Hope Lange (November 28, 1931 - December 19, 2003) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She was born into a theatrical family in Redding Ridge, Connecticut; her father was the music arranger for Florenz Ziegfeld Jr.. Lange was only 12 when she made her Broadway debut in The Patriots.
Following her father’s passing, she worked as a waitress in her mother’s Greenwich Village restaurant and sometimes walked the dog of former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt who had a nearby apartment.
When her photo appeared in the newspaper, she received an offer to work as a New York City advertising model that eventually led to a return to acting in the early 1950’s when she began working in television.
The demure and sophisticated blonde actress came to prominence in her first film role in Bus Stop with Marilyn Monroe and Don Murray whom she married on April 14, 1956. As a result of favorable reviews, she landed a major role in the then risqué 1957 film, Peyton Place.
Her strong performance earned her a nomination for a Golden Globe Award and a nomination for Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Divorced from Don Murray, with whom she had two children, she left acting after her October 19, 1963 marriage to producer-director Alan J. Pakula. Following their divorce five years later she resumed her career, starring from 1968 to 1970 in the popular TV series, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir for which she earned two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award nomination. This success was followed by three seasons on The New Dick Van Dyke Show.
Dedicated to her craft, Lange earned the respect of audiences and peers alike. For more than fifty years she appeared in numerous motion pictures, made-for-television movies, a variety of television shows, as well as making a 1977 return to the Broadway stage where her acting career began.
In 1986 she married theatrical producer, Charles Hollerith, with whom she remained until her death. Hope's son is Actor Christopher Murray, her daughter is Photographer Patricia Murray. Associated names to look up: Director David Lange and Writer Katherine J. Lange.
She died in December, 2003, in Santa Monica, California, as a result of an ischemic colitis infection at the age of 72.
Death Wish 3 (1985)
