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Edie Adams

Personal Profile

Edie Adams
  • Birth Name:
    Elizabeth Edith Enke
  • Date of Birth:
    April 16, 1925
  • Zodiac Sign:
    Aries
  • Place of Birth:
    Kingston, PA
  • Place of Death:
    Los Angeles, CA
  • Date of Death:
    October 15, 2008
  • Height:
    5' 6"
  • Sex:
    Female
  • Nationality:
    American
  • Education:

    Juilliard School of Music

    Columbia University

Family

Edie Adams
  • Spouse:
    Ernie Kovacs
  • Son:
    Josh Mills

Career

Edie Adams

Trivia

Edie Adams
  • Edie remarried in 1964 to photographer Marty Mills, with whom she had a son, Josh. That union ended in divorce in 1971.
  • She also recalled her offbeat life with Kovacs in the book Sing a Pretty Song, which was published in 1990.
  • She remained committed to the end to restoring/preserving her late husband's videotapes and kinescopes of his ground-breaking 50s TV work.
  • Edie could still be seen from time to time on the stage in such shows as "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas," the female version of "The Odd Couple," "Hello, Dolly!" and "Nunsense".
  • She also took advantage of her famous impressions of Zsa Zsa Gabor and others appearing on various TV comedy formats.
  • She also received outstanding notices in a few of her films, whether it be drama (Love with the Proper Stranger (1963), The Best Man (1964)) or frivolous comedy (Call Me Bwana (1963), It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963), Under the Yum Yum Tree (1963), The Honey Pot (1967)).
  • One of Edie's last pairings with Kovacs was in 1960 when they appeared as guests on the very last episode of "The Luci-Desi Comedy Hour."
  • Edie remained primarily a TV fixture and, outside of her Emmy-nominated coupling with Kovacs, winningly played the Fairy Godmother in Julie Andrews' popular TV version of Cinderella (1957) (TV), appeared regularly with Jack Paar and Dinah Shore in their respective variety shows, acted on various prime-time shows, and graced a number of celebrity game and talk show panels.
  • Her New York stage debut in the popular musical "Wonderful Town" in 1952 had her walking away with the Theatre World Award for "Best Newcomer".
  • Early 50s TV opened many doors for Edie and she waltzed right through them.

Quotes

Edie Adams
  • "Here was this guy with the big moustache, the big cigar, and the silly hat. I thought, "I don't know what this is, but it's for me".
  • "I sang them all during the audition, and if they had asked to hear another, I never would have made it. "
View all Quotes: Edie Adams

Biography

Edie Adams
Last Updated: Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Born Elizabeth Edith Enke, on April 16, 1927, in Kingston, PA, Edie Adams was a graduate of both the Juilliard School of Music and the Columbia School of Drama. She began her career in television, utilizing her singing and comedic talent as a regular on the popular Ernie Kovacs Show in the early '50s. Adams and Kovacs were married in 1955 and remained together until his death in 1962. Before appearing in films, she starred on Broadway in Wonderful Town (1953) and Li'l Abner (1956).

Her first major film role was playing Miss Olsen in Billy Wilder's 1960 comedy The Apartment. The film work that followed cast Adams in mostly secondary roles that highlighted her talent for comedy and displayed her spirited presence. Other films include: Lover Come Back (1961), Call Me Bwana (1963), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), Under the Yum Yum Tree (1963), Love With the Proper Stranger (1963), The Best Man (1964), Made in Paris, The Oscar (1966), The Honey Pot (1967), Up in Smoke (1978), and Raquet (1979).

Adams also appeared in the documentary Kovacs in 1971. She spent her last few decades making periodic guest appearances on such television programs as Designing Women, Fantasy Island and The Love Boat, and died of pneumonia and cancer in 2008.

Filmography

Edie Adams

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