Alice Ghostley

Alice Ghostley married Felice Orlandi, an Italian-American actor, in 1953. The two remained married until Orlandi’s death in 2003. The couple had no children.

Alice suffered from colon cancer during the latter part of her life. She also suffered from a series of strokes. Finally, on September 21, 2007, she breathed her last at her home in Studio City, California thus ending her long battle with ill health.

On August 20, 2009, her ashes were taken to Oak Hill Cemetery in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, where she was buried along with her sister, Gladys who died on June 21, 2009. The two sisters are interred next to their parents.

Alice Ghostley was born on August 14, 1923 in Eve, Vernon County, Missouri, to Harry Francis Ghostley and Edna Muriel (née Rooney). Her father worked as a telegraph operator. She had a sister named Gladys.

Alice spent much of her growing up years in Arkansas, Oklahoma. She began performing when she was hardly five; she used to recite poems, sing songs and do tap-dancing.

Upon completing her preliminary education, Alice enrolled for a degree in drama at the University of Oklahoma. However, she dropped out of the same to pursue a career in theatre in New York, along with her sister Gladys.

Alice Ghostley’s struggle period was nothing close to being glamorous. She started off by teaming along with her sister Gladys for an act called ‘The Ghostley Sisters’ but soon developed her own cabaret show as a singer and comedienne.

She took up odd jobs for survival, working as a secretary to a music teacher in exchange for singing lessons, as a theatre usherette in order to see free stage shows, as a waitress, in a detective agency, and even as a patch tester for a detergent company.

Her big break in acting came with the Leonard Sillman’s Broadway show, ‘New Faces of 1952’. It starred upcoming stars, such as Eartha Kitt, Carol Lawrence, Robert Clary and Paul Lynde. Two years later, she starred in the film version as well.

Alongside theatre, her television career also started during the early 1950s. She appeared as one of the ugly step-sisters Joy in the 1957 musical television production ‘Cinderella’.

In 1960, she appeared in the revue ‘A Thurber Carnival’. Two years later, she featured in ‘The Beauty Part’, playing multiple prominent roles in the theatrical production. She also performed in several musical comedies, including ‘Shangri-La’, ‘Trouble in Tahiti’ and ‘Sandhog’. In 1965, she was seen as Mavis in the comedy play ‘The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window’.

Alongside her career in television, Alice Ghostley’s film career also took off at a steady pace. She made her film debut in 1962 with the movie ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’. Her other film appearances of the 1960s include ‘My Six Loves’, ‘The Flim Flam Man’, ‘The Graduate’, ‘With Six You Get Eggroll’ and ‘Viva Max’.

During the 1970s, she appeared in supporting roles in a couple of films including ‘Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies’ as Sister Lite, ‘Gator’ as Emmeline Cavanaugh, ‘Blue Sunshine’ as O'Malley's Neighbor and ‘Rabbit Test’ as Nurse Tumm. She also appeared in the film version of ‘Grease’ as shop teacher Mrs. Murdock.

In 1985, she played a supporting role in the Nancy Allen comedy ‘Not for Publication’. Alice played Grandmama in the direct-to-video movie ‘Addams Family Reunion’, in 1998. Her last outing for big screen was for the film ‘Mothers and Daughters’ in 2006.