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Lynda Day George
American actress From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Lynda Louise Day George (born Lynda Louise Day; December 11, 1944) is an American television and film actress whose career spanned three decades from the 1960s to the 1980s. She was a cast member on Mission: Impossible (1971–1973). She was also the wife of actor Christopher George.
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Life and career
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Day George was born in San Marcos, Texas. Originally known as Lynda Day, she began her career in the 1960s with the Eileen Ford modeling agency working as a top model in print and TV commercials, and then on Broadway starring in The Devils opposite Jason Robards and Anne Bancroft.[2] Bancroft acted as a mentor to Day, who described working on the play as formative to her acting.[3] She auditioned for the film Bye Bye Birdie but was not cast.[3] She then moved to Los Angeles and began a long television career with guest roles on many series of the 1960s, including Route 66, Flipper, T.H.E. Cat, Here Come the Brides, The Green Hornet, Mannix, The Fugitive, The Invaders, It Takes a Thief, The Virginian, Good Morning World, Lancer and Bonanza. She starred in the first of the two Universal/NBC TV-pilot films based around psychiatrist/supernatural investigator Dr. David Sorrell (played by Louis Jourdan), Fear No Evil in 1969.[3] She had her first major role as Amelia Cole in a short-lived 1970–1971 television series, The Silent Force, and later starred in the television pilot for Cannon in 1971. That same year, she was cast as Casey in the critically acclaimed series Mission: Impossible, garnering a Golden Globe nomination in 1972 and an Emmy Award nomination in 1973. During the show's last season, she missed ten episodes because of her maternity leave and was temporarily replaced by Barbara Anderson.[3]
She first met actor Christopher George while they were both models at Eileen Ford.[4] They starred together in the 1966 independent film The Gentle Rain, Day's first role in a theatrical film, by which time she was married to her first husband.[3] While working together again in the 1970 John Wayne film Chisum, Day and Christopher George became romantically involved and were married on May 15, 1970; Day divorced her first husband earlier that year.[3]
Thereafter, she became Lynda Day George and co-starred in multiple television films with her husband over the next 10 years, including The House on Greenapple Road (1970), Mayday at 40,000 Feet! (1976), and Cruise Into Terror (1978). They also worked together in episodes of The F.B.I. (1970), Mission: Impossible (1971), McCloud (1975), The Love Boat (1977), and Vega$ (1978). They guest-starred in television's Wonder Woman in 1976, with Lynda playing villain Fausta Grables, the Nazi Wonder Woman.[5][6] The many co-star roles came about because she and her husband had the same agent, who was aware that they enjoyed working with one another.[3]
She continued her television work throughout the 1970s with guest roles on television series The Immortal, which starred husband Christopher; Police Story; Kung Fu; Marcus Welby, M.D.; and Barnaby Jones. She appeared with her husband on an episode of Celebrity Bowling in 1975. She played supporting roles in Rich Man, Poor Man; Roots; and Once an Eagle. In 1977, she appeared on the game shows Match Game '77 and Tattletales, the latter with her husband Christopher.
Her movie career is noted for several horror cult films in which she co-starred with her husband Christopher, including Day of the Animals (1977), Pieces (1982), and Mortuary (1983). She also co-starred with John Saxon in the 1980 horror film Beyond Evil.
Christopher George died of a heart attack on November 28, 1983, at the age of 52.[3] She only worked sporadically after that, in guest roles on Fantasy Island (appearing several times on the series, playing a different character each time); Murder, She Wrote; Hardcastle and McCormick; and Blacke's Magic. She was also a regular guest on various religious television programs. In one of her final performances, Lynda reprised the role of Casey (now given the full name Lisa Casey) on an episode of the revived Mission: Impossible television series in 1989.[3]
In 2021, George announced that she was ready to return to acting.[7] As of 2023, however, no new roles have been announced.[3]
Marriages
She was first married to Joseph Pantano from 1963 to 1970, with one son, Nicky. She left Pantano to marry Christopher George.[8] She was married to him from May 15, 1970, until his death on November 28, 1983, and they had one daughter, Krisinda Casey.[3] They filed suit to have Nicky Pantano legally declared as Christopher's natural son.[3] In 1990, Lynda George married actor and producer Doug Cronin, who died of cancer on December 4, 2010; they resided in Los Angeles and Gardiner, Washington.[9][10][11]
Memoir
On January 17, 2020, during an interview with entertainment correspondent Ed Robertson of TV Confidential, George announced that she was collaborating with a biographer on a memoir centered on her acting career. The working title is Lynda Day George: A Hollywood Memoir.[citation needed] Her biographer co-author died in 2021, but in 2023 George said she is still resolved that the book will eventually be published, and that her agent is working on finding another co-author and a publisher.[3]
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Filmography
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Awards and nominations
References
External links
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