Kathleen Nolan

Kathleen Nolan (born Joycelyn Schrum; September 27, 1933) is an American actress and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. From 1957 to 1962, she played Kate McCoy, a housewife, on the television series The Real McCoys.

Early years Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Nolan first appeared on stage on the showboat when she was 13 months old. Her family acted in tent shows and had their own troupe, the Circle Stock Company. She graduated from high school in St. Louis and sang on a radio station there.

Stage

On Broadway, Nolan played Wendy in the original production of the Styne-Comden-Green musical version of Peter Pan (1954–1955), starring Mary Martin and Cyril Ritchard, a role she repeated in both the 1955 and 1956 live NBC-TV broadcasts on Producers' Showcase. A 1960 version was produced for television broadcast, and converted to videotape, but it does not feature Nolan because she was then deemed too old. One of the earlier black-and-white versions, with Nolan's revelatory, irrepressible performance, can be viewed by appointment at New York's Paley Center. Both the 1955 and 1956 TV broadcasts can be viewed on DVD releases from Video Artists International.

When Nolan was an usher at the Palace Theatre for Judy Garland's show, word got backstage to Garland that an usher (Nolan) could recreate her entire performance. Garland had, of course, never seen the show or her own staging, so she invited Nolan to perform the entire show while she sat in the house. Garland later recommended Nolan to the Peter Pan creators.

Nolan played Amy in Love in E-Flat (1967).

Television and film

Nolan spent most of her career on television, making her debut in an episode of The Philco Television Playhouse. Nolan left The Real McCoys before its final season (1962–1963). At the time, the series also switched networks from ABC to CBS. The time slot for The Real McCoys changed as well in the switch to CBS, moving from Thursday evenings to Sunday evenings opposite NBC's Bonanza. In the revamped story for the series, Nolan's character was said to have died.

Nolan appeared on McHale's Navy, which resulted in her own spin-off series Broadside, in which she led a cast that included Edward Andrews, Dick Sargent, Sheila James (in her last regular television series role), Lois Roberts, Joan Staley, George Furth, Arnold Stang, and Jimmy Boyd. Broadside had good ratings, but Universal Studios dropped the series after a single season.

Beyond television, she appeared as Burt Reynolds's love Claudia in the 2017 film The Last Movie Star.

Awards Nolan in 1980 received the Women in Film Crystal Award for outstanding women "who, through their endurance and the excellence of their work, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry".

In 1959, she was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series for her work in The Real McCoys.

Other activities Nolan served for two terms as the first female president of the Screen Actors Guild (1975–79). She also served on SAG's board of directors for a dozen years. and a recipient of the Women in Film Crystal Award. In 1978, President Jimmy Carter appointed Nolan to the board of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Personal life Nolan married Richard Heckenkamp, a "personal manager for celebrities", They had a son, Spencer Garrett.

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes 1957–1962 The Real McCoys Kate McCoy 1958 Tombstone Territory Rose Episode: "Rose of the Rio Bravo" 1962 Gunsmoke Dodie Episode: "Call Me Dodie" Alfred Hitchcock Hour Linda Brennan Season 1 Episode 7: "Annabel" 1964 Alfred Hitchcock Hour Dorothy Johnson Season 2 Episode 21: "Beast in View" Gunsmoke Liz Season 9 Episode: "Comanches is Soft" 1964-1965 Broadside Lt. Anne Morgan starring role, 32 episodes 1966 Bewitched Gerry O'Toole Season 3 Episode 5: "A Most Unusual Wood Nymph" 1973 Gunsmoke Nellie Stuart Episode: "Susan Was Evil" 1974 Kolchak: The Night Stalker Faye Episode: "Vampire" 1976 The Bionic Woman Mother Superior Episode: "Sister Jaime" 1981 The Incredible Hulk Warden Hackett Episode: "Two Godmothers" 1997 Steel Chariots Ethyl Tucker TV movie