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| Bridget as Candy Pruitt on Here Come the Brides. |
Lucille Ball? Carol Burnett? No, this blog's #1 television actress is Bridget Hanley, known for her roles in the classic TV shows Here Come the Brides and Harper Valley PTA.
In a 1969 interview with columnist Vernon Scott, Miss Hanley described her own approach to feminine allure. "I refuse to appear in any movie that has a nude scene in it," she said firmly. "I won't even do a role in a bathing suit." The modest, skin-covering costuming of the actresses on Brides "gives a man's imagination something to work with," she declared. "A fully dressed woman has more sex appeal and mystique going for her than one who is romping around in a bikini or lingerie."
Given the number of hits she's received in just a few short months, who are we to argue with her?
Wow! I loved this show, though I will admit that viewing it now, it's awfully hard to take. That black, white and red textile on Lottie's saloon wall bothers me on so many levels--it's a gorgeous piece of work, but what the devil is it doing in Lottie's? How did it get there and why would a set designer, even in the 1960s, think it would work. I think it's worth noting that Candy Pruitt was accused of being less than pure in one episode (I think back when Jeremy Bolt still stuttered) but she came out alright in the end--a crazy Russian guy vouched for her purity with an icon of the Holy Mother. Also worth noting, if one is a geek, is that the guy who played Aaron Stemple also played Spock's father in the original Star Trek. The end result was a Star Trek novel featuring a cross-over with Here Come the Brides. Good lord.
ReplyDeleteThanks, David, for a charming blast from the past.