Marion Marlowe

[noradesmond]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 1:28am

After watching and loving the newly restored SOUND OF MUSIC on BluRay I revisited the OBC and was again impressed by Marion Marlowe as Baroness Elsa Schraeder. She is quite wonderful in her two songs. There is hardly any information on the web about her. The most I can find is that she used to be on Arthur Godfrey's show in the 50's but that he fired her. Her only Broadway credits seem to be SOUND OF MUSIC and standby for Phyllis and Carlotta in FOLLIES. Anybody have any information on this lady?

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 2:50am

Actually, she did a lot with the Kenley Players in Ohio as well as a stock tour of Follies as Carlotta.

http://www.floormic.com/biography/10123612

[Ed_Mottershead]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 7:12am

Also, she was one of Joan Diener's replacements in the original production of Man of La Mancha -- I saw her when she was playing it oppposite Jose Ferrer.

[After Eight]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 8:32am

She also starred in the off-Broadway musical, "The Athenian Touch," with Butterfly McQueen. There's a cd of it. She's good, as always, but the score is not.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 8:59am

Somehow I think she was also a replacement for Nancy in the original production of OLIVER!

[wildcat]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 10:18am

You might be thinking of Maura K. Wedge.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 11/10/10 at 10:40am

"Maura K. Wedge". Now there's a name I haven't heard in a long time!

[fanof many]

Posted: 11/11/10 at 10:36pm

Marion Marlowe is 81 years old and lives today in New Mexico. She was a wonderful performer.
I've read alot of accounts of the Arthur Godfrey firings- they all vary- did he fire all that talent because some had started to become 'Big' names? Or was he just crazy?

[noradesmond]

Posted: 11/12/10 at 2:02pm

I'm curious about that too. Didn't he earn a rep as a bit of an a**hole that pretty much derailed his career? He was big stuff then had a major crash and burn but I don't know the details. Was her firing part of that?

[Gothampc]

Posted: 11/12/10 at 2:05pm

For years, I thought she was singing "I cannot die like a meal for you"

[JOak]

Posted: 11/12/10 at 2:41pm

From her understudy slip in my Follies program:

Marion Marlowe soared the public after her discovery by Arthur Godfrey and appeared on his show for 5 years. The hazel-eyed St. Louisan made her Broadway debut creating the role of Elsa in The Sound Of Music, a role she played for 2 1/2 years. Her next role, Aldonza in Man of La Mancha saw her on Broadway for a year. Besides headlining in top supper clubs in the U.S., Canada and South America, Miss Marlowe was seen on all major TV variety shows, including 28 shows with Ed Sullivan.

[soubrette]

Posted: 11/12/10 at 3:29pm

I worked with the wonderful Marion Marlowe in summer stock doing CALL ME MADAM. This probably would have been in 1978. She was a very warm person. Her voice had lowered over time but she retained her beautiful crisp diction and still had great power.
I remember hearing that she had been seriously injured when doing Aldonza and had to undergo a lot of physical therapy.
My fondest memories are of walking her to her car every night after the show.
Nice memories of a very dear and talented lady.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 11/12/10 at 3:40pm

Maura K. Wedge played Nancy and Aldonza in NY and also on the road. She had the dark coloring that both originators of those roles had plus a vibrant soprano.

I remember seeing her name in the Variety obits a long time ago. She died young, in her 40s.

[wildcat]

Posted: 11/15/10 at 12:31am

Marion Marlowe also played the lead in HERE'S LOVE at the St Louis Muny in 1965.