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Pamela Tiffin
Pamela Tiffin 1965.JPG
Tiffin in 1965
Born
Pamela Tiffin Wonso

(1942-10-13)October 13, 1942
Died December 2, 2020(2020-12-02) (aged 78)
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Education Hunter College
Occupation
  • Actress
  • model
Years active 1960–1989
Known for Summer and Smoke
One, Two, Three
State Fair
Spouse(s)
  • Clay Felker
    (m. 1962; div. 1969)
  • Edmondo Danon
    (m. 1974)
Children 2

Pamela Tiffin Wonso (October 13, 1942 – December 2, 2020) was an American film and television actress.

Early life

Tiffin was born in Oklahoma City to Stanley Wonso and Grace Irene (Tiffin) Wonso of Russian and British ancestry, but grew up in suburban Chicago, where she achieved success as a teen model. She attended Hunter College and appeared in a short film, Music of Williamsburg (1960).

Hollywood career

While vacationing in Hollywood at the age of 19, Tiffin visited the Paramount Pictures lot and was spotted by producer Hal B. Wallis, who arranged for her to take a screen test. As a result, she was cast in the film version of Summer and Smoke (1961).

Tiffin next played the daughter of James Cagney's boss in the comedy One, Two, Three (1961). The film's director Billy Wilder called her "the biggest find since Audrey Hepburn". She earned a Golden Globe nomination for each of her first two films,

She won the leading role in the Twentieth Century-Fox musical remake State Fair (1962), in which she was played Bobby Darin's love interest. She was one of the three leads in MGM's comedy Come Fly with Me (1963).

Tiffin studied at Columbia and continued to model. She appeared as a guest star on The Fugitive and filmed a television pilot for Fox titled Three in Manhattan that did not materialize into a series.

She made two films with James Darren, both aimed at teen audiences: For Those Who Think Young (1964) and The Lively Set (1964). Fox cast her The Pleasure Seekers (1964), a remake of Three Coins in the Fountain (1954).

Tiffin costarred with Burt Lancaster in the 1965 Western The Hallelujah Trail and appeared in a segment of Kiss the Other Sheik (1965) that was filmed in Italy. She next appeared in the mystery film Harper (1966) with Paul Newman and performed in Dinner at Eight on Broadway.

Italy

Giornata nera per l'ariete (1971) - Pamela Tiffin
Tiffin on the set of the 1971 Italian giallo film The Fifth Cord

In 1967, Tiffin relocated to Italy "to find out what I want." She appeared in The Almost Perfect Crime (1966) with Philippe Leroy; The Protagonists (1968); Torture Me But Kill Me with Kisses (1968), a hugely popular comedy; and The Archangel (1969) with Vittorio Gassman.

She appeared in her first American film in two years when she played a liberal college student and the love interest to Peter Ustinov in the comedy Viva Max! (1969). She performed in Uncle Vanya on stage and appeared in the final episode of the ABC series The Survivors, which aired in January 1970.

Tiffin returned to Italy to appear in Cose di Cosa Nostra (1971), The Fifth Cord (a.k.a. Evil Fingers) (1971), E se per caso una mattina... (1972), Deaf Smith & Johnny Ears (1973), Kill Me, My Love! (1973) with Farley Granger, La signora è stata violentata! (1973) and Brigitte, Laura, Ursula, Monica, Raquel, Litz, Florinda, Barbara, Claudia, e Sofia le chiamo tutte... anima mia (1974). She returned to Hollywood briefly to appear in the TV movie The Last of the Powerseekers (1971).

She appeared in the 2003 documentary Abel Ferrara: Not Guilty with her daughter Echo Danon.

Tiffin wrote a memoir, Daring: My Passages with Gail Sheehy in 2014. A biography of Tiffin titled Pamela Tiffin: Hollywood to Rome was written by Tom Lisanti in 2015.

Personal life

Tiffin married twice. Her first marriage was to Clay Felker, an American magazine editor, whom she married in 1962 and divorced in 1969. Her second marriage was to Edmondo Danon, a philosopher, and the son of Italian film producer Marcello Danon. They married in 1974 and had two daughters, Echo and Aurora.

Tiffin died on December 2, 2020 in a Manhattan hospital at the age of 78 from natural causes.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Title of work Result
1962 Golden Globe Most Promising Female Newcomer Summer and Smoke Nominated
1962 Golden Globe Best Supporting Actress One, Two, Three Nominated
1962 Laurel Award Top Female New Personality Nominated
1967 Theatre World Award Dinner at Eight Won

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Pamela Tiffin para niños

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