Linda Lawson, Actress in ‘Night Tide,’ Dies at 86

Her credits also included such series as 'Bonanza,' 'Don't Call Me Charlie' and 'That's Life.'

She was not on the list.

Linda Lawson, a singer and actress perhaps best known for her turn as a mysterious mermaid in the 1961 Dennis Hopper film Night Tide, has died. She was 86.

Lawson died May 18 of natural causes at the Motion Picture and Television Retirement Home in Woodland Hills, her family announced.

Born Linda Spaziani in 1936 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to Italian immigrant parents, she was the youngest of three children. After attending high school in California, she moved with her sister Diana to Las Vegas, where she would would sing and dance in the lounge of The Sands Hotel and open for stars including Frank Sinatra and Lena Horne.

After moving to Los Angeles some years later, Lawson worked as a studio messenger for MGM before beginning to act onscreen. Her early credits in the late 1950s and ’60s included episodes of Tales of the Texas Rangers, Border Patrol, Maverick and Mr. Lucky. She also had recurring roles in Adventures in Paradise and The Aquanauts.

Lawson married Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid producer John Foreman in 1958. The pair had two children and were together until his death in 1992.

In 1960, she released the album Introducing Linda Lawson. As a singer, she was also featured on a number of compilation albums including Music for a Bachelor’s Den.

In 1961, Lawson starred in the horror-drama Night Tide from writer-director Curtis Harrington as Maura.

Subsequent roles included the series Don’t Call Me Charlie, Ben Casey, Bonanza and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and the films Let’s Kill Uncle (1966) and Sunset Strip (2000).

In 2000, Lawson starred as Mrs. Paganini opposite Ellen Burstyn and Kevin Dillon on the CBS dramedy That’s Life from creator Diane Ruggiero-Wright.

Her final credits included Without a Trace and ER.

Survived include her daughters, Julie and Amanda. Donations be made in their mother’s name to an animal rescue charity such as the ASPCA.

Music

In 1960, Lawson recorded Introducing Linda Lawson. The music was conducted and arranged by Marty Paich.

Tracks:

Are You With Me (H. Levin, D. Robinson)

Where Flamingos Fly (J. Kennedy, M. Spoliansky)

But Beautiful (J. Burke, J. VanHeusen)

Me And My Shadow (B. Rose, A. Jolson, D. Dreyer)

You Don't Know What Love Is (Raye, DePaul)

Easy To Love (Cole Porter)

Meaning of the Blues (Bobby Troup, Leah Worth)

Mood Indigo (D. Ellington, I. Mills, A. Bigard)

Like Young (P. F. Webster, A. Previn)

Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo (H. Deutsch, B. Kaper)

Make The Man Love Me (D. Fields, A. Schwartz)

Up Pops Love (R. Faith, C. Kehner)

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes

1960 The Threat Gerri

1961 Night Tide Mora

1964 Apache Rifles Dawn Gillis

1966 Let's Kill Uncle Justine

1970 Sometimes a Great Notion Jan Stamper

2005 The Tenants Anna

Television

Year Title Role Notes

1958 Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Kathy Dean "Wedding Mourning"

1958 Tales of the Texas Rangers Dolores "Edge of Danger"

1958 Peter Gunn Lynn Martel "Lynn's Blues"

1958 Man with a Camera Carmen "Six Faces of Satan"

1959 Maverick Lily "Duel at Sundown"

1959 Five Fingers Princess Tucomcari "The Moment of Truth"

1959 Border Patrol Anna "Hare and Hounds"

1959 The Millionaire Marcia Littleton "Millionaire Sergeant Matthew Brogan"

1959-61 Adventures in Paradise Renee Recurring role

1960 77 Sunset Strip Jeanne "Ten Cents a Death"

1960 Colt .45 Barbara "Impasse"

1960 Tombstone Territory Jeannie Magraw "The Bride"

1960 Mr. Lucky Angie "The Parolee"

1960 Overland Trail Ruby "The High Bridge"

1960 M Squad Delores Faye "Man with the Ice"

1960 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Georgia "I Can Take Care of Myself"

1960 Richard Diamond, Private Detective Nola Carter "And Whose Little Baby Are You?"

1960 Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond Joyce Chapman "Moment of Hate"

1960 Wagon Train Princess Lia of the Aztecs "Princess of a Lost Tribe"

1960 Hawaiian Eye Tiki

Mona Lynn "Fatal Cruise"

"Girl on a String"

1960 Tales of Wells Fargo Kate Fallon "Escort to Santa Fe"

1960 Bonanza Melinda Bowers "The Trail Gang"

1960 Sea Hunt Nancy Stewart

Rita Julien "Counterfeit"

"The Living Fossil"

1961 Sea Hunt Jill Marzack Season 4, Episode 2, "River Treasure"

1961 Stagecoach West Stella Smith "The Root of Evil"

1961 The Aquanauts Wilva "The Defective Tank Adventure", "The Jeremiah Adventure"

1961 The Rifleman Vashti Croxton "Assault"

1961 Perry Mason Erin Mooney "The Case of the Injured Innocent"

1962 Target: The Corruptors! Carolyn "One for the Road"

1962-63 Don't Call Me Charlie! Pat Perry Main role

1963 The Real McCoys Betty Lockwood "Luke in the Ivy League", "Luke Grows a Beard"

Pages

Wednesday, May 18, 2022

Linda Lawson obit

Linda Lawson, Actress in ‘Night Tide,’ Dies at 86

Linda Lawson, a singer and actress perhaps best known for her turn as a mysterious mermaid in the 1961 Dennis Hopper film Night Tide, has died. She was 86.

Lawson died May 18 of natural causes at the Motion Picture and Television Retirement Home in Woodland Hills, her family announced.

Lawson married Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid producer John Foreman in 1958. The pair had two children and were together until his death in 1992.

In 1960, she released the album Introducing Linda Lawson. As a singer, she was also featured on a number of compilation albums including Music for a Bachelor’s Den.

In 1961, Lawson starred in the horror-drama Night Tide from writer-director Curtis Harrington as Maura.

Subsequent roles included the series Don’t Call Me Charlie, Ben Casey, Bonanza and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and the films Let’s Kill Uncle (1966) and Sunset Strip (2000).

In 2000, Lawson starred as Mrs. Paganini opposite Ellen Burstyn and Kevin Dillon on the CBS dramedy That’s Life from creator Diane Ruggiero-Wright.

Her final credits included Without a Trace and ER.

Survived include her daughters, Julie and Amanda. Donations be made in their mother’s name to an animal rescue charity such as the ASPCA.

Music

In 1960, Lawson recorded Introducing Linda Lawson. The music was conducted and arranged by Marty Paich.

Tracks:

Are You With Me (H. Levin, D. Robinson)

Where Flamingos Fly (J. Kennedy, M. Spoliansky)

But Beautiful (J. Burke, J. VanHeusen)

Me And My Shadow (B. Rose, A. Jolson, D. Dreyer)

You Don't Know What Love Is (Raye, DePaul)

Easy To Love (Cole Porter)

Meaning of the Blues (Bobby Troup, Leah Worth)

Mood Indigo (D. Ellington, I. Mills, A. Bigard)

Like Young (P. F. Webster, A. Previn)

Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo (H. Deutsch, B. Kaper)

Make The Man Love Me (D. Fields, A. Schwartz)

Up Pops Love (R. Faith, C. Kehner)

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes

1960 The Threat Gerri

1961 Night Tide Mora

1964 Apache Rifles Dawn Gillis

1966 Let's Kill Uncle Justine

1970 Sometimes a Great Notion Jan Stamper

2005 The Tenants Anna

Television

Year Title Role Notes

1958 Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Kathy Dean "Wedding Mourning"

1958 Tales of the Texas Rangers Dolores "Edge of Danger"

1958 Peter Gunn Lynn Martel "Lynn's Blues"

1958 Man with a Camera Carmen "Six Faces of Satan"

1959 Maverick Lily "Duel at Sundown"

1959 Five Fingers Princess Tucomcari "The Moment of Truth"

1959 Border Patrol Anna "Hare and Hounds"

1959 The Millionaire Marcia Littleton "Millionaire Sergeant Matthew Brogan"

1959-61 Adventures in Paradise Renee Recurring role

1960 77 Sunset Strip Jeanne "Ten Cents a Death"

1960 Colt .45 Barbara "Impasse"

1960 Tombstone Territory Jeannie Magraw "The Bride"

1960 Mr. Lucky Angie "The Parolee"

1960 Overland Trail Ruby "The High Bridge"

1960 M Squad Delores Faye "Man with the Ice"

1960 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Georgia "I Can Take Care of Myself"

1960 Richard Diamond, Private Detective Nola Carter "And Whose Little Baby Are You?"

1960 Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond Joyce Chapman "Moment of Hate"

1960 Wagon Train Princess Lia of the Aztecs "Princess of a Lost Tribe"

1960 Hawaiian Eye Tiki

Mona Lynn "Fatal Cruise"

"Girl on a String"

1960 Tales of Wells Fargo Kate Fallon "Escort to Santa Fe"

1960 Bonanza Melinda Bowers "The Trail Gang"

1960 Sea Hunt Nancy Stewart

Rita Julien "Counterfeit"

"The Living Fossil"

1961 Sea Hunt Jill Marzack Season 4, Episode 2, "River Treasure"

1961 Stagecoach West Stella Smith "The Root of Evil"

1961 The Aquanauts Wilva "The Defective Tank Adventure", "The Jeremiah Adventure"

1961 The Rifleman Vashti Croxton "Assault"

1961 Perry Mason Erin Mooney "The Case of the Injured Innocent"

1962 Target: The Corruptors! Carolyn "One for the Road"

1962-63 Don't Call Me Charlie! Pat Perry Main role

1963 The Real McCoys Betty Lockwood "Luke in the Ivy League", "Luke Grows a Beard"

1964 Kraft Suspense Theatre Gracia Hernandez "Threepersons"

1964 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Lucille Brown "Three Wives Too Many"

1965 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Fiona McNiece "The World's Oldest Motive"

1965 Bonanza Maria Hackett "To Own the World"

1965 Ben Casey Laura Fremont Recurring role

1966 The Virginian Becky Ellis "Chaff in the Wind"