Louise Latham R.I.P.

Louise Latham, who played the mother of the title character in Marine (1964)  and appeared frequently on television, died on February 12 2018 at the age of 95.

Louise Latham was born on September 23 1922 in Hamilton, Texas. She started her career at the Margo Jones Theatre in Dallas, Texas. She made her debut on Broadway in a revival of Major Barbara in 1956. In 1961 she made her television debut in an episode of Armstrong Circle Theatre. During the Sixties she guest starred on such shows as The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Rogues, Mr. Novak, Perry Mason, Ben Casey, Run for Your Life, The Invaders, The Fugitive, Family Affair, The F.B.I., Bonanza, and Ironside. She appeared in the films Marnie (1964), Firecreek (1968), Hail, Hero! (1969), and Adam at Six A.M. (1970).  She appeared on Broadway in Isle of Children in 1962.

In the Seventies Miss Latham guest starred on such shows as McCloud, Cannon, The Sixth Sense, Hawaii Five-O, The Streets of San Francisco, Hec Ramsey, Columbo, Gunsmoke, Medical Centre, The Six Milllion Dollar Man, The Waltons, Quincy M.E., Eight is Enough, and CHiPs. She was a regular on the short-lived Western Sara. She appeared in the movies Making It (1971), White Lightning (1973), The Sugarland Express (1974), and 92 in the Shade (1975).

In the Eighties Louise Latham appeared in the mini-series Fresno and was a regular on the TV series Hothouse. She appeared on such shows as The Wonderful World of Disney, Highway to Heaven, Hotel, Designing Women, Hunter, and Falcon Crest. She appeared in the movies The Philadelphia Experiment (1984) and Mass Appeal (1984). In the Nineties she appeared on such shows as Roc; Murder, She Wrote; Earth 2; ER; and The X-Files. She appeared in the mini-series Cruel Doubt and In Cold Blood. She appeared in the films Paradise (1991) and Love Field (1995).

Louise Latham was a very talented actress. For movie buffs she may be best remembered as Marnie's manipulative mother in Marnie. On The Waltons she played a role as far from Mrs. Edgar as one could get--Olivia's aunt who helps her cope with menopause. She could play good characters and evil characters with equal ease, from a murderer on Perry Mason to the kind-hearted mother of a Downs syndrome patient on ER. Louise Latham was extremely versatile.