | The M Word | Rita Stephenson |
References
edit- ^ "Mary Crosby | Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos". AllMovie.
- ^ a b Mary Crosby profile, yahoo.com; accessed March 13, 2015. Archived March 14, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "With This Ring - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com.
- ^ Brown, Les (November 22, 1978). "80 Million Saw TV 'Pearl'" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present ISBN 0-345-45542-8
- ^ O'Connor, John J. (1980-11-22). "Quotation of the Day". The New York Times. p. 2.47.
No, J.R.'s beautiful wife did not do it. She was too obvious a suspect. The real culprit was her conniving sister, Kristin, the only other character in Dallas capable of equalling J.R. at viciousness. At 10:54 last night, Kristin played by Mary, stepped forward to admit the dirty deed.
- ^ Reilly, Sue (December 8, 1980). "She Shot J.R.!". People.
- ^ Profile, UltimateDallas.com; accessed March 13, 2015. Archived January 30, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Midnight Lace (1981) - Ivan Nagy | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie" – via www.allmovie.com.
- ^ "Last Plane Out (1983) - David Nelson | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie" – via www.allmovie.com.
- ^ "The Ice Pirates - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. March 16, 1984.
- ^ online, CINEMA. "Johann Strauß – Der König ohne Krone (1987) - Film | cinema.de". www.cinema.de.
- ^ "Listings | TheFutonCritic.com - The Web's Best Television Resource". www.thefutoncritic.com.
External links
edit- Mary Crosby at IMDb
- Mary Crosby at the TCM Movie Database
- Mary Crosby at AllMovie
