Elizabeth Harrower (actress)
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Harrower Seabold (May 28, 1918 - December 10, 2003) was an American actress and screenwriter
.
Betty Louise Foss was born into the world during World War I in Alameda, California
and the great flu epidemic. Within six weeks her mother died, her father had a nervous breakdown, and relatives passed her care around. Babies were supposed to draw the deadly flu, so in a short while she was placed in a San Francisco orphanage...perhaps someone would overlook her German name and adopt? By age nine months she had learned to wring her hands and cry big tears in silence. William and Jessie Harrower were not young. He was a gentle Scottish immigrant who read Webster's Dictionary for fun; she was a force of nature with a shady past and a passion to make life perfect for this child. Betty Lou was read aloud to on her Daddy's lap: "The Song of Hiawatha:" "By the shores of Gitche Gumee, By the shining Big-Sea-Water..." Betty Lou had French lessons, speech lessons, piano lessons. Jessie just knew she must have talent.
At the bottom of the Depression, William's salary was cut in half, and Jessie decided to take her girl out of school and off to Hollywood to begin an acting career. The very fine girls' school wanted to keep their promising student and offered a 100% scholarship, but there was no stopping Jessie, and formal education ended for her at age fifteen.
Hollywood in the 30's was no kinder than now. Mother and daughter lived on bacon from a hot plate while Betty Lou turned into a red head, a platinum blonde, a woman who spoke with a British accent named Eve St. John...a woman who spoke with a Scottish brogue named Beth Alden. Finally she settled on 'Elizabeth Harrower', a clever lass with brown hair, great eyes and a beautiful voice. She got a nose job she didn't need and wore a riding habit everywhere, the one outfit she could afford. She also carried a little leather whip.
Elizabeth was romantic and engaged three times to various actors, but when World War II became the great reality she married in a rush a handsome Air Force cadet she'd met in the fifth grade. Actress Susan Seaforth Hayes
was Harrower's daughter who was born in 1943. Her father, Harry Seabold, lived with his glamorous bride for 90 days, through his basic training near Oklahoma City. Susan was conceived, he shipped out...and remained overseas for 33 months. Elizabeth returned to her family home in Berkeley...wrote hundreds of letters...and watched her tummy grow. On the big day, when she was writhing in the long labor of natural childbirth, the doctor slapped her face and told her to snap out of it. Different times. She always referred to Susan as her 1943 production. Then Television arrived. She worked more, and in movies, too.
By the end of the 60's she'd worked everywhere as an actress, but was still running the Alvarado Terrace house, when one particular person climbed the stairs and asked to stay. By now the guests were all female students from the Bible School across the street, but this girl had been batting around the California Foster Care System for years and needed a legal guardian as well as a room. Elizabeth said, "Yes," and began to salt and pepper Kathleen's life with advice and criticism. Suddenly Susan had a live-in sister, and Elizabeth had a blessing.
She appeared in a number of films (many uncredited) but also co-starred in films such as True Grit
and The Sterile Cuckoo both made in 1969. In the late 1970s, Harrower served as Head Writer
for the NBC Daytime
soap opera Days of our Lives
, where her daughter Susan Seaforth Hayes
was then a cast member. She went on to write for The Young and the Restless
in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 2003 Harrower received rave reviews for her performance as a drunken con artist on The Young and the Restless. Her last writing stint was on the short lived soap Generations in 1991.
Harrower died of cancer
in 2003 and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California
.
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
.
Betty Louise Foss was born into the world during World War I in Alameda, California
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
and the great flu epidemic. Within six weeks her mother died, her father had a nervous breakdown, and relatives passed her care around. Babies were supposed to draw the deadly flu, so in a short while she was placed in a San Francisco orphanage...perhaps someone would overlook her German name and adopt? By age nine months she had learned to wring her hands and cry big tears in silence. William and Jessie Harrower were not young. He was a gentle Scottish immigrant who read Webster's Dictionary for fun; she was a force of nature with a shady past and a passion to make life perfect for this child. Betty Lou was read aloud to on her Daddy's lap: "The Song of Hiawatha:" "By the shores of Gitche Gumee, By the shining Big-Sea-Water..." Betty Lou had French lessons, speech lessons, piano lessons. Jessie just knew she must have talent.
At the bottom of the Depression, William's salary was cut in half, and Jessie decided to take her girl out of school and off to Hollywood to begin an acting career. The very fine girls' school wanted to keep their promising student and offered a 100% scholarship, but there was no stopping Jessie, and formal education ended for her at age fifteen.
Hollywood in the 30's was no kinder than now. Mother and daughter lived on bacon from a hot plate while Betty Lou turned into a red head, a platinum blonde, a woman who spoke with a British accent named Eve St. John...a woman who spoke with a Scottish brogue named Beth Alden. Finally she settled on 'Elizabeth Harrower', a clever lass with brown hair, great eyes and a beautiful voice. She got a nose job she didn't need and wore a riding habit everywhere, the one outfit she could afford. She also carried a little leather whip.
Elizabeth was romantic and engaged three times to various actors, but when World War II became the great reality she married in a rush a handsome Air Force cadet she'd met in the fifth grade. Actress Susan Seaforth Hayes
Susan Seaforth Hayes
Susan Seaforth Hayes is an American dramatic actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Julie Williams on the long-running NBC drama Days of our Lives, and her intermittent portrayal of JoAnna Manning on the CBS daytime drama The Young and the Restless...
was Harrower's daughter who was born in 1943. Her father, Harry Seabold, lived with his glamorous bride for 90 days, through his basic training near Oklahoma City. Susan was conceived, he shipped out...and remained overseas for 33 months. Elizabeth returned to her family home in Berkeley...wrote hundreds of letters...and watched her tummy grow. On the big day, when she was writhing in the long labor of natural childbirth, the doctor slapped her face and told her to snap out of it. Different times. She always referred to Susan as her 1943 production. Then Television arrived. She worked more, and in movies, too.
By the end of the 60's she'd worked everywhere as an actress, but was still running the Alvarado Terrace house, when one particular person climbed the stairs and asked to stay. By now the guests were all female students from the Bible School across the street, but this girl had been batting around the California Foster Care System for years and needed a legal guardian as well as a room. Elizabeth said, "Yes," and began to salt and pepper Kathleen's life with advice and criticism. Suddenly Susan had a live-in sister, and Elizabeth had a blessing.
She appeared in a number of films (many uncredited) but also co-starred in films such as True Grit
True Grit
True Grit is a 1969 American Western film written by Marguerite Roberts and directed by Henry Hathaway. It is the first adaptation of Charles Portis' 1968 novel True Grit. John Wayne stars as U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn and won his only Academy Award for his performance in this film...
and The Sterile Cuckoo both made in 1969. In the late 1970s, Harrower served as Head Writer
Head writer
A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits, but in prime time series this function is generally performed by an...
for the NBC Daytime
NBC Daytime
NBC Daytime is the schedule for the NBC television network's daytime television programming which consists of morning news program Today and soap opera Days of our Lives...
soap opera Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives
Days of our Lives is a long running daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every weekday in the United States since November 8, 1965. It has since been syndicated to many countries around...
, where her daughter Susan Seaforth Hayes
Susan Seaforth Hayes
Susan Seaforth Hayes is an American dramatic actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Julie Williams on the long-running NBC drama Days of our Lives, and her intermittent portrayal of JoAnna Manning on the CBS daytime drama The Young and the Restless...
was then a cast member. She went on to write for The Young and the Restless
The Young and the Restless
The Young and the Restless is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in a fictional Wisconsin town called Genoa City, which is unlike and unrelated to the real life village of the same name, Genoa City, Wisconsin...
in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 2003 Harrower received rave reviews for her performance as a drunken con artist on The Young and the Restless. Her last writing stint was on the short lived soap Generations in 1991.
Harrower died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in 2003 and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...
.