Lara Parker was born Mary Lamar Rickey on October 27 1938 in Knoxville, Tennessee. She grew up in Memphis, where her father was a prominent attorney. She graduated from Memphis High School, then attended Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York, where she was majoring in philosophy. She switched to Rhodes College in Memphis, where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree. While attending Rhodes, she served as Wink Martindale's assistant on the show Dance Party on WHBQ-TV. She later received a Master of Arts degree at the University of Iowa.
Lara Parker spent a summer acting at the Millbrook Playhouse in Pennsylvania, and then went to New York to further pursue her career in acting. Her second-only professional audition there resulted in Lara Parker being cast as Angelique on Dark Shadows. Angelique was the primary antagonist on the show, a powerful witch born in the 17th Century who had fallen in love with Barnabas Collins and became his enemy after he fell in love with Josette du Prés. Lara Parker would remain with Dark Shadows until its very end, playing the role of Alexis Stokes (Angelique's twin) on the show. She reprised the role of Angelique in the feature film Night of Dark Shadows (1971). In the late Sixties she also appeared on the soap opera One Life to Live and guest starred on the show N.Y.P.D. She appeared in the movies Hi, Mom! (1970) and April in the Wind (1970). In 1968 she appeared on Broadway in Woman is My Idea.
In the Seventies Miss Parker appeared on the television mini-series Washington: Behind Closed Doors. She guest starred on the shows Kung Fu; The F.B.I.; Insight; Medical Center; Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law; Lucas Tanner; The Rockford Files; Police Woman; Kolchak: The Night Stalker; S.W.A.T.; Mobile One; Emergency!; Doctors' Hospital; The Six Million Dollar Man; Jigsaw John; City of Angels; Kojak; Alice; The Incredible Hulk; Switch; Barretta; Quincy M.E.; Sword of Justice; The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo; Barnaby Jones; Hawaii Five-O; Mrs. Columbo; Hagen; Galactica 1980; and This is the Life. She appeared in the movies Save the Tiger (1975), Airport 1975 (1974), and Race with the Devil (1975).
In the Eighties Lara Parker was a regular on the short-lived show Jessica Novak and the soap opera Capitol. She guest starred on the shows The Fall Guy, A New Day in Eden, Manimal, Remington Steele, Highway to Heaven, and The Highwayman. She appeared in the movie Foxfire Light (1983). In the Nineties she guest starred on the show P.S.I. Luv U.
In the Teens she had a cameo in the movie Dark Shadows (2012). She appeared in two "Dr. Mabuse" films alongside other veterans of Dark Shadows: Doctor Mabuse (2013) and Doctor Mabuse: Etiopomar (2014). She guest starred on the YouTube series Theatre Fantastique.
Lara Parker wrote four Dark Shadows novels (Angelique's Descent, The Salem Branch, Wolf Moon Rising, and Heiress of Collinswood). Lara Parker also reprised the role of Angelique in audio dramas by Big Finish Productions. She also taught high school English and received a Master in Fine Arts from Antioch University.
Lara Parker was an immensely talented actress. She did an incredible job of playing Angelique on Dark Shadow. Indeed, her performance was so good that there are those who count Angelique among the greatest television villains of all time. Of course, she played other roles than Angelique. In Save the Tiger she played Margo, the prostitute who is heartbroken when one of her clients dies of a heart attack. In Race with the Devil she played Kelly, the wife of Roger Marsh (Peter Fonda), who finds herself having to deal with Satanists. In the Kung Fu episode "King of the Mountain" she played the owner of a ranch in a severe state of disrepair, for whom Caine (David Carradine) goes to work. In the Rockford Files episode "Sleight of Hand," she played Diana Lewis, who looks suspiciously like a woman whose disappearance Jim Rockford (James Garner) is investigating.
Of course, in addition to being a talented actress, Lara Parker was also a very talented writer. On top of all that, she was also an incredibly nice person. Those fortunate enough to have met her describe her as sweet and personable. If Dark Shadows fans loved her so, it was not simply because she kept the legacy of the show alive for years. It is because she was a true lady.
No comments:
Post a Comment