Margaret Anne Mary Mundy (January 4, 1915 – January 12, 2016) was an English-born American actress and model. She was born in London,[citation needed] and in 1921, at the age of six, emigrated to the United States with her family.

Meg Mundy
Mundy in 1955
Born
Margaret Anne Mary Mundy

(1915-01-04)January 4, 1915
DiedJanuary 12, 2016(2016-01-12) (aged 101)
OccupationActress
Years active1934–2001
Spouse(s)Konstantinos Yannopoulos (September 15, 1951–; divorced)[1]
Marc Daniels (1942[2]–51; divorced)
Children1
MotherClytie Hine
RelativesJohn Hine Mundy (brother)

Personal life

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Mundy was born in Marylebone, London. Her mother, Australian opera singer Clytie Hine, studied at the Elder Conservatorium of Music in Adelaide, South Australia. Her father was English cellist John Mundy. In 1921, the couple emigrated to the United States with their two children. Their father became orchestra manager of the Metropolitan Opera. After retiring as a performer, Hine coached opera singers and musical performers. Meg's younger brother was Columbia University history professor John Hine Mundy.[3] Mundy celebrated her 100th birthday on January 4, 2015, and died on January 12, 2016, at the age of 101.[4]

Marriages

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Career

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In 1940, modeling agency founder Harry Conover cited Mundy as one of the 10 top models ("those who lure the highest salaries").[5] A newspaper article two years later reported that Mundy was "said to be Manhattan's highest paid model."[2]

Mundy debuted as a concert singer at Carnegie Hall in 1942.[6]

In 1948 Mundy starred in The Respectful Prostitute (see below), but Dorothy Parker professed ignorance: "Meg Mundy? What's that, a Welsh holiday?"[citation needed] (Film star Ann Dvorak succeeded Mundy in that role.) Mundy also played Mary McLeod, the lead female role, in the Broadway production of Detective Story.[7][8]

On television she played, among other roles, an antiques fancier on an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and wealthy matriarch Mona Aldrich Croft on The Doctors from 1972 to 1973 and 1975–82, leaving 3 months before the show ended. After playing the role of Isabelle Alden on the pilot for the new soap Loving, she briefly played Maeve Stoddard's imperious mother Julia on Guiding Light. She later played the role of Dimitri Marrick's wealthy aunt, Eugenia von Voynavitch on All My Children.

Her film credits included roles in Eyes of Laura Mars (1978), Oliver's Story (1978), The Bell Jar (1979), and as the mother of Mary Tyler Moore's character in Ordinary People (1980), which won the Academy Award as Best Picture Of The Year. She appeared in the 1983 Walter Matthau-Robin Williams film The Survivors, the 1987 films Fatal Attraction and Someone to Watch Over Me, and in two episodes of Law & Order in the 1990s.

Awards

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In 1948 Mundy won the Theatre World Award for her performance in The Respectful Prostitute at the Cort Theatre.[9]

In 1982 she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Daytime Drama Series at the 9th Daytime Emmy Awards for her role as Mona Croft on The Doctors.[citation needed]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1956 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Martha Sturgis-Appelby Season 1 Episode 29: "The Orderly World of Mr. Appelby"
1956 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Ellen Blanchard Season 2 Episode 13: "Mr. Blanchard's Secret"
1978 Breaking Up Louise Crawford
1978 Eyes of Laura Mars Doris Spenser
1978 Oliver's Story Mrs. Barrett
1979 The Bell Jar Bea Ramsey
1980 Ordinary People Grandmother
1983 The Survivors Mace Lover
1987 Fatal Attraction Joan Rogerson
1987 Someone to Watch Over Me Antonia

References

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  1. ^ "Inquirer.com: Philadelphia local news, sports, jobs, cars, homes". www.inquirer.com.
  2. ^ a b c Durling, E.V. (September 29, 1942). "On the Side". Shamokin News-Dispatch. Pennsylvania, Shamokin. Shamokin News-Dispatch. p. 4. Retrieved April 2, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Cross, Timothy P. "John Hine Mundy (1917–2004)". Perspectives on History. American Historical Association. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved May 29, 2022.
  4. ^ "Notice of death of Meg Mundy". The New York Times. January 20, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  5. ^ Barron, Mark (December 11, 1940). "Former Model Starts Agency". The Times Leader. Pennsylvania, Wilkes-Barre. The Wilkes-Barre Record. p. 14. Retrieved April 2, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ Stevenson, L.L. (May 28, 1942). "Lights of New York". The Daily Reporter. Indiana, Greenfield. Greenfield Daily Reporter. p. 6. Retrieved April 2, 2016 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ "Meg Mundy". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  8. ^ Detective Story profile, ibdb.com; accessed November 17, 2014.
  9. ^ Profile, IBDb.com; accessed November 17, 2014.
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