Cara Williams obit

Cara Williams, Star of ‘The Defiant Ones’ and ‘Pete and Gladys,’ Dies at 96

 

She was not on the list.

Cara Williams, one of the last remaining actresses of Hollywood’s Golden Age and an Oscar nominee for her performance in 1958’s “The Defiant Ones,” died on Thursday. She was 96 years old.

Williams’ death was confirmed to Variety by her daughter Justine Jagoda and her great-nephew Richard Potter.

“Not only was she a sparkling actress with impeccable comedic timing, she was also funny, over-the-top, warm-hearted and loving,” Jagoda told Variety in a statement. “She could make anyone laugh and smile if they had a bad day. She was everything that you could wish for in a mother and more. It’s a sad loss to lose a woman from this incredible era.”

Born as Bernice Kamiat in Brooklyn, N.Y. on June 29, 1925, Williams began working as an actress when she was a child. After her parents divorced, she relocated to Hollywood with her mother and began to attend the Hollywood Professional School, giving voice performances in cartoon shorts. At age 16, Williams was signed by 20th Century-Fox and began appearing in small, often unbilled parts in films such as “Wide Open Town,” “Happy Land” and “In the Meantime, Darling.”

Following a turn in a stage production of “Born Yesterday,” Williams career ignited in the late 1940s and ’50s. The actress earned big supporting roles in “Boomerang!,” “The Girl Next Door” and “The Helen Morgan Story.” She garnered an Academy Award nomination in the category of best supporting actress for her performance as a widowed mother in Stanley Kramer’s “The Defiant Ones,” acting opposite Sidney Poitier and Tony Curtis. She later took on roles in comedies “Never Steal Anything Small” and “The Man From the Diners’ Club.”

Williams also worked in television, earning an Emmy nomination for her lead performance as Gladys in CBS’ “Pete and Gladys,” the network’s spin-off of its 1950’s sitcom “December Bride.” A running joke of “December Bride” involved a supporting character played by Harry Morgan complaining about his dizzy wife, Gladys. Williams stepped into that unseen role for the spin-off series. Williams also later starred in her own series, “The Cara Williams Show,” alongside Frank Aletter. By the 1980’s, Williams had stepped away from acting.

Williams married Alan Gray in 1945. The two had a daughter before divorcing after two years. In 1952, Williams wed actor John Drew Barrymore, son of John Barrymore, and the two produced actor John Blythe Barrymore before divorcing in 1959. Williams later wed Los Angeles real estate figure Asher Dann in 1964. The two remained married until Dann’s death in 2018 at the age of 83.

 

Actress (55 credits)

 1982 In Security (TV Movie)

Doris Gleen

 1978 The One Man Jury

Nancy

 1977 The White Buffalo

Cassie Ollinger

 1977 Visions (TV Series)

Anna III

- The Prison Game (1977) ... Anna III

 1976 Medical Center (TV Series)

Sheila Ruskin

- The Happy State of Depression (1976) ... Sheila Ruskin

 1976 The Ashes of Mrs. Reasoner (TV Movie)

Sylvia Reasoner

 1974 Rhoda (TV Series)

Mae

- Guess What I Got You for the Holidays (1974) ... Mae

- I'm a Little Late, Folks (1974) ... Mae

 1971 Doctors' Wives

Maggie Gray

 1964-1965 The Cara Williams Show (TV Series)

Cara Bridges / Wilton

- Paradise Freezes Over (1965) ... Cara Bridges / Wilton

- Paradise Lost and Found (1965) ... Cara Bridges / Wilton

- Cara's Private War Against Poverty (1965) ... Cara Bridges / Wilton

- What Television Show Does Your Dog Watch? (1965) ... Cara Bridges / Wilton

- A Pawn Ticket for a Ticker (1965) ... Cara Bridges / Wilton

 1964 Valentine's Day (TV Series)

Susie Peters

- Teahouse of the Bankrupt Moon (1964) ... Susie Peters

 1963 The Man from the Diners' Club

Sugar Pye

 1961-1962 The Red Skelton Hour (TV Series)

Raggedy Ann / Clara Appleby

- Freddie and the Yuletide Doll (Restaging) (1962) ... Raggedy Ann

- Freddie and the Yuletide Doll (1961) ... Raggedy Ann

- Appleby's Remote (1961) ... Clara Appleby

 1962 Jackie Gleason: American Scene Magazine (TV Series)

Guest / Sketches

- Episode #1.5 (1962) ... Guest / Sketches

 1960-1962 Pete and Gladys (TV Series)

Gladys Porter

- Continental Dinner (1962) ... Gladys Porter

- The Expectant Gardener (1962) ... Gladys Porter

- The Arrival (1962) ... Gladys Porter

- The Case of the Gossipy Maid (1962) ... Gladys Porter

- Step on Me (1962) ... Gladys Porter

 1960 Zane Grey Theatre (TV Series)

Irene West

- Seed of Evil (1960) ... Irene West

 1956-1960 Alfred Hitchcock Presents (TV Series)

Marie Jensen / Mona Carstairs / Irene Rankin / ...

- The Cure (1960) ... Marie Jensen

- Last Request (1957) ... Mona Carstairs

- De Mortuis (1956) ... Irene Rankin

- Decoy (1956) ... Mona Cameron

 1960 Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse (TV Series)

Midge Rospond

- Meeting at Appalachia (1960) ... Midge Rospond

 1959 Naked City (TV Series)

Lois Heller

- A Wood of Thorne (1959) ... Lois Heller

 1959 Never Steal Anything Small

Winnipeg Simmons

 1958 The Defiant Ones

Billy's Mother

 1957 Date with the Angels (TV Series)

Diane

- Diane (1957) ... Diane

 1957 The Helen Morgan Story

Dolly Evans

 1957 Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theatre (TV Series)

Dorothy

- Harbor Patrol (1957) ... Dorothy

 1956 Lux Video Theatre (TV Series)

Paula

- The Glass Web (1956) ... Paula

 1956 The Joseph Cotten Show: On Trial (TV Series)

- We Who Love Her (1956)

 1956 Meet Me in Las Vegas

Kelly Donavan

 1955 Matinee Theatre (TV Series)

Anne Lawson

- Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1955) ... Anne Lawson

 1954 The Great Diamond Robbery

Maggie Drumman

 1953 We Go to Monte Carlo

Marinette

 1953 The Girl Next Door

Rosie Green

 1952 Steve Randall (TV Series)

- The Perfect Alibi (1952)

 1952 Broadway Television Theatre (TV Series)

Aggie Lynch

- Within the Law (1952) ... Aggie Lynch

 1951 Armstrong Circle Theatre (TV Series)

- The Lost and Found (1951)

 1951 Robert Montgomery Presents (TV Series)

- Quicksand (1951)

 1950 Suspense (TV Series)

Nellie / Myra Wilson / Babe / ...

- The Mallet (1950) ... Nellie

- A Pocketful of Murder (1950) ... Myra Wilson

- I'm No Hero (1950) ... Babe

- 1000 To One (1950) ... Betty Marshall

 1950 The Billy Rose Show (TV Series)

- Drink to Me Only with Thine Ice (1950)

 1950 Starlight Theatre (TV Series)

- The Great Nonentity (1950)

- The Afternoon of a Faun (1950)

 1950 The Web (TV Series)

- The Twelfth Juror (1950)

 1950 The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre (TV Series)

- The Sun (1950)

 1950 The Philco Television Playhouse (TV Series)

- The End Is Known (1950)

 1950 The Clock (TV Series)

- The Hypnotist (1950)

 1949 Theatre of Romance (TV Series)

- The Afternoon of a Faun (1949)

 1949 Knock on Any Door

Nelly Watkins (uncredited)

 1948 The Saxon Charm

Dolly Humber

 1948 Sitting Pretty

Secretary (uncredited)

 1947 Boomerang!

Irene Nelson

 1945 The Spider

Wanda Vann, neighbor

 1945 Don Juan Quilligan

Fifth Ave. Florist Salesgirl

 1944 Something for the Boys

Calhoun's Secretary (uncredited)

 1944 Laura

Secretary in Laura's Office (uncredited)

 1944 In the Meantime, Darling

Ruby Mae Sayre

 1944 Sweet and Low-Down

Blonde (uncredited)

 1943 Happy Land

Gretchen Barry

 1942 Girls' Town

Ethel (as Bernice Kay)

 1941 Wide Open Town

Joan Stuart (as Bernice Kay)

Soundtrack (6 credits)

 1965 The Cara Williams Show (TV Series) (performer - 1 episode)

- Will Cara's Success Spoil Frank Bridges? (1965) ... (performer: "They Say It's Wonderful", "You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want To Do It)")

 1963 The Man from the Diners' Club (performer: "There Goes That Song Again" (1944) - uncredited)

 1959 Never Steal Anything Small (performer: "I'm Sorry, I Want a Ferrari")

 1957 The Helen Morgan Story (performer: "Sweet Georgia Brown" - uncredited)

 1956 Meet Me in Las Vegas (performer: "I Refuse to Rock and Roll")

 1953 The Girl Next Door (performer: "If I Love You a Mountain" - uncredited)

Self (10 credits)

 1975 Rhyme and Reason (TV Series)

Self

- Episode #1.71 (1975) ... Self

 1970 The Game Game (TV Series)

Self

- Episode #1.30 (1970) ... Self

 1964 The Celebrity Game (TV Series)

Self

- Episode dated 13 September 1964 (1964) ... Self

 1963 The Linkletter Show (TV Series)

Self

- Episode dated 25 March 1963 (1963) ... Self

 1963 March of Dimes Presents: Once Upon a Dime (TV Movie)

Self

 1962 Password (TV Series)

Self

- Cara Williams vs. Alan Young (1962) ... Self

 1962 The 19th Annual Golden Globe Awards (TV Special)

Self - Presenter

 1962 Henry Fonda and the Family (TV Special)

Self

 1959 The 31st Annual Academy Awards (TV Special)

Self - Nominee

 1954 The Cassini Show (TV Series)

Self - Actress / Mrs. John Barrymore

- Episode #1.4 (1954) ... Self - Actress / Mrs. John Barrymore

Archive footage (1 credit)

 2004 Hit Celebrity TV Commercials (TV Movie)

Gladys Porter - for Carnation Instant Non Fat Dry Milk