Audrey Totter – The Daughter of Audrey Totter

Audrey Totter is no longer with us. She passed away on Thursday, December 12, 2013, at age 95 in Los Angeles, California. Totter’s death was caused by congestive heart failure. Totter, who was married to doctor Leo Fred, was a well-known actress and television star. Her career spanned over seven decades and included roles in a number of movies and television shows. After her husband’s passing in 1995, Totter began receiving job offers.

In 1947, the big break for Totter was her role in Raymond Chandler’s Lady in the Lake. The film was a big success. Totter was praised as one of the female stars in the film, credited with playing an important and cynical role in the story. Another of her notable performances was in the noir thriller The Unsuspected, in which she played a gold digger.

Other notable roles include her starring turn as nurse Wilcox on the medical drama series Medical Center from 1972 to 1976. She was also known for her role as the boarding house owner Beth Purcell in the television western Cimarron City. Aside from her memorable role on “Medical Center,” Totter also appeared in a short film titled the Alias Nick Beal with Ray Milland in 1949. As for a recent venture, she was a guest on the NBC sitcom Perry Mason.

Apart from her acting career, Totter also had a hand in launching two businesses. She was an actress on radio and was a touring stage performer in Chicago. For her efforts on the silver screen, she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 1954. This was the first of many roles that Totter would be recognized for.

While Totter’s career didn’t quite live up to her expectations, she did make some notable attempts to reinvent herself, despite her age. She had a daughter and was a former member of the Hollywood elite, albeit on a smaller scale. By the mid-1950s, she was working for both 20th Century Fox and Columbia Pictures. Unfortunately, she was unhappy with her roles and didn’t have the same successes in the studio system that her predecessors had.

As for the small screen, she was a guest on many of the top-rated shows of the era, including Perry Mason and Meet McGraw. She was also one of the finalists in the TV competition “Idiot’s Guide to the Stars.” She even starred in an episode of the science fiction show Spider, Inc. in 1955. However, she was best known for her role as Nurse Wilcox on the medical drama series Medical Centre from 1972 to 1976. It was this role that prompted her to write a book.

Perhaps the most notable ‘first’ for Totter was her role as a publishing executive in the hit film Lady in the Lake. Although it may be a long time before she makes another appearance on the big screen, Totter will be remembered as a true American original.