Marilyn Erskine

Marilyn Erskine (born April 24, 1926) is an American actress, active during the 1920s through the 1970s. She played roles in radio, theater, film, and television, starting when she was 3 years old.

Early life Erskine was born in Rochester, New York on April 24, 1926, and was in show business from early childhood. She moved with her family to New York, circa 1932, at which point she began attending the Professional Children's School, which she continued to do, intermittently, for almost a decade.

Career Radio and theatre Erskine started her performing career at the age of three years, appearing on a local radio show in Buffalo, New York. She played Gail Carver in the soap opera Lora Lawton, which ran on NBC 1943–1950, Jane Brown on Young Widder Brown, which ran on NBC 1938–1956, and Cherry Martin in The Romance of Helen Trent, which ran on CBS 1933–1960. Erskine performed the role of Jane Baxter in Orson Welles's Mercury Theater on the Air adaptation of Seventeen (October 16, 1938).

Erskine starred as Eva Wallace in the 1939 Broadway production of The Primrose Path. In 1945, she was a member of the cast of the syndicated comedy Keeping Up with Wigglesworth.

As a teenager, she appeared in at least nine Broadway productions in New York City, including the original production of Thornton Wilder's classic play Our Town:

Excursion (playing Eileen Loschavio) April 9, 1937 – July ?, 1937 The Ghost of Yankee Doodle (playing Patience Garrison) November 22, 1937 – January ?, 1938 Our Town (playing Rebecca Gibbs) February 4, 1938 – November 19, 1938 The Primrose Path (playing Eva Wallace) January 4, 1939 – May ?, 1939 Goodbye in the Night (playing Gertie) March 18–23, 1940 Ring Around Elizabeth (playing Mercedes) November 17–25, 1941 What Big Ears! (playing Betty Leeds) April 20–25, 1942 Nine Girls (playing Shirley) January 13–16, 1943 Pretty Little Parlor (playing Anastasia) April 17–22, 1944

As an adult, she appeared in at least one Broadway production in New York City and several Off-Broadway plays:

The Linden Tree (playing Dinah Linden) March 2–6, 1948 Our Town (playing Emily Webb) 1953–1955

Film and television Erskine appeared in several Hollywood movies in the early 1950s. Already in 1940, she stated a desire to become a Hollywood actress when she became an adult. This sitcom ran from September 1960 through May 1961 on CBS. She was a co-presenter for the Short Subject Awards category of the 26th Annual Academy Awards in 1954, and appeared as herself in the last episode of The NBC Comedy Hour June 10, 1956. She made two guest appearances on Perry Mason starring Raymond Burr. In 1964 she played Susan Pelham in "The Case of the Careless Kidnapper", and in 1966 she played Mirabel Corum in "The Case of the Unwelcome Well". Her last role on television was in 1972, in the Ironside TV series, also starring Burr. in 1955, and had two children. Their home in Brentwood, California, was featured in an article in the Fall 1958 issue of Architectural Digest.

Filmography Westward the Women (1951) playing Jean Johnson Above and Beyond (1952) playing Marge Bratton The Girl in White (1952) playing Nurse Jane Doe The Hoaxters (1952) narrated by her Just This Once (1952) playing Gertrude Crome The Eddie Cantor Story (1953) playing Ida Tobias Cantor A Slight Case of Larceny (1953) playing Mrs. Emily Clopp Confidentially Connie (1953) playing Phyllis Archibald Science Fiction Theater (1955–1956) Episodes "The Frozen Sound", "The Legend of Crater Mountain", "Sun Gold" End of a Gun (1957) playing Peggy