Maggie McNamara

She married actor/director David Swift in March 1951 but the marriage culminated into divorce. The couple together had no children.

Although McNamara never married again, she had a romantic relationship with screenwriter Walter Bernstein.

Her dead body was found lying on her apartment couch in New York City on February 18, 1978, with a note of suicide on her piano. She took an overdose of sleeping pills to end her life a few months before turning 50.

She was born on June 18, 1928, in New York City, US, in the family of Irish American parents Timothy McNamara and Helen Fleming McNamara as one of their four children. When she was nine years old her parents divorced.

She studied at New York’s ‘Textile High School’. She began her professional career as a model in her teens while continuing with her studies in dance and drama.

Gradually she achieved fame as one of the most successful models in the agency of John Robert Powers. During such time, in April 1950, she featured on the cover of ‘Life’ magazine. Her photo was spotted by American film producer, film studio executive and screenwriter David O. Selznick who subsequently offered her a film contract, which she refused and went on with her modelling career while completing her dance and drama lessons.

She was spotted by director Otto Preminger when she was 23 and was soon selected to play the part of Patty O'Neill in the 1951 play ‘The Moon Is Blue’. She also played the part briefly in the play’s New York production. That year she also performed in the ‘Broadway’ play ‘The King of Friday's Men’ and received positive reviews.

When the play was adapted into a film by Preminger in 1953, she reprised her role of Patty O'Neill. The subject matter of the film that included erotism and bold use of words like “seduce”, “mistress”, “virgin” and “pregnant” drew tremendous controversy and was not given the seal of approval by the ‘Motion Picture Association of America’ (‘MPAA’). Although the American film and television entertainment studio ‘United Artists’ that produced the film went ahead with its release on July 8, that year, it soon faced ban in Maryland, Ohio and Kansas. ‘National Legion of Decency’ also gave the film a “Condemned” rating.

However amidst many complications and obstacles ‘The Moon Is Blue’ turned out to be a smashing hit at the box-office garnering $3.5 million and also brought instant fame to debutant McNamara, who earned a ‘BAFTA’ nomination as Most Promising Newcomer and also an ‘Oscar’ nomination as Best Actress.

Signed by ‘20th Century Fox’, she sealed her success reinforcing her popularity with yet another hit, the American romantic comedy, ‘Three Coins in the Fountain’ directed by Jean Negulesco that was released on May 20, 1954. It won two ‘Academy Awards’ for Best Cinematography and Best Song out of three nominations and also garnered positive response from the critics circle.

Her next film was a biographical, ‘Prince of Players’ regarding one of the most celebrated American actors of the 19th century, Edwin Booth. It was a ‘20th Century Fox’ film directed and produced by Philip Dunne and released on January 11, 1955. The film became a moderate success.