Celia Kaye
Encyclopedia
Celia Kaye is an American former actress who appeared in a recurring role as Marnie Massey, daughter of the character Christine Massey played by Loretta Young
, on the comedy-drama series, The New Loretta Young Show
. The program aired for twenty-six weeks on CBS
from 1962 to 1963. Most of Kaye's work was on television between 1962 and 1974, with final credited film appearances ten years apart - in 1978 and 1988.
In 1965, Kaye, along with Mia Farrow
and Mary Ann Mobley
, shared the honor of the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actress
, a reflection on her 1964 role as Karana in the film Island of the Blue Dolphins
, which is based on the Scott O'Dell
novel of the same name. Island of the Blue Dolphins is a fictionalized account of a true story of Juana Maria
, an Indian
girl stranded for eighteen years during the 19th century on one of the isolated California
Channel Islands
.
Of German
and Cherokee
ancestry, Kaye and was born in Carthage
, near Joplin
, Missouri
to chemical engineer John W. Burkholder and his wife, Kathryn, who ran a private pre-school. When she was one year old, her family moved to Wilmington
, Delaware
, where her brother, Johnny, was born. She is a graduate of the now-defunct Henry C. Conrad High School near Wilmington as well as the Philadelphia Modeling and Charm School. In high school, she was already interested in acting as a member of the National Thespian Society
and performed in such school plays as Time Out for Ginger and Brigadoon
. She listed her ambition at the time as "to be happy and successful."
After high school, Kaye moved to California, where she won a scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse
, having gradauted in 1961. In 1962, a few months before The New Loretta Young Show premiered, Kaye made her television debut as the character "Julie Trenton" in the segment "The Traveler", one of the last episodes filmed of the ABC
western
series Tales of Wells Fargo
, starring Dale Robertson
. While working on The New Loretta Young Show, she continued her education, attending Los Angeles City College
at night and studying modern jazz
at Eugene Loring's American School of Dance.
Kaye considers her association with Loretta Young "a very lucky first experience in show business for me. She was absolutely amazing. ... She was just so warm and so inclusive of everyone that my 'awestruck' situation went away immediately....This woman walked in and it was her set. And it was her game, and her show, and it's like she had it all together and everybody just seemed to fall into place. She was in charge of everything without being harsh about it or bossy."
When The New Loretta Young Show ended, Kaye appeared twice, once as a character with her own name of "Celia", in the long-running ABC sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
. On December 6, 1964, six months after the premiere of Island of the Blue Dolphins, Kaye was cast as "Ann Shelby" opposite Dwayne Hickman
in his title guest-starring role of the episode "The Clay Shelby Story" of ABC's Wagon Train
. Other guest stars in the segment were Richard Carlson
and Mort Mills
, who were cast as military officers.
In 1965, Kaye played Daphne in the film Wild Seed, opposite Michael Parks
. That same year she was "Sally Brighton" in the film Fluffy, starring Shirley Jones
. In 1967, she played "Melissa Neal" on ABC's The Green Hornet
in a two-part episode entitled "Corpse of the Year." That same year, she portrayed a character "Emily" in the episode "Decision at Sundown" of the second Dale Robertson series, The Iron Horse, a fictional account of a railroad moving into the American West. Other television appearances were in 1970 in the ABC series, The Young Lawyers
, starring Lee J. Cobb
, and in 1973 in Adam's Rib, starring Ken Howard
and Blythe Danner
. Kaye's last television role was in 1974 as Willa Sweeney in "Hundred Mile Walk" of NBC
's Little House on the Prairie
.
Kaye's last film roles were in the coming of age picture Big Wednesday
(1978) opposite Sam Melville
, and the horror story, Vampire at Midnight, also known as Murder at Midnight (1988) as "Sandra."
Kaye has a child, Amanda Milius, from her 1978 marriage to director and screenwriter John Milius
, who directed Big Wednesday.
Loretta Young
Loretta Young was an American actress. Starting as a child actress, she had a long and varied career in film from 1917 to 1953...
, on the comedy-drama series, The New Loretta Young Show
The New Loretta Young Show
The New Loretta Young Show, which aired for twenty-six weekly episodes on CBS television from September 24, 1962 to March 18, 1963, featured Loretta Young in a combination drama and situation comedy about a free-lance writer in suburban Connecticut named Christine Massey, the widowed mother of...
. The program aired for twenty-six weeks on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
from 1962 to 1963. Most of Kaye's work was on television between 1962 and 1974, with final credited film appearances ten years apart - in 1978 and 1988.
In 1965, Kaye, along with Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow is an American actress, singer, humanitarian, and fashion model.Farrow first gained wide acclaim for her role as Allison Mackenzie in the soap opera Peyton Place, and for her subsequent short-lived marriage to Frank Sinatra...
and Mary Ann Mobley
Mary Ann Mobley
Mary Ann Mobley is a former Miss America, actress, and television personality.-Career:After serving her reign as Miss America 1959, Mobley embarked on a career in both film and television...
, shared the honor of the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year - Actress
Golden Globe Award for New Star Of The Year - Actress
The Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress originated in 1948. Between 1954 and 1965, multiple winners were announced. The category was discontinued following the 1983 ceremonies.-Winners:*1948: Lois Maxwell*1950: Mercedes McCambridge...
, a reflection on her 1964 role as Karana in the film Island of the Blue Dolphins
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Island of the Blue Dolphins is a 1960 American children's novel written by Scott O'Dell. The story of a young girl stranded for years on an island off the California coast, it is based on the true story of Juana Maria, a Nicoleño Indian left alone for 18 years on San Nicolas Island in the 19th...
, which is based on the Scott O'Dell
Scott O'Dell
Scott O'Dell was an American children's author who wrote 26 novels for young people, along with three novels for adults and four nonfiction books...
novel of the same name. Island of the Blue Dolphins is a fictionalized account of a true story of Juana Maria
Juana Maria
Juana Maria , better known to history as the Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island , was a Native American woman who was the last surviving member of her tribe, the Nicoleño. She lived alone on San Nicolas Island from 1835 until her discovery in 1853...
, an Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
girl stranded for eighteen years during the 19th century on one of the isolated California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Channel Islands
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
.
Of German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
ancestry, Kaye and was born in Carthage
Carthage, Missouri
Carthage is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, United States. The population was 14,378 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Jasper County and is nicknamed "America's Maple Leaf City."...
, near Joplin
Joplin, Missouri
Joplin is a city in southern Jasper County and northern Newton County in the southwestern corner of the US state of Missouri. Joplin is the largest city in Jasper County, though it is not the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 50,150...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
to chemical engineer John W. Burkholder and his wife, Kathryn, who ran a private pre-school. When she was one year old, her family moved to Wilmington
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
, where her brother, Johnny, was born. She is a graduate of the now-defunct Henry C. Conrad High School near Wilmington as well as the Philadelphia Modeling and Charm School. In high school, she was already interested in acting as a member of the National Thespian Society
International Thespian Society
The International Thespian Society is an honorary organization for high-school and middle-school theatre students located at more than 3,600 affiliated secondary schools across the United States, Canada, and abroad. The International Thespian Society was founded in Fairmont, West Virginia...
and performed in such school plays as Time Out for Ginger and Brigadoon
Brigadoon
Brigadoon is a musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. Songs from the musical, such as "Almost Like Being in Love" have become standards....
. She listed her ambition at the time as "to be happy and successful."
After high school, Kaye moved to California, where she won a scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse
Pasadena Playhouse
The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic performing arts venue located 39 S El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engagements each year.-History:...
, having gradauted in 1961. In 1962, a few months before The New Loretta Young Show premiered, Kaye made her television debut as the character "Julie Trenton" in the segment "The Traveler", one of the last episodes filmed of the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
series Tales of Wells Fargo
Tales of Wells Fargo
Tales of Wells Fargo is an American Western television series that ran from March 18, 1957 to June 2, 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until its final season when it expanded to an hour.-Synopsis:...
, starring Dale Robertson
Dale Robertson
Dayle Lymoine "Dale" Robertson is an American actor best known for his starring roles on television. He played the role of Jim Hardie in the TV series, Tales of Wells Fargo, and the owner of an incomplete railroad line in ABC's The Iron Horse, often appearing as the deceptively thoughtful but...
. While working on The New Loretta Young Show, she continued her education, attending Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College, known as LACC, is a public community college in the East Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard...
at night and studying modern jazz
Jazz dance
Jazz dance is a classification shared by a broad range of dance styles. Before the 1950s, jazz dance referred to dance styles that originated from African American vernacular dance. In the 1950s, a new genre of jazz dance—modern jazz dance—emerged, with roots in Caribbean traditional dance...
at Eugene Loring's American School of Dance.
Kaye considers her association with Loretta Young "a very lucky first experience in show business for me. She was absolutely amazing. ... She was just so warm and so inclusive of everyone that my 'awestruck' situation went away immediately....This woman walked in and it was her set. And it was her game, and her show, and it's like she had it all together and everybody just seemed to fall into place. She was in charge of everything without being harsh about it or bossy."
When The New Loretta Young Show ended, Kaye appeared twice, once as a character with her own name of "Celia", in the long-running ABC sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952 to September 3, 1966, starring the real life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television where it continued its success, running on both radio and TV for a couple of years...
. On December 6, 1964, six months after the premiere of Island of the Blue Dolphins, Kaye was cast as "Ann Shelby" opposite Dwayne Hickman
Dwayne Hickman
Dwayne Bernard Hickman is a former American actor and television executive at CBS.He is known primarily for his "teenage" actor roles on television sitcoms. The naturally brown-headed Hickman is best known for playing Chuck MacDonald, Bob Collins's crazy teenaged nephew, on the popular 1950s...
in his title guest-starring role of the episode "The Clay Shelby Story" of ABC's Wagon Train
Wagon Train
Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65...
. Other guest stars in the segment were Richard Carlson
Richard Carlson
Richard Carlson was an American actor, television and film director, and screenwriter.-Career:Born in Albert Lea, Minnesota, Carlson graduated from the University of Minnesota with an M.A. degree, Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa. He later appeared on the Broadway stage in the 1930s after studying...
and Mort Mills
Mort Mills
Mort Mills was an American film and television actor who had roles in over 200 movies and television episodes. He was often the town lawman or the local bad guy in many popular westerns of the 1950s and 1960s. From 1957-1959 he had a recurring co-starring role as Marshal Frank Tallman in Man...
, who were cast as military officers.
In 1965, Kaye played Daphne in the film Wild Seed, opposite Michael Parks
Michael Parks
Michael Parks is an American actor and singer. He has appeared in almost fifty films and has made frequent TV appearances, but is probably best known for his work in recent years with Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and Kevin Smith as well as the 1969 television series Then Came...
. That same year she was "Sally Brighton" in the film Fluffy, starring Shirley Jones
Shirley Jones
Shirley Mae Jones is an American singer and actress of stage, film and television. In her six decades of television, she starred as wholesome characters in a number of well-known musical films, such as Oklahoma! , Carousel , and The Music Man...
. In 1967, she played "Melissa Neal" on ABC's The Green Hornet
The Green Hornet (TV series)
The Green Hornet is a television show on the ABC US television network. It aired for the 1966–1967 TV season, and starred Van Williams as the Green Hornet/Britt Reid and Bruce Lee as Kato.- Episodes:...
in a two-part episode entitled "Corpse of the Year." That same year, she portrayed a character "Emily" in the episode "Decision at Sundown" of the second Dale Robertson series, The Iron Horse, a fictional account of a railroad moving into the American West. Other television appearances were in 1970 in the ABC series, The Young Lawyers
The Young Lawyers
The Young Lawyers is an American legal drama that was aired on the ABC network as part of its 1970-71 lineup.-Plot:Aaron Silverman is part of a group of young, idealistic students at a top Boston law school who open a legal aid center, the "Neighborhood Law Office," to help the poor...
, starring Lee J. Cobb
Lee J. Cobb
Lee J. Cobb was an American actor. He is best known for his performance in 12 Angry Men his Academy Award-nominated performance in On the Waterfront and one of his last films, The Exorcist...
, and in 1973 in Adam's Rib, starring Ken Howard
Ken Howard
Kenneth Joseph "Ken" Howard, Jr. is an American actor, best known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in 1776 and as basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in the television show The White Shadow...
and Blythe Danner
Blythe Danner
Blythe Katherine Danner is an American actress. She is the mother of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and director Jake Paltrow.-Early life:...
. Kaye's last television role was in 1974 as Willa Sweeney in "Hundred Mile Walk" of NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie (TV series)
Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books...
.
Kaye's last film roles were in the coming of age picture Big Wednesday
Big Wednesday
Big Wednesday is an American coming of age film directed by John Milius. Milius co-wrote Big Wednesday with Denny Aaberg, and it is loosely based on their own experiences at Malibu and a short story Aaberg had published in a 1974 Surfer Magazine entitled "No Pants Mance." The picture stars...
(1978) opposite Sam Melville
Sam Melville (actor)
Samuel Gardner Melville was an American actor who appeared as a guest sar on many popular television programs of the 1960s and 1970s...
, and the horror story, Vampire at Midnight, also known as Murder at Midnight (1988) as "Sandra."
Kaye has a child, Amanda Milius, from her 1978 marriage to director and screenwriter John Milius
John Milius
John Frederick Milius is an American screenwriter, director, and producer of motion pictures.-Early life:Milius was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the son of Elizabeth and William Styx Milius, who was a shoe manufacturer. Milius attempted to join the Marine Corps in the late 1960s, but was rejected...
, who directed Big Wednesday.
Television
| Year | Series | Role | | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | Tales of Wells Fargo Tales of Wells Fargo Tales of Wells Fargo is an American Western television series that ran from March 18, 1957 to June 2, 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until its final season when it expanded to an hour.-Synopsis:... |
Julie Trenton | ep. The Traveler |
| 1962 | The New Loretta Young Show The New Loretta Young Show The New Loretta Young Show, which aired for twenty-six weekly episodes on CBS television from September 24, 1962 to March 18, 1963, featured Loretta Young in a combination drama and situation comedy about a free-lance writer in suburban Connecticut named Christine Massey, the widowed mother of... |
Marnie Massey | 26 episodes |
| 1963 | The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet is an American sitcom, airing on ABC from October 3, 1952 to September 3, 1966, starring the real life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television where it continued its success, running on both radio and TV for a couple of years... |
Celia / Pledge | 1 ep. each |
| 1964 | Wagon Train Wagon Train Wagon Train is an American Western series that ran on NBC from 1957–62 and then on ABC from 1962–65... |
Ann Shelby | ep. The Clay Shelby Story |
| 1967 | The Green Hornet The Green Hornet (TV series) The Green Hornet is a television show on the ABC US television network. It aired for the 1966–1967 TV season, and starred Van Williams as the Green Hornet/Britt Reid and Bruce Lee as Kato.- Episodes:... |
Melissa Neal | 2 eps |
| 1967 | The Iron Horse | Emily | ep. Decision at Sundown |
| 1967 | Insight Insight (TV series) Insight was an Emmy-winning syndicated television series produced by Paulist Productions that aired 250 episodes from 1960 to 1983. The series presented half-hour dramas illuminating the contemporary search for meaning, freedom, and love... |
Jenny | ep. All the Little Plumes in Pain |
| 1970 | The Young Lawyers The Young Lawyers The Young Lawyers is an American legal drama that was aired on the ABC network as part of its 1970-71 lineup.-Plot:Aaron Silverman is part of a group of young, idealistic students at a top Boston law school who open a legal aid center, the "Neighborhood Law Office," to help the poor... |
Helen | ep. Where's Aaron |
| 1973 | Adam's Rib | Francis | ep. Illegal Aid |
| 1973 | Don't Be Afraid of the Dark | Anne | TV Movie |
| 1974 | Little House on the Prairie Little House on the Prairie (TV series) Little House on the Prairie is an American Western drama television series, starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show was an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books... |
Willa Sweeney | ep. 100 Mile Walk |
Film
| Year | Film | Role | | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Island of the Blue Dolphins Island of the Blue Dolphins Island of the Blue Dolphins is a 1960 American children's novel written by Scott O'Dell. The story of a young girl stranded for years on an island off the California coast, it is based on the true story of Juana Maria, a Nicoleño Indian left alone for 18 years on San Nicolas Island in the 19th... |
Karana | Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actress |
| 1965 | Wild Seed | Daphne | |
| 1965 | Fluffy | Sally Brighton | |
| 1972 | The Final Comedown The Final Comedown The Final Comedown is a 1972 blaxploitation drama film written, produced and directed by Oscar Williams and starring Billy Dee Williams and D'Urville Martin. The film is an examination of racism in the United States and depicts a shootout between a radical black nationalist group and the police,... |
Rene Freeman | |
| 1976 | Rattlers Rattlers Rattlers is a 1976 horror film starring Sam Chew, Elisabeth Chauvet, Tony Ballen, Dan Priest, Ron Gold, Darwin Joston, and Gary Van Ormand. The film was produced, directed and co-written by John McCauley... |
Woman in Bathtub | |
| 1978 | Big Wednesday Big Wednesday Big Wednesday is an American coming of age film directed by John Milius. Milius co-wrote Big Wednesday with Denny Aaberg, and it is loosely based on their own experiences at Malibu and a short story Aaberg had published in a 1974 Surfer Magazine entitled "No Pants Mance." The picture stars... |
Bride of the Bear | |
| 1988 | Vampire at Midnight | Sandra |