Diane Varsi

Varsi suffered from Lyme disease, which contributed to her death from respiratory failure.
. It was the last time she was seen on film. 1980:. Varsi appears only for a moment in the film and is almost unrecognizable; Deborah, the central character, crumples in misery on the floor of the dayroom, and Varsi breaks away from the wall, kneels by Deborah's side, and whispers a Roman Catholic blessing. 1971:. In the book, Sylvia was a patient in the mental hospital who ordinarily stood frozen by the wall and very rarely spoke, although completely aware of everything around her. 1970:.

Another very brief but memorable Varsi role was Sylvia in I Never Promised You A Rose Garden, based on the Joanne Greenberg novel about a Jewish teen whose allegiance to an alternate universe called the Kingdom Of Yr has led to her being diagnosed as a schizophrenic. 1968:. Varsi was rendered virtually mute and had to dub in her voice parts later. 1967:. The director, John Korty, would not let Varsi off for her dad's funeral. 1966:. Her portrayal of the would-be Oldest One with a dead-flat affect but compassionate expression and soft, recollected speaking voice was partly caused by the death of her father just before filming began. 1965:.

Science fiction and fantasy film fans probably remember Varsi best as Valancy Carmody in The People, a 1972 ABC-TV Movie of the Week based on a story by Zenna Henderson about peaceful alien refugees living on earth. 1964:. She appeared in the films Ten North Frederick (1958) and Compulsion (1959) and worked steadily throughout the 1960s. Her film career faded by the end of the decade and during the 1970s she played several television roles. 1963:. The same year, she shared a Golden Globe as "Most Promising Newcomer" with Sandra Dee and Carolyn Jones. 1962:. Born in San Mateo, California, Varsi made her screen debut in Peyton Place (1958), and received a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. 1961:.

Diane Marie Varsi (February 23, 1938 - November 19, 1992) was an American film and television actress. 1960:. 1959:. 1958:. 1957:.

1956:.
. She is buried in Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery. The exact circumstances of her death remain the subject of much speculation.

She was in the middle of filming of the movie Brainstorm and preparing to make her stage debut in a Los Angeles production of Anastasia, opposite Dame Wendy Hiller, when she drowned in a 1981 overnight accident while their yacht was anchored at Catalina Island, off the coast near Los Angeles at the age of only 43. Her two marriages to actor Robert Wagner, conducted in the public eye, were stormy; but they were once more reconciled at the time of her death. During these years, which were the best of her career as an adult actress, she was a real Hollywood star, and was compared favorably with Elizabeth Taylor. Having a nice voice, she was supposed to sing all her songs; however, in the end she was dubbed by professional singer Marni Nixon, which was to her a great disappointment.

Another of her great films was the musical by Leonard Bernstein, West Side Story, in which she played the leading character Maria. By the time she was 28, she was already a three-time Oscar nominee, winning Academy Award nominations for Rebel Without a Cause, Splendor in the Grass and Love With the Proper Stranger. A well-known child star, she was one of the relatively few who made the transition to adult stardom. Soon her parents changed their surname to Gurdin, and at the age of 4 she was billed as Natasha Gurdin.

She was born in San Francisco, California as the daughter of Russian immigrants. She was the sister of the also famous actress Lana Wood. Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko (July 20, 1938 - November 29, 1981), better known as Natalie Wood, was an American film actress. C.H.U.D. (1983).

The Last Married Couple in America (1980). Willie and Phil (1980). Corvette Summer (1979). Peeper (1975).

The Candidate (1972). Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice (1969). This Property is Condemned (1966). The Great Race (1965).

Sex and the Single Girl (1964). Love with the Proper Stranger (1963). Gypsy (1962). Splendor in the Grass (1961).

West Side Story (1961). All the Fine Young Cannibals (1960). The Searchers (1956). Rebel Without a Cause (1955).

Muir (1947). The Ghost and Mrs. Miracle on 34th Street (1947). Golden Globe Award - From Here to Eternity (1979) (mini) - Best TV Actress: Drama (won!).