Anne Meacham

Anne Meacham (July 21, 1925 – January 12, 2006) was an American actress whose career spanned stage, film, and television across several decades. Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, she pursued formal training in drama at Yale University and the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York.

Meacham made her Broadway debut in 1952, playing Ensign Jane Hilton in The Long Watch. The performance earned her a Clarence Derwent Award, a prize recognizing newcomers to the New York stage. Subsequent Broadway appearances included Jean Giraudoux's Ondine, Eugenia — an adaptation of Henry James's The Europeans — Arthur Miller's The Crucible, The Seagull, and The Legend of Lizzie. Her final Broadway credit came in 1968, when she played Gertrude in Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.

Alongside her Broadway work, Meacham built a substantial presence in off-Broadway theater, frequently appearing in productions connected to the work of Tennessee Williams. She originated the role of Catherine Holly in Suddenly Last Summer — a part later played by Elizabeth Taylor in the film adaptation — and also appeared in The Gnädiges Fräulein and In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel. Her performance in Suddenly Last Summer brought her an Obie Award for Best Actress. A second Obie followed in 1961 for her work in Hedda Gabler.

Meacham entered film in 1964, making her screen debut in Robert Rossen's Lilith, in which she played Yvonne Meaghan. Later film credits included Dear Dead Delilah (1972), in which she played Grace Charles, The Gardener (1974) as Mrs. García, and Seizure (1974) as Eunice Kahn. On television, she began accumulating credits in the 1950s and went on to portray Louise Goddard on the daytime series Another World from 1972 to 1982.

Meacham died on January 12, 2006, in Canaan, New York, at the age of 80. Her death was reported by her friend, actress Marian Seldes.