Louise Allbritton

Louise Allbritton (July 3, 1920 – February 16, 1979)

Allbritton was an American film and stage actress born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She played in such films as Pittsburgh (1942), Son of Dracula (1943), The Egg and I (1947), and Sitting Pretty (1948). She gained acting experience with positive reviews at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California. This was followed by her having roles in two unsuccessful Columbia Studio films. In hope that she would return home, her father discontinued financing her pursuit of an acting career. At this point, she signed a seven-year contract with Universal Studios, which enabled her to continue to stay in California and pursue her acting career. During World War II, she toured with an USO group and "gave show after show, many of them to the accompaniment of the thunder of enemy guns”. She had a leading role in the Broadway production of The Seven Year Itch. On television, she played the title role in the NBC-TV series Concerning Miss Marlowe (1954) and co-starred in the CBS drama Stage Door (1950). She was married to CBS news correspondent and author Charles Collingwood from 1946 until her death. Allbritton died of cancer at age 58 on February 16, 1979, in Puerta Vallarta, Mexico, where she and Collingwood had one of their homes. Her body was cremated, and the remains kept with family.