Anne Kimbell obit

 Stage and screen star Anne Kimbell Relph dies

She was not on the list.

A celebration of life will be held later this summer for Anne Kimbell Relph who over the past quarter century founded and developed the Westcliffe Center for the Performing Arts in Westcliffe. Her efforts placed the Wet Mountain Valley on the map as a small-town center for the performing arts. Ms. Relph died May 16, 2017. She was 84. She was born June 28, 1932 in Louisiana to Andrew and Kathryn (Collins) Banks. At the age of three, she and her family moved to Hollywood, Calif., and a year later, at the age of four, she began her career in radio with “The Children’s Radio Workshop” in Los Angeles. At the age of 12, she joined the Screen Actors Guild, and worked continuously in film, television, and on the stage. Most notably, she played Rosalind Russell’s daughter in “Roughly Speaking,” and John Garfield’s sister in “Growing Up.” As an adult, she starred in Roger Corman’s first film, “Monster from the Ocean Floor,” and “Girls at Sea” with Guy Rolfe. Both films were quite popular when shown over the years at The Jones Theater in Westcliffe. Ms. Relph’s real love was the stage, and she studied with Lee Strasberg in New York and starred on Broadway opposite Eddie Bracken in ‘The Seven Year Itch,” and in London in “Roar Like a Dove,” produced by Vivien Leigh. She also played opposite Marlon Brando in “Arms and the Man” in the eastern U.S. touring production. She first came to Colorado in the 1950s as leading lady at the famed Elitch Garden Theater in Denver, and at that time fell in love with the state. While on stage in London she met and married James F. Relph, a Foreign Service Officer. Together they lived in Switzerland, Germany, and in the African nations of Chad and Tunisia. She founded a school for women in the Republic of Chad, and developed cross-cultural programs for women in Tunisia. Ms. Relph loved traveling the world and was always open-minded about people from other cultures and religions. She had written several books about her life as a spouse of a Foreign Service Officer, After returning to California in the early 1980s, Ms. Relph served as an executive director of the University of Southern California’s Orange County Center. She founded the “Enterprising Woman” organization to provide education and support to women who were going into business for themselves. During that period, in 1992, she came to Colorado to buy a small horse ranch, and ended up purchasing the historic Jones Theater in Westcliffe which was going to be turned into a laundromat. Her goal was to preserve the theater for the Wet Mountain Valley, and she always considered Westcliffe to be her home, though she continued to return seasonally to Laguna Beach, Calif. Ms. Relph always enjoyed the friendly people who lived in Custer County, and was always gratified when people would be inspired by what they saw at the Jones Theater. She had a passion for keeping the arts alive in a small community, and especially loved seeing local kids pursue the arts. She was the founder of the Westcliffe Center for the Arts, and over the years served as its president, producer and artistic director up until the time of her death. She and her long-time partner, the late Tom Stagg, helped grow the WCPA and spearheaded the building of Studio 2 addition to the Jones Theater. She also was instrumental in developing the annual Shakespeare in the Park festival here. Ms. Relph held a bachelor of arts degree in English from the University of Virginia, and a master’s degree in women’s studies from George Washington University. She also spoke French and German. Ms. Relph is survived by a daughter, Christiane Kimbell Relph (and husband, Mark Maloney) of rural Westcliffe. Also surviving are a granddaughter, Kathryn Kimbell Potts, step granddaughters Cassidy Maloney and Hayley Maloney; and her beloved dachshund, Snoopy. A happy celebration of life will be held later this summer in Westcliffe. Those wishing may make memorial contributions to the Westcliffe Center for the Performing Arts at P.O. Box 790 in Westcliffe.

Actress

Girls at Sea (1958)

Girls at Sea

6.2

Mary Carlton

1958

 

BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950)

BBC Sunday-Night Theatre

7.8

TV Series

Ellen Mackay

1958

1 episode

 

Ronald Reagan in General Electric Theater (1953)

General Electric Theater

6.9

TV Series

Sally

Betty Pittfield

1955–1957

2 episodes

 

Frank McHugh and Marvin Miller in The Millionaire (1955)

The Millionaire

7.8

TV Series

Valerie Hunt

1956

1 episode

 

Crossroads (1955)

Crossroads

7.7

TV Series

Eva Jo Denson

1955–1956

2 episodes

 

General Electric Summer Originals

7.4

TV Series

Vivian Harding

1956

1 episode

 

Hugh Beaumont in Alias Mike Hercules (1956)

Alias Mike Hercules

8.0

TV Series

Vivian Harding

1956

1 episode

 

Bill Williams in The Adventures of Kit Carson (1951)

The Adventures of Kit Carson

6.8

TV Series

Jane wheeler

Mary Jordan

1954–1955

3 episodes

 

Fireside Theatre (1949)

Fireside Theatre

7.5

TV Series

1952–1954

2 episodes

 

Bob Mathias and Melba Mathias in The Bob Mathias Story (1954)

The Bob Mathias Story

5.8

Sally

1954

 

Public Defender (1954)

Public Defender

7.5

TV Series

Ellen

Ruth Booker

1954

2 episodes

 

Preston Foster in Cavalcade of America (1952)

Cavalcade of America

8.2

TV Series

1954

1 episode

 

Anne Kimbell and Stuart Wade in Monster from the Ocean Floor (1954)

Monster from the Ocean Floor

3.8

Julie Blair

1954

 

Omnibus (1952)

Omnibus

8.5

TV Series

(segment "The House")

1954

1 episode

 

Preston Foster in Waterfront (1954)

Waterfront

8.1

TV Series

Roberta March

1954

1 episode

 

Charles Farrell and Gale Storm in My Little Margie (1952)

My Little Margie

7.7

TV Series

Doris Baron (as Anne Kimball)

1954

1 episode

 

Lane Bradford, Anne Kimbell, Johnny Sheffield, and Kimbbo the Chimp in The Golden Idol (1954)

The Golden Idol

5.0

Karen Marsh

1954

 

Chevron Theatre (1952)

Chevron Theatre

6.1

TV Series

Harriet Akers

1952–1953

3 episodes

 

Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, and June Vincent in Clipped Wings (1953)

Clipped Wings

6.2

Allison

1953

 

Your Favorite Story (1953)

Your Favorite Story

7.7

TV Series

1953

2 episodes

 

Paul Cavanagh, House Peters Jr., Lynne Roberts, William Schallert, and James Warren in Port Sinister (1953)

Port Sinister

4.7

Nurse (as Anne Kimball)

1953

 

Duncan Renaldo in The Cisco Kid (1950)

The Cisco Kid

7.1

TV Series

Jennifer Kellin

Alice Fleming

1952–1953

2 episodes

 

Kent Taylor in Boston Blackie (1951)

Boston Blackie

7.6

TV Series

Anne Morgan

Jenny Capper

1952–1953

2 episodes

 

The Files of Jeffrey Jones (1952)

The Files of Jeffrey Jones

6.8

TV Series

Nadine Norris

1952

1 episode

 

Oliver Blake, Robert Easton, Dorothy Ford, Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Anne Kimbell, and O.Z. Whitehead in Feudin' Fools (1952)

Feudin' Fools

6.1

Ellie Mae Smith

1952

 

Lana Turner and Fernando Lamas in The Merry Widow (1952)

The Merry Widow

5.7

Girl at Maxim's (uncredited)

1952

 

Rod Cameron and Peggie Castle in Wagons West (1952)

Wagons West

6.1

Alice Lawrence

1952

 

Mark Stevens in Big Town (1950)

Big Town

7.6

TV Series

1952

1 episode

 

Andy Devine and Guy Madison in Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1951)

Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok

7.8

TV Series

Sally (as Ann Kimbell)

1952

1 episode

 

Rod Cameron and Jane Nigh in Fort Osage (1952)

Fort Osage

5.8

Annie Winfield (uncredited)

1952

 

Janet Leigh and Tony Martin in Two Tickets to Broadway (1951)

Two Tickets to Broadway

5.5

Western Union Girl (uncredited)

1951

 

Doris Day and Gordon MacRae in On Moonlight Bay (1951)

On Moonlight Bay

6.9

Daughter in Silent Movie (uncredited)

1951

 

Racket Squad (1950)

Racket Squad

7.6

TV Series

Jo Anne

1951

1 episode

 

I Was a Communist for the F.B.I. (1951)

I Was a Communist for the F.B.I.

6.1

Student (uncredited)

1951

 

Brian Donlevy, Ella Raines, and Forrest Tucker in Fighting Coast Guard (1951)

Fighting Coast Guard

6.4

Tony's Girlfriend (uncredited)

1951

 

Bette Davis and Robert Montgomery in June Bride (1948)

June Bride

6.8

Girl on Sleigh Ride (uncredited)

1948

 

Agnes Moorehead, Mickey Rooney, Gloria DeHaven, Walter Huston, Jackie 'Butch' Jenkins, Marilyn Maxwell, and Frank Morgan in Summer Holiday (1948)

Summer Holiday

5.8

Katherine (uncredited)

1948

 

Betty Grable, Dan Dailey, Mona Freeman, and Connie Marshall in Mother Wore Tights (1947)

Mother Wore Tights

6.5

Iris' Friend (uncredited)

1947