Sharon Farrell
| Name | Sharon Farrell |
| Image |  |
| Caption | Farrell in 1965 |
| Birth Name | Sharon Lee Forsmoe |
| Birth Date | 1940-12-24 |
| Birth Place | Sioux City, Iowa, U.S. |
| Death Place | Orange County, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Yearsactive | 1959–1999; 2013–2014 |
| Children | 1 |
| Mother | Hazel Ruth Huffman Forsmoe |
| Father | Darrel LaValle Forsmoe |
Sharon Farrell (born Sharon Forsmoe, December 24, 1940 – May 15, 2023) was an American actress and dancer. Originally beginning her career as a ballerina with the American Ballet Theatre company, Farrell made her film debut in 1959 in Kiss Her Goodbye, followed by roles in 40 Pounds of Trouble (1962), and the neo-noirs A Lovely Way to Die (1968) and Marlowe (1969). She worked prolifically in television, including recurring parts in the series Saints and Sinners (1962), Dr. Kildare (1965), and Hawaii Five-O (1980).
Farrell's other roles include Larry Cohen's horror film It's Alive (1974), Dennis Hopper's drama film Out of the Blue (1980), and the teen comedy Can't Buy Me Love (1987). She continued to appear in television and film until 1999. In 2013, she reappeared in a minor role in the web series Broken at Love. Until her death in 2023, she was the last living Hawaii Five-O cast member.
Early life
Born Sharon Forsmoe on Christmas Eve 1940
to Hazel Ruth (née Huffman) and Darrel LaValle Forsmoe in Sioux City, Iowa, she was of Norwegian descent and was raised with her sister, Dale Candice, in a Lutheran family. During her childhood, Farrell studied ballet and was involved in the theater department during high school. Farrell toured with the American Ballet Theatre Company as a dancer, which brought her to New York City.
Career
Farrell made her acting debut at age 18 in the 1959 film Kiss Her Goodbye. She took her stage name from combining her surname and her father's given name Darrel, with "F" for Forsmoe and two "L"s.
From the 1960s to the 1980s, Farrell appeared in such films as The Reivers (1969), Marlowe (1969), It's Alive (1974), The Stunt Man (1980), Out of the Blue (1980), Night of the Comet (1984), and Can't Buy Me Love (1987).
In addition to film work, Farrell also appeared in guest roles on various television shows, including Death Valley Days, Gunsmoke, The Wild Wild West, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., I Dream of Jeannie, My Favorite Martian, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and Hawaii Five-O.
In 1991, she joined the cast of the long-running soap opera The Young and the Restless, remaining with the show until 1997. Farrell's last television role was in a 1999 episode of JAG.
Between 2013 and 2014, Farrell appeared in the web series Broken at Love, marking her first on-screen appearance in 14 years.
Personal life and death
Farrell's first marriage was to actor Andrew Prine in 1962. They later divorced, reportedly after only living together for one month and ten days.
Farrell had one son, Chance Boyer, born when she was dating actor John F. Boyer. After Chance's birth in 1970, Farrell suffered an embolism, which caused her heart to stop beating for four minutes. She incurred serious brain damage that resulted in memory loss and physical impairments. With the help of colleagues, Farrell worked to regain her abilities, including her memory. She resumed her acting career, but for many years kept her illness a secret under the advice of friend and actor Steve McQueen, who warned her that if word got out, her career would be over.
Farrell was married to director Dale Trevillian for 32 years. In her autobiography Sharon Farrell: "Hollywood Princess" from Sioux City, Iowa, she claimed that she had romantic relationships with many famous people, including Che Guevara, Steve McQueen, and Bruce Lee.
Unreported until 5 August 2023, Farrell died on 15 May 2023, at the age of 82, possibly in Orange County, California, or Los Angeles Downtown Medical Center.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Kiss Her Goodbye | Emily Wilson | |
| 1962 | 40 Pounds of Trouble | Dolores | |
| 1965 | The Spy with My Face | Sandy Wister | |
| 1968 | A Lovely Way to Die | Carol | |
| 1969 | Marlowe | Orfamay Quest | |
| 1969 | The Reivers | Corrie | |
| 1971 | The Love Machine | Maggie Stewart | |
| 1974 | It's Alive | Lenore | |
| 1976 | The Premonition | Sheri Bennett | |
| 1978 | The Fifth Floor | Melanie | |
| 1980 | Out of the Blue | Kathy | |
| 1980 | The Stunt Man | Denise | |
| 1981 | Separate Ways | Karen Haskell | |
| 1983 | Sweet Sixteen | Kathy Hopkins | |
| 1983 | Lone Wolf McQuade | Molly McQuade | |
| 1984 | Night of the Comet | Doris | |
| 1987 | Can't Buy Me Love | Mrs. Mancini | |
| 1989 | One Man Force | Shirley | |
| 1991 | Lonely Hearts | Louise | |
| 1993 | Arcade | Alex's Mom | Video |
| 1995 | Beyond Desire | Shirley | |
| 1995 | A Gift from Heaven | Ma Samuels | |
| 1996 | Timeless Obsession | Mrs. Sparrow | |
| 1997 | Last Chance Love | Mrs. Worthington |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Naked City | Actress (uncredited) | Episode: "The Hot Minerva" | |
| 1962 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Lolly Wilkens | Episode: "The Matched Pearl" | |
| 1962 | Wagon Train | Judy | Episode: "The Orly French Story" | |
| 1962–1963 | Saints and Sinners | Polly Holloran | 12 episodes | |
| 1963 | Empire | Lisa Barry | Episode: "Stopover on the Way to the Moon" | |
| 1963 | My Favorite Martian | Gloria Trimble | Episode: "There Is No Cure for the Common Martian" | |
| 1963 | Death Valley Days | Cara Franklin | Episode: "The Holy Terror" | |
| 1963 | Kraft Suspense Theatre | Althea Winton | Episode: "Are There Any More Out There Like You?" | |
| 1963 | Lieutenant | Pam Canford | Episode: "Alert" | |
| 1963 | Ben Casey | Michael Ann Bowersox | Episode: "The White Ones Are Dolphins" | |
| 1963 | Gunsmoke | Lottie Belle | Episode: "With a Smile" Episode: "Quint's Trail" | |
| 1964 | Arrest and Trial | Angela | Episode: "Onward and Upward" | |
| 1964 | Wagon Train | Pearlie Garnet | Episode: "The Pearlie Garnet Story" | |
| 1964 | Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre | Melissa | Episode: "A Slow Fade to Black" | |
| 1964 | Gunsmoke | Annie | Episode: "Trip West" | |
| 1964 | Burke's Law | Libby Hale | Episode: "Who Killed the Surf Broad?" | |
| 1964 | Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Melanie Rydell | Episode: "The Second Verdict" | |
| 1964 | Dr. Kildare | Jeanne Sawyer | Episode: "Night of the Beast" | |
| 1964 | Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Sandy Wister | Episode: "The Double Affair" | |
| 1964 | Ben Casey | Ellen Hardin | Episode: "For a Just Man Falleth Seven Times" | |
| 1965 | Ben Casey | Penny Carson | Episode: "The Day They Stole County General" | |
| 1965 | The Alfred Hitchcock Hour | Rosie | Episode: "Final Performance" | |
| 1965 | Beverly Hillbillies | Kitty Devine | Episode: "The Movie Starlet" | |
| 1965 | The Fugitive (1963 TV series) | Elvie | Episode: "Corner of Hell" | |
| 1965 | Rawhide | Billie Lou | Episode: "Hostage for Hanging" | |
| 1965 | I Dream of Jeannie | Nina Ferguson | Episode: "The Yacht Murder Case" | |
| 1965 | My Three Sons | Cathy | Episode: "My Son, the Ballerina" | |
| 1965 | Dr. Kildare | Glenda Hester Rachel Field | 3 episodes | |
| 1966 | The Wackiest Ship in the Army (TV series) | Episode: "Girl in Polka-Dot Swimsuit" | ||
| 1966 | Run for Your Life | Jenny Louise | Episode: "The Night of Terror" Episode: "The Sex Object" | |
| 1966 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Leslie Stemmler | Episode: "The Minus-X Affair" | |
| 1967 | Iron Horse | Carrie | Episode: "The Pembrooke Blood" | |
| 1967 | The Man from U.N.C.L.E. | Jacqueline Midcult | Episode: "The Pieces of Fate Affair" | |
| 1967 | The Virginian (TV series) | Mavis | Episode: "Execution at Triste" | |
| 1968 | Wild Wild West | Cloris Colton | Episode: "The Night of the Amnesiac" | |
| 1968 | Insight | Episode: "Look Back to the Garden" | ||
| 1968 | Premiere | Joan Mears | Episode: "Lassiter" | |
| 1969 | The Name of the Game (TV series) | Jesse Boone | Episode: "A Hard Case of the Blues" | |
| 1970 | Quarantined | Ginny Pepper | TV movie | |
| 1970 | Medical Center | Linda Atwood | Episode: "Between Dark and Daylight" | |
| 1970 | Men at Law | Donna Brooks | Episode: "Easy to Be Hard" | |
| 1971 | The Name of the Game | Sandrelle | Episode: "LA 2017" | |
| 1971 | Dr. Simon Locke | Maggie | Episode: "Target Ms. Blue" | |
| 1971 | The D.A. (1971 TV series) | Georgia Young | Episode: "The People vs. Edwards" | |
| 1972 | 1 | Emily Parkhurst | TV movie | |
| 1972 | Banyon | Wanda | Episode: "Meal Ticket" | |
| 1972 | Marcus Welby, M.D. | Cecile Ramsey | Episode: "He Could Sell Iceboxes to Eskimos" | |
| 1973 | New Perry Mason | Pat Morrisey | Episode: "The Case of the Murdered Murderer" | |
| 1973 | Police Story | Bobbie | Episode: "Requiem for an Informer" | |
| 1973 | Wide World Mystery | Linda | Episode: "A Little Bit Like Murder" | |
| 1974 | Wide World Mystery | Madeline Rivera | Episode: "The Cloning of Clifford Swimmer" | |
| 1974 | Love, American Style | Sheila | Episode: "Love and the Flying Finletters" | |
| 1974 | The F.B.I. (TV series) | Lee Thomas | Episode: "The $20,000,000 Hit" | |
| 1974 | Police Story | Bobbie | Episode: "The Hunters" | |
| 1974 | Chase | Elaine | Episode: "Remote Control" | |
| 1974 | Insight | Susan | Episode: "The Theft" | |
| 1974 | The Underground Man | Marty Nickerson | TV movie | |
| 1974 | Petrocelli | Arlene Johnson | Episode: "A Life for a Life" | |
| 1974 | Six Million Dollar Man | Angie Walker | Episode: "Stranger in Broken Fork" | |
| 1974 | Police Woman | Marcia Gordon | Episode: "The Cradle Robbers" | |
| 1975 | Emergency! | Catherine | Episode: "Smoke Eater" | |
| 1975 | Harry O | Pauline | Episode: "For the Love of Money" | |
| 1975 | Kolchak: The Night Stalker | Lila Morton | Episode: "Chopper" | |
| 1975 | Police Story | Kathy Sherman | Episode: "The Execution" | |
| 1975 | McCloud | Holly Dayton | Episode: "Showdown at Times Square" | |
| 1975 | Bronk | Episode: "The Pickoff" | ||
| 1976 | Police Woman | Hallie | Episode: "The Death of a Dream" | |
| 1976 | Gibbsville | Mildred | Episode: "Afternoon Waltz" | |
| 1978 | Hawaii Five-O | Frankie Demara | ||
| 1978 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | Mamma Doyle | Episode: "The Young Runaways" | |
| 1978 | Match Game '78 | Herself | 5 Episodes | |
| 1978 | Man from Atlantis | Charlene Baker | Episode: "Deadly Carnival" | |
| 1979 | 1 | Flo Quick | TV movie | |
| 1979 | Mrs. Columbo | Dorothy Hunt | Episode: "Falling Star" | |
| 1980 | Hawaii Five-O | Det. Lori Wilson | 13 episodes | |
| 1980 | Rage | Dottie | TV movie | |
| 1981 | Born to Be Sold | Joan Helick | TV movie | |
| 1983 | T. J. Hooker | Irene Gordon | Episode: "Sweet Sixteen and Dead" | |
| 1983 | Small & Frye | Rita | Episode: "The Case of the Street of Silence" | |
| 1984–1985 | Rituals | Cherry Lane | TV series | |
| 1989 | Freddy's Nightmares | Mrs. Wax | Episode: "Do You Know Where Your Kids Are?" | |
| 1991–1996 | The Young and the Restless | Florence Webster | TV series | |
| 1992 | Matlock | Rose Ballou | Episode: "The Abduction" | |
| 1993 | Sworn to Vengeance | Sylvia Haskell | TV movie | |
| 1995 | Yakuza Connection | Lois | TV movie | |
| 1999 | JAG | Mary Hanratti | Episode: "Dungaree Justice" | |
| 2013–2014 | Broken at Love | Grandma Geraldine | 2 episodes |
References
Notes
- Obituary for Hazel Ruth Forsmoe at Waterbury Funeral Service of Sioux City, waterburyfunerals.com, 3 September 2023, en
- Hazel Forsmoe Obituary - Waterbury Funeral Service, Legacy.com, Sergeant Bluff, 2018
- Darrel L Forsmoe, AncientFaces, 3 September 2023, en
- Darrell Forsmoe in the 1940 Census, Ancestry.com, en
- Hazel R.E. Forsmoe, 3 September 2023, Sioux City Journal, 17 April 2018, en
- THE RESILIENT 'PRINCESS', Mitchell, Bruce, June 6, 2012, siouxcityjournal.com, November 3, 2012, October 26, 2012, live
- Actress Without a Past Finds Future in Soap, Hirsch, Lynda, 1991-11-26, Sun-Sentinel, November 3, 2012, 2014-10-25, dead
- April 10, 1963, Prine Divorces Wife, The Evening Independent, October 8, 2016, November 24, 2021, live
- Sixsmith, DJ, Matthew Polly: 'Bruce Lee Wanted To Be The Next Clint Eastwood, CBS, , Boston, June 11, 2018, November 24, 2021, June 23, 2018, live
- Sharon Farrell, Actress in 'It's Alive,' 'Marlowe' and 'The Reivers,' Dies at 82, Mike, Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, August 5, 2023, August 5, 2023
- Dockter, Mason, Sharon Farrell, Sioux City-born TV and film actress, dies, 3 September 2023, St. Joseph News-Press, Sioux City Journal, , Tribune Content Agency, News-Press & Gazette Company, 6 August 2023, en
Sources
External links
- https://catalog.afi.com/Person/139600-Sharon-Farrell
- Turner Classic Movies
- https://web.archive.org/web/20201124231712/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b9f747c8a
Category:1940 births
Category:2023 deaths
Category:Actors from Sioux City, Iowa
Category:Actresses from Iowa
Category:American ballerinas
Category:American film actresses
Category:Lutherans from Iowa
Category:American people of Norwegian descent
Category:American soap opera actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:21st-century American actresses