Virginia Christine
Virginia Christine was an American stage, radio, film, television, and voice actress. Though Christine had a long career as a character actress in film and television, she is probably best remembered as "Mrs. Olson" in a string of television commercials for Folgers Coffee during the 1960s and '70s.
Early life
Christine was born Virginia Christine Ricketts in Stanton in Montgomery County in southwestern Iowa. She was of Swedish descent. Upon her mother's remarriage, she changed her last name to "Kraft". The family later moved to Des Moines in Polk County, where Virginia attended Elmwood Elementary School. The family relocated again to Des Moines County in southeastern Iowa, not to be confused with the state capital in central Iowa. There Christine attended Mediapolis High School, where she aspired to be a concert pianist. Her family later moved to California, where she enrolled at UCLA.Career
Radio and films
Christine began working in radio during college. She began training for a theatrical career with actor/director Fritz Feld whom she married in 1940. In 1942, she made her stage debut in the Los Angeles production of Hedda Gabler. While performing in the play, she was spotted by an agent from Warner Bros. who signed her to a film contract with the studio. Her first film for Warner's was Edge of Darkness, in which she played a Norwegian peasant girl. She was dropped by Warner Bros. in 1943 and signed with Universal Pictures in 1944. That year, Christine had a supporting role in The Mummy's Curse and The Wife of Monte Cristo, with her husband Fritz Feld. In 1946, she appeared in The Scarlet Horseman, a 13-chapter film serial playing Carla Marquette, or Matosca, followed by a supporting role in the mystery film The Inner Circle. Christine's next film for Universal was the film noir classic The Killers. She initially tested for the lead role of femme fatale Kitty Collins, but lost out to Ava Gardner. The film's producer, Mark Hellinger, was impressed with her test and cast her as Lilly Harmon Lubinsky, the wife of Lt. Sam Lubinsky. Christine also portrayed the role of Miss Watston in the 1964 remake of the film, starring Lee Marvin and Angie Dickinson.In 1950, she played an uncredited supporting role in The Men. Although the part was small and the film was not a commercial success, her performance impressed the film's producer Stanley Kramer. She became a favorite of his, and went on to appear in a number of his films including Cyrano de Bergerac and High Noon. Kramer later cast her in the 1955 drama Not as a Stranger, where she played a countrywoman. She also coached the film's star Olivia de Havilland on her Swedish accent. The following year, she co-starred in the horror film Invasion of the Body Snatchers. In 1961, Kramer cast her again as a German housekeeper in Judgment at Nuremberg. One of her most notable roles was as Hilary St. George, the bigoted co-worker of Katharine Hepburn's character in the 1967 film Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.
Television
In addition to her work in films, Christine also appeared in numerous television series. In the 1950s, she appeared in multiple guest roles on The Abbott and Costello Show, Four Star Playhouse, Dragnet, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Ford Television Theatre, Gunsmoke, Science Fiction Theatre, Matinee Theatre, Father Knows Best, Trackdown, State Trooper, , The Rifleman, Letter to Loretta,Superman, and General Electric Theater. In November 1959, Christine co-starred as the wife of a verbally abusive hypochondriac in the first-season episode of The Twilight Zone entitled "Escape Clause".In 1960 and 1961, Christine guest starred on episodes of Coronado 9, Rawhide, and The Untouchables. From 1961 to 1962, Christine had a recurring role as widow Ovie Swenson in the Western series Tales of Wells Fargo. She made four guest appearances on Perry Mason, including the role of defendant Beth Sandover in the season 6, 1962 episode, "The Case of the Double-Entry Mind," and murderer Edith Summers in the season 7, 1963 episode, "The Case of the Devious Delinquent." For the remainder of the decade, she continued with guest starring roles in such shows as 77 Sunset Strip, Ben Casey, Bonanza, The Fugitive, Hazel, Wagon Train, The Virginian, Going My Way, The F.B.I., and Daniel Boone. In 1969, Christine co-starred in the ABC television movie Daughter of the Mind.
Her greatest fame came in 1965 when she began her 21-year stint as the matronly Mrs. Olson, who had comforting words for young married couples while pouring Folgers Coffee in the television commercials. The commercials became a popular staple on television, whereupon the character began to be parodied by comedians and entertainers including Carol Burnett, Johnny Carson, Bob Hope, Ann-Margret, and Jackie Gleason. She would go on to appear in over 100 commercials for Folgers. In 1971, Christine's hometown of Stanton, Iowa, honored her by transforming the city water tower to resemble a giant coffee pot.
During the 1970s, Christine continued to work primarily in television. Her last role was on the 1979 animated series Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo, in which she provided additional voices.
Later years
Christine retired from acting in 1979. After her retirement, she did volunteer work at Planned Parenthood, and served as a judge at the American College Theatre Festival. Christine was later appointed the honorary mayor of Brentwood, Los Angeles where she and her husband resided for many years.Personal life
In November 1940, Christine married character actor Fritz Feld. The couple had two sons, Steven and Danny. Christine and Feld remained married until Feld's death in 1993.Death
On July 24, 1996, Christine died at her Brentwood home of cardiovascular disease. Her interment was at the Jewish Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills section of Los Angeles.Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1951 | Front Page Detective | Beatrice Hillmane | Episode: "The Devil's Bible" |
| 1952 | Racket Squad | Episode: "The Phantom Bible" | |
| 1952 | Personal Appearance Theater | Episode: "The Chair" | |
| 1952 | Dangerous Assignment | Carla | Episode: "The Perfect Alibi" |
| 1952–1953 | The Abbott and Costello Show | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1952–1954 | Dragnet | Various roles | 4 episodes |
| 1953 | I'm the Law | Elliot | Episode: "The Model Agency Story" |
| 1953–1954 | Four Star Playhouse | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1954 | Adventures of Superman | Mrs. Frank | Episode: "Lady in Black" |
| 1954 | The Whistler | Helen | Episode: "The Return" |
| 1954–1956 | The Ford Television Theatre | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1955 | Studio 57 | Jenny Pickett | Episode: "The Ballad of Jubal Pickett" |
| 1955 | Stage 7 | Secretary | Episode: "The Press Conference" |
| 1955 | Soldiers of Fortune | Bonnie | Episode: "Run 'Till You Die" |
| 1955 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1956 | Crusader | Episode: "Fear" | |
| 1956 | The Star and the Story | Alice | Episode: "Arab Duel" |
| 1956 | Front Row Center | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1956 | Private Secretary | Maud | Episode: "Elusive" |
| 1956 | Big Town | Episode: "Blackmail" | |
| 1956 | Passport to Danger | Episode: "London" | |
| 1956 | Science Fiction Theatre | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1956 | The Adventures of Jim Bowie | Katrina Gotshawk | Episode: "The Squatter" |
| 1956 | Cavalcade of America | Mrs. Sargent | Episode: "Innocent Bystander" |
| 1956–1957 | Matinee Theater | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1956–1958 | Father Knows Best | Grace | 2 episodes |
| 1956–1959 | General Electric Theater | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1957 | Wire Service | Sigrid Jensen | Episode: "Profile of Ellen Gale" |
| 1957 | Hey, Jeannie! | Mrs. Warren | Episode: "Jeannie Plays Cupid" |
| 1957 | The Lone Ranger | Cecile Charron | Episode: "Canuck" |
| 1957 | Casey Jones | Doris Jones | Episode: "Storm Warning" |
| 1957–1958 | Trackdown | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1957–1959 | State Trooper | Various roles | 3 episodes |
| 1957–1965 | Gunsmoke | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1958 | The Restless Gun | Amy Durant | Episode: "Strange Family in Town" |
| 1958 | Whirlybirds | Mrs. Thompson | Episode: "The Brothers" |
| 1958 | Mike Hammer | June Earl | Episode: "For Sale, Deathbed, Used" |
| 1958 | The Millionaire | Mrs. Barnett | Episode: "The Russ White Story" |
| 1958 | The Thin Man | Mildred | Episode: "The Valley Forger" |
| 1958 | Behind Closed Doors | Julie | Episode: "The Cape Canaveral Story" |
| 1958 | Peter Gunn | Nancy Davis | Episode: "The Vicious Dog" |
| 1958 | Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre | Mrs. Julie Hart | Episode: "The Scaffold" |
| 1958 | Buckskin | Miss Emily Pringle | Episode: "Miss Pringle" |
| 1958 | The Donna Reed Show | Margaret Lang | Episode: "The Baby Contest" |
| 1958 | The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp | Martha Evans | Episode: "Plague Carrier" |
| 1958–1960 | Letter to Loretta | Various roles | 3 episodes |
| 1958–1963 | Perry Mason | Various roles | 4 episodes |
| 1959 | Rescue 8 | Millie Wilde | Episode: "Flash Flood" |
| 1959 | Steve Canyon | Mary Moore | Episode: "The Bomb" |
| 1959 | The Lawless Years | Mrs. Pavlock | Episode: "The Immigrant" |
| 1959 | Frontier Doctor | Hester Gray, Stan's Sister | Episode: "The Twisted Road" |
| 1959 | Man Without a Gun | Episode: "Eye Witness" | |
| 1959 | How to Marry a Millionaire | Alma Fergeson | Episode: "Love On Approval" |
| 1959 | ' | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1959 | The DuPont Show with June Allyson | Mother | Episode: "The Opening Door" |
| 1959 | The Twilight Zone | Ethel Bedeker | Episode: "Escape Clause" |
| 1959 | The Man from Blackhawk | Mary Schuler | Episode: "Death Is the Best Policy" |
| 1959–1961 | The Rifleman | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1960 | M Squad | Mrs. Fassard | Episode: "The Twisted Way" |
| 1960 | Riverboat | Aunt Samantha Dexter | Episode: "The Treasure of Hawk Hill" |
| 1960 | Happy | Janice | Episode: "Charlie's First Love" |
| 1960 | Thriller | Marge | Episode: "The Twisted Image" |
| 1960–1961 | Coronado 9 | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1960–1961 | Rawhide | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1960–1961 | The Untouchables | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1960–1963 | 77 Sunset Strip | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1961 | Maverick | Verna Lyme | Episode: "Last Stop: Oblivion" |
| 1961 | Shirley Temple Theatre | Rebecca Baines | Episode: "Onawandah" |
| 1961 | The Deputy | Molly Baker | Episode: "Tension Point" |
| 1961 | This Is the Life | Sophia Szabo | Episode: "Song in the Night" |
| 1961 | The Asphalt Jungle | Miss Brandt | Episode: "The Sniper" |
| 1961 | Mister Ed | Margaret | Episode: "Little Boy" |
| 1961–1962 | Tales of Wells Fargo | Ovie Swenson | 14 episodes |
| 1961–1965 | Wagon Train | Various roles | 5 episodes |
| 1962 | The New Breed | Episode: "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here" | |
| 1962 | ' | Lorraine | Episode: "A Book of Faces" |
| 1962 | Going My Way | Mrs. Randall | Episode: "The Parish Car" |
| 1962 | Stoney Burke | Flora Hill | Episode: "A Matter of Pride" |
| 1962 | The Eleventh Hour | Mrs. Drury | Episode: "My Name Is Judith, I'm Lost, You See" |
| 1963–1964 | Ben Casey | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1963–1964 | Bonanza | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1963–1967 | The Virginian | Various roles | "To Make This Place Remember" and 3 other episodes |
| 1964 | Mr. Novak | Mrs. Payne | Episode: "The Exile" |
| 1964 | Hazel | Mrs. McGuire | Episode: "Luncheon with the Governor" |
| 1964–1965 | The Fugitive | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1965 | The Big Valley | Margaret Coleman | Episode: "The Young Marauders" |
| 1966 | Laredo | Agnes Halsey | Episode: "Sound of Terror" |
| 1966 | A Man Called Shenandoah | Fran Macauley | Episode: "Macauley's Cure" |
| 1966 | Jericho | Episode: "Long Journey Across a Short Street" | |
| 1966–1968 | The F.B.I. | Various roles | 3 episodes |
| 1967 | Felony Squad | Cleaning Woman | Episode: "The Deadly Partner" |
| 1967 | The Invaders | Mrs. Thorne | Episode: "Labyrinth" |
| 1968–1970 | Daniel Boone | Various roles | 2 episodes |
| 1969 | Lancer | Hannah Sickles | Episode: "Child of Rock and Sunlight" |
| 1969 | Daughter of the Mind | Helga | Television movie |
| 1970 | Nanny and the Professor | Mrs. Wilson | Episode: "Nanny and the Smoke-Filled Room" |
| 1970 | The Old Man Who Cried Wolf | Miss Cummings | Television movie |
| 1974 | Ironside | Mrs. Hawkins | Episode: "Raise the Devil: Part 1" |
| 1976 | Woman of the Year | Alma | Television movie |
| 1976 | Kojak | Mrs. Yankowski | Episode: "By Silence Betrayed" |
| 1979 | Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo | Additional voices | Unknown episodes |