Linda Dangcil

Linda Dangcil (June 19, 1941 – May 7, 2009) was an American actress, dancer, and choreographer whose career spanned Broadway, television, film, and voice work. Born in San Francisco, California, she attended and graduated from Immaculate Heart High School in Los Angeles, a institution she returned to throughout her professional life to choreograph and assist with its theater productions.

Dangcil's Broadway career ran from 1954 to 1975 and included credits in Peter Pan and A Chorus Line. She was a teenager when she appeared in Peter Pan opposite Mary Martin, and her performance extended to the show's television production as well. Her work in that production brought her to the attention of co-director Jerome Robbins, who cast her as one of the principal dancers in the 1961 film adaptation of West Side Story. Her appearances in A Chorus Line came through the first national tour of the production at the Shubert Theater in Los Angeles.

On television, Dangcil became recognizable to audiences through her recurring role as Sister Ana in the ABC series The Flying Nun, in which she appeared in 37 episodes during the show's run from 1967 to 1970. Her guest appearances spanned numerous series, including Maverick, The Rifleman, Rawhide, Stagecoach West, The Bold Ones, The Judge, and Here Come the Brides, the latter featuring actor Bruce Lee. She also starred as Elena in the PBS children's series Villa Alegre, a bilingual English and Spanish-language program produced in the 1970s. In voice work, her most prominent credit was voicing Carmen "Raya" Alonso in the 1980s animated series Jem.

Beyond performing, Dangcil directed productions for the Los Angeles Play Festivals and sat on multiple Screen Actors Guild committees. Her final stage role was Sally in the East West Players production of Follies.

Dangcil died on May 7, 2009, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at the age of 67, following an eight-year battle with throat cancer. She was survived by her husband, jazz musician Dick Hamilton; their children, Linda Michele and Sky Hamilton; a granddaughter; and two brothers, Mel Dangcil and Rudy Dangcil.