83
Age
32
Movies
47
TV Shows
7.2
Rating
Hope Summers could portray a friendly neighbor or companion as she did for Frances Bavier's Aunt Bee character on many episodes of The Andy Griffith Show (1960) or a seemingly amiable Satanist in Rosemary's Baby (1968).
83
Died at
32
Movies
47
TV Shows
7.2
Avg Rating
Hope Summers could portray a friendly neighbor or companion as she did for Frances Bavier's Aunt Bee character on many episodes of The Andy Griffith Show (1960) or a seemingly amiable Satanist in Rosemary's Baby (1968).
1962
Hope Summers could portray a friendly neighbor or companion as she did for Frances Bavier's Aunt Bee character on many episodes of The Andy Griffith Show (1960) or a seemingly amiable Satanist in Rosemary's Baby (1968).
Born in Mattoon, Illinois, she developed an early interest in the theater. Graduating from Northwestern School of Speech in Evanston, Illinois, she subsequently taught speech and diction there. This, in turn, led to her the head position in the Speech Department at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, teaching students privately on the side as well. In the 1930s Hope began to focus on acting. She found work in community and stock theaters in Illinois and earned some notice for putting on one-woman shows such as "Backstage of Broadway." She made use of her vocal eloquence by building up her resumé on radio, performing in scores of dramatic shows, including "Authors' Playhouse," "First Night," "Ma Perkins", and "Step-Mother".
In 1950 Hope transferred her talents to the new medium of television and earned a regular role on the comedy series Hawkins Falls: A Television Novel (1950). By the age of 50 she was customarily called upon to play slightly older than she was, appearing in a number of minuscule matron roles in such films as Zero Hour! (1957), Hound-Dog Man (1959), Inherit the Wind (1960), Spencer's Mountain (1963), The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966), Charley Varrick (1973) and her last, Foul Play (1978). She never had any major stand-out roles in movies; TV would be a more prolific choice of medium. Her gently stern, old-fashioned looks allowed her to be a part of many small-town settings, including Dennis the Menace (1959) and Petticoat Junction (1963), and in various western locales such as Maverick (1957) and Wagon Train (1957).
She played a rustic regular for many years on The Rifleman (1958). Usually assigned to play teachers, nurses and other helpful, nurturing types, her characters were also known to be inveterate gossips. Hope worked until close to the end of her life, passing away from heart failure in 1979.
Gender
Female
Birthday
June 7, 1896
Died
June 22, 1979
Birthplace
Mattoon, Illinois, USA
The Ghost & Mr. Chicken
1966
Claudelle Inglish
1961
Indict and Convict
1974
Where Does It Hurt?
1972
Hound-Dog Man
1959
Rosemary's Baby
1968
Spencer's Mountain
1963
Inherit the Wind
1960
The Hallelujah Trail
1965
Foul Play
1978
Edge of Eternity
1959
Son of Man
1954
The Couch
1962
Penelope
1966
Our Time
1974
Parrish
1961
The Children's Hour
1961
Charley Varrick
1973
I Want to Live!
1958
Death Sentence
1974
+ 12 more movies
M*A*S*H
1972
Bewitched
1964
The Beverly Hillbillies
1962
The Andy Griffith Show
1960
Little House on the Prairie
1974
Adam-12
1968
The Rifleman
1958
The Rifleman
1958
Maverick
1957
Dr. Kildare
1961
The Dick Van Dyke Show
1961
Hawaii Five-O
1968
My Three Sons
1960
Petticoat Junction
1963
Gunsmoke
1955
Gunsmoke
1955
Gunsmoke
1955
Starsky & Hutch
1975
Night Gallery
1970
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
1955
+ 27 more TV shows