Martha Hyer obit

Martha Hyer, Oscar-nominated actress, dies

She was not on the list.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Martha Hyer, an Oscar-nominated actress who starred alongside the likes of Frank Sinatra and Humphrey Bogart, and later gained notoriety for her extravagant lifestyle, has died.

Hyer passed away May 31 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Raymond Lucero of Rivera Funeral Home told The Associated Press. She was 89.

Born in Fort Worth, Texas, the easygoing actress began her movie career with a small role in the 1946 movie "The Locket," but she got her big break in the 1954 comedy "Sabrina," starring Bogart and Audrey Hepburn. In that movie, she played the fiancée of a character played by William Holden. Hyer would later write in her memoir that Bogart was helpful in scenes with her.

She reportedly once turned down a date request from a young Sen. John F. Kennedy and began acquiring more high-profile roles during the 1950s.

In 1951, Hyer married director C. Ray Stahl, who directed "The Scarlet Spear," which starred Hyer. The marriage ended in divorce three years later.

She was nominated for an Academy Award as best supporting actress for her role in the 1958 "Some Came Running," starring Sinatra, Dean Martin and Shirley MacLaine. The movie was based on a James Jones novel and brought her critical acclaim for her role as a schoolteacher being wooed by writer and war veteran, played by Sinatra. Hyer lost the Oscar to Wendy Hiller for her role in "Separate Tables."

After the Oscar nod, Hyer would star in a number of American and foreign films that garnered little attention. But she gain notice for her expensive taste thanks to a 1959 Life magazine photo feature highlighting her Pissarro painting and showing her getting a massage dressed only in a towel. By the 1980s, Hyer found herself millions of dollars in debt to loan sharks.

In 1966, she married film producer Hal Wallis, who took her to New Mexico for the first time during the filming of "Red Sky at Morning." Hyer remained married to him until his death in 1986 and moved to Santa Fe shortly after.

"This country casts a spell, and it never lets go," she would later write about New Mexico.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reported that in her later years Hyer became reclusive, preferring to paint and hike.

Selected filmography

    The Locket (1946) - Bridesmaid (uncredited)

    Born to Kill (1947) - Maid (uncredited)

    Thunder Mountain (1947) - Ellie Jorth

    The Woman on the Beach (1947) - Mrs. Barton (uncredited)

    The Judge Steps Out (1947) - Catherine Bailey Struthers III

    The Velvet Touch (1948) - Helen Adams

    Gun Smugglers (1948) - Judy Davis

    Rustlers (1949) - Ruth Abbott

    Roughshod (1949) - Marcia

    The Clay Pigeon (1949) - Miss Harwick - Wheeler's Receptionist

    Outcast of Black Mesa (1950) - Ruth Dorn

    Salt Lake Raiders (1950) - Helen Thornton

    The Lawless (1950) - Caroline Tyler

    Frisco Tornado (1950) - Jean Martin

    The Kangaroo Kid (1950) - Mary Corbett

    Oriental Evil (1951) - Cheryl Banning

    Wild Stallion (1952)- Caroline Cullen

    Geisha Girl (1952) - Peggy Burnes

    Yukon Gold (1952) - Marie Briand

    Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) - Janie Howe

    So Big (1953) - Paula Hempel

    Riders to the Stars (1954) - Dr. Jane Flynn

    The Scarlet Spear (1954) - Christine

    The Battle of Rogue River (1954) - Brett McClain

    Lucky Me (1954) - Lorraine Thayer

    Down Three Dark Streets (1954) - Connie Anderson

    Sabrina (1954) - Elizabeth Tyson

    Cry Vengeance (1954) - Peggy Harding

    Wyoming Renegades (1955) - Nancy Warren

    Francis in the Navy (1955) - Betsy Donevan

    Kiss of Fire (1955) - Felicia

    Paris Follies of 1956 (1955) - Ruth Harmon

    Red Sundown (1956) - Caroline Murphy

    Showdown at Abilene (1956) - Peggy Bigelow

    Kelly and Me (1957) - Lucy Castle

    Battle Hymn (1957) - Mary Hess

    Mister Cory (1957) - Abby Vollard

    The Delicate Delinquent (1957) - Martha Henshaw

    My Man Godfrey (1957) - Cornelia Bullock

    Paris Holiday (1958) - Ann McCall

    Once Upon a Horse... (1958) - Miss Amity Babb

    Houseboat (1958) - Carolyn Gibson

    Some Came Running (1958) - Gwen French

    The Big Fisherman (1959) - Herodias

    The Best of Everything (1959) - Barbara Lamont

    Ice Palace (1960) - Dorothy Wendt Kennedy

    Mistress of the World (2 films, 1960) - Karin Johansson

    Desire in the Dust (1960) - Melinda Marquand

    The Right Approach (1961) - Anne Perry

    The Last Time I Saw Archie (1961) - Peggy Kramer

    A Girl Named Tamiko (1962) - Fay Wilson

    The Man from the Diner's Club (1963) - Lucy

    Wives and Lovers (1963) - Lucinda Ford

    Pyro... The Thing Without a Face (1964) - Laura Blanco

    The Carpetbaggers (1964) - Jennie Denton

    First Men in the Moon (1964) - Kate / Kate Callender

    Bikini Beach (1964) - Vivien Clements

    Blood on the Arrow (1964) - Nancy Mailer

    The Sons of Katie Elder (1965) - Mary Gordon

    War, Italian Style (1965) - Lt. Inge Schultze

    The Chase (1966) - Mary Fuller

    The Night of the Grizzly (1966) - Angela Cole

    Cuernavaca en primavera (1966) - (segment "El nido de amor")

    Picture Mommy Dead (1966) - Francene Shelley

    The Happening (1967) - Monica

    The House of 1,000 Dolls (1967) - Rebecca

    Another's Wife (1967) - Ana María

    Some May Live (1967) - Kate Meredith

    Catch as Catch Can (1967) - Luisa Chiaramonte

    Once You Kiss a Stranger (1969) - Lee

    Crossplot (1969) - Jo Grinling

    The Day of the Wolves (1971) - Maggie Anderson