M'el Dowd- where is she now?

[whyohwhyoh]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 7:29pm

Is it possible that M'el Dowd was only 19 years old as the standby for Geraldine Page in Sweet Bird?? It seems crazy. But her bio says she was born in 1940. Anyone shed light on this??

[allofmylife]

Posted: 2/5/11 at 3:35am

My parents took me to see the world premier of "Camelot" back in 1960. Then in the 1980s, Robert Goulet was appearing at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto. We all took a copy of the program and asked him to sign them at the same time. It blew him away. He sat in my mother's lap and sang "If Ever I Would Leave You" and I thought she would melt.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 2/5/11 at 10:08am

It's sad (but understandable) that M'el Dowd's part is cut from production of CAMELOT these days. CAMELOT is a helluva long show.

[Whistler]

Posted: 2/5/11 at 11:50pm

From Wikipedia, so only semi-dependable:

Dowd was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of John J. Dowd and Catherine O'Conner Dowd. She married Henri G. Eudes in 1962 and has one son. Making her professional debut Off-Broadway in the 1950s, Dowd soon appeared in a number of Broadway shows throughout the 1960s and into the 1970s, most notably originating the role of Morgan Le Fay in the long-running musical Camelot. She also appeared in several films, TV movies and guest spots on TV episodes, including the 1986 film F/X, where she played the role of "Joyce Lehman", and in the 1977 TV movie The Prince of Homburg, with Frank Langella.[2] Dowd has continued to act in recent years. In Goodspeed Musicals' 2003 production of Me and My Girl, according to Variety, "Dowd in particular, charmingly partnered by Dorian's tiddly Sir John, is the cement that holds this production together."[3] The New York Daily News wrote of her performance in A Little Night Music in 2001, "M'el Dowd [sang] the beguiling 'Follow Me,' as the worldweary Mme. Armfeldt, a role she plays deliciously.[4]

[alterego]

Posted: 2/6/11 at 5:15am

Follow Me is from CAMELOT not A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC. Then again you did say semi dependable.

[Whistler]

Posted: 2/6/11 at 3:01pm

Yeah, the "Follow Me" reference to "A Little Night Music" made no sense, but I just left the Wikipedia entry alone, figuring maybe someone else could sort ot out.

Also, it appears it was just her birthday, February 2nd.

And here are two more sets of Internet credits, overlapping, and not seemingly recent. And, yes, both still have her as the understudy in "Sweet Bird of Youth" at 20. But she's also listed as stage manager for the credit slightly earlier at the bottom, so maybe she was simply supporting herself, and there was a more appropriately aged standby for the Princess in "Sweet Bird" as well as Dowd as understudy.

Born February 2, in Chicago, IL; daughter of John J. and Catherine (an officemanager; maiden name, O'Conner) Dowd; married Henri G. Eudes (a maitre d'hotel), July 1, 1962; children: one son. Addresses: HOME--446 E. 86th Street, New York, NY 10028. OFFICE--Actors' Equity Association, 165 W. 46th Street, New York, NY 10036.

PRINCIPAL STAGE APPEARANCES; ALL IN NEW YORK CITY UNLESS INDICATED

BROADWAY DEBUT--Lady Macbeth, Macbeth, Jan Hus Theatre, 1955.
Titania, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Lady Capulet, Romeo and Juliet, both Jan Hus Theatre, 1956.
Portia, Julius Caesar, Jan Hus Theatre, 1957.
Lilith, Back to Methuselah, Ambassador Theatre, 1958.
Katherine of Aragon, Royal Gambit, Sullivan Street Playhouse, 1959.
Morgan Le Fey, Camelot, Majestic Theatre, 1960.
Agrippina, The Emperor, Maidman Theatre, 1963.
Anita Corcoran, A Case of Libel, Longacre Theatre, 1963.
Mrs. Emilia Pattison, The Right Honourable Gentleman, Billy Rose Theatre,1965.
Elsa Schraeder, The Sound of Music, City Center Theatre, 967.
woman, The Unknown Soldier and His Wife, Vivian Beaumont Theatre, 1967.
Louise, Everything in the Garden, Plymouth Theatre, 1967.
Hesione Hushabye, Heartbreak House, Arena Stage, Washington, DC, 1967.
Mrs. Pelham, The Right Honourable Gentleman, Huntington Hartford Theatre,Los Angeles, CA, 1967.
Andromache, Tiger at the Gates, Vivian Beaumont Theatre, 1968.
Countess Aurelia, Dear World, Mark Hellinger Theatre, 1969.
Great Aunt Amelia, Mercy Street, St. Clement's Church Theatre, 1969.
Maude Bodley, Not Now Darling, Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 1970.
Norma, A Gun Play, Cherry Lane Theatre, 1971.
Amelia Newsome, Ambassador, Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 1972.
Mary Cassett, Songs from the City Streets, Manhattan Theatre Club, 1979.
Frau Fahrenkopf, The Night of the Iguana, Morris Mechanic Theatre, Baltimore, MD, 1985.

Also appeared in Sweet Bird of Youth, Martin Beck Theatre, 1959; The Lady from Dubuque, Morosco Theatre, 1980; Mixed Couples, Brooks Atkinson Theatre,1980.

Credits; MAJOR TOURS
Lilith, Back to Methuselah, U.S. cities, 1958.
Hattie, Not Even in Spring, U.S. cities, 1965.

PRINCIPAL FILM APPEARANCES
FILM DEBUT--Miss O'Connor, The Wrong Man, Warner Brothers, 1957.
Mrs. Flint, This Could Be the Night, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), 1957.
Rita, Man on Fire, MGM, 1957.
Also appeared in The 300 Year Weekend, Cinerama, 1971.

PRINCIPAL TELEVISION APPEARANCES
Flipper, NBC.
Education Exchange, NBC.
Kate Farrow, The Best of Everything.
The Adams Chronicles, 1975.
The Prince of Homburg.
The Modern World of Shakespeare.
The Trial Begins.

---

Mixed Couples [Original, Play, Comedy] Dec 28, 1980 - Jan 3, 1981
Standby: M'el Dowd [Elberta, Clarice]

The Lady from Dubuque [Original, Play] Jan 31, 1980 - Feb 9, 1980
Standby: M'el Dowd [Elizabeth]

Ambassador [Original, Musical] Nov 19, 1972 - Nov 25, 1972
Performer: M'el Dowd [Amelia Newsome]

Not Now, Darling [Original, Play, Comedy] Oct 29, 1970 - Nov 14, 1970
Performer: M'el Dowd [Maude Bodley]

Dear World [Original, Musical] Feb 6, 1969 - May 31, 1969
Standby: M'el Dowd [Countess Aurelia]

Tiger at the Gates [Revival, Play, Drama] Feb 29, 1968 - Apr 6, 1968
Performer: M'el Dowd [Andromache]

Everything in the Garden [Original, Play] Nov 29, 1967 - Feb 10, 1968
Performer: M'el Dowd [Louise]

The Unknown Soldier and His Wife [Original, Play] Jul 6, 1967 - Nov 12, 1967
Performer: M'el Dowd [Woman]

The Right Honourable Gentleman [Original, Play] Oct 19, 1965 - Jan 29, 1966
Performer: M'el Dowd [Mrs. Emilia Pattison]

A Case of Libel [Original, Play, Drama] Oct 10, 1963 - May 9, 1964
Performer: M'el Dowd [Anita Corcoran]

Camelot [Original, Musical] Dec 3, 1960 - Jan 5, 1963
Also Starring: M'el Dowd [Morgan Le Fey]

Sweet Bird of Youth [Original, Play, Drama] Mar 10, 1959 - Jan 30, 1960
Understudy: M'el Dowd [Princess Kosmonopolis]

Back to Methuselah [Revival, Play, Comedy] Mar 26, 1958 - Apr 19, 1958
Stage Manager: M'el Dowd
Performer: M'el Dowd [Lilith]

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 2/6/11 at 10:33pm

There was a time when a second or third stage manager was an understudy, it was an accepted policy.