Celebrated Actress Yvonne De Carlo dies at 84
Yvonne De Carlo, Canadian-born American film and television actress, best known for her role as ‘Lily Munster’ on the 1964-1966 CBS television series ‘The Munsters’, died on 8th January. She was 84.
Her son, Bruce R. Morgan said on Wednesday said that De Carlos died of old age complications at the Motion Picture & Television Hospital in Woodland Hills.
"She was one of the legendary glamour queens of the '40s and '50s," said Kevin Burns, a film and television producer who was a longtime friend. "But she surprised everybody by becoming an accomplished actress."
De Carlo debuted in 1945, playing the title role in the film ‘Salome, Where She Danced’. Though the film didn’t do very well, but the sultry actress rose to fame and was regarded as an “upcoming star”.
She played the lead role in ‘Slave Girl’ in 1945, and in 1949, her role in the film ‘Criss Cross’ bought her applauds.
For a few years, she was relentlessly working although many of the films failed to mount her career.
The huge success of ‘The Ten Commandments’ in 1956 escalated De Carlos career.
However, the actress will always be remembered for her role of Lily Munster in the cult television series ‘The Munsters’ (1964-1966), which allowed De Carlo to demonstrate a comic flair that her films had failed to utilize.
While it lasted only two years, the series left an ever-lasting impact on the viewers and it also resulted in two feature movies, ‘Munster Go Home!’ (1966) and ‘The Munsters' Revenge.’ (1981, for TV).
At the series end, De Carlo commented: "It meant security. It gave me a new, young audience I wouldn't have had otherwise. It made me `hot' again, which I wasn't for a while.''
"I think she will best remembered as the definitive Lily Munster. She was the vampire mom to millions of baby boomers. In that sense, she's iconic," Burns said Wednesday.
"But it would be a shame if that's the only way she is remembered. She was also one of the biggest beauty queens of the `40s and `50s, one of the most beautiful women in the world. This was one of the great glamour queens of Hollywood, one of the last ones.''
When movie roles became scarce, she ventured into stage musicals. Her supreme stage victory came on Broadway in 1971 with ‘Follies,’ which won the 1972 Tony award for best original musical score.
She has also received eulogize in small budget horror movies like ‘The Power’, ‘The Seven Minutes’, ‘House of Shadows’, ‘Sorority House Murders’, ‘Cellar Dweller’, ‘Mirror, Mirror’, ‘Blazing Stewardesses’, and ‘American Gothic’.
De Carlo worked in both film and television, playing her most recent role in the television production of ‘The Barefoot Executive’ (1995) as Norma.
She was married to the stuntman Robert Morgan from 1955 to 1968, when they divorced; they had two sons, Bruce and Michael. Morgan had a daughter, Bari, from a previous marriage.
