Bonnie Scott

[Shindigger]

Does anyone know what happened to Bonnie Scott- why she left That Girl and if she did anything afterward?

[JMFabiano524]

You read my mind...I love the character of Judy and am dismayed that this is the only season we see her in. According to the TG book they just couldn't come up with new contracts for her and the guy who was Leon. They also add that she "seemed to disappear out of the public eye" after TG...so if not even an "authorized" source on the show knows, her whereabouts must have been a real mystery!

Seems the supporting characters I end up liking on old sitcoms are the ones who no one can seem to locate today! (Bonnie is one, I also loved Betty Conner -- "Anne" on Gidget) But yes, if anyone knows what she's done since and if she indeed is still with us today, speak up! (The same goes for Betty as well, actually...)

J.

[Shindigger]

JMFabiano, you've got to be my long-lost twin, because Betty Connor is definitely another actress I've always wondered about!

Watching the first season shows on DVD, I'm seeing that Bonnie's Judy character was really good. She wasn't colorless or secondary in any sense and just in general was a plus to the cast. She could play a slightly "dizzy" character, but it was never over the edge. She was also very pretty and was a good contrast to Ann.

I liked the Ruth character, but it just didn't seem the same without Judy, and the role just didn't seem as well defined.

I read on one web site that Bonnie Scott did appear in an episode of (if I recall) a 60's show, "He & She." She also did an appearance on "The Streets of San Francisco" billed as "Young Woman." It seems she was pretty active on Broadway prior to "That Girl" and was in a movie called "Dondi."

I really hope someone can fill in the blanks of what happened to Bonnie Scott and Betty Connor.

[Best Man]

Originally Posted by Shindigger

JMFabiano, you've got to be my long-lost twin, because Betty Connor is definitely another actress I've always wondered about!

Watching the first season shows on DVD, I'm seeing that Bonnie's Judy character was really good. She wasn't colorless or secondary in any sense and just in general was a plus to the cast. She could play a slightly "dizzy" character, but it was never over the edge. She was also very pretty and was a good contrast to Ann.

I liked the Ruth character, but it just didn't seem the same without Judy, and the role just didn't seem as well defined.

I read on one web site that Bonnie Scott did appear in an episode of (if I recall) a 60's show, "He & She." She also did an appearance on "The Streets of San Francisco" billed as "Young Woman." It seems she was pretty active on Broadway prior to "That Girl" and was in a movie called "Dondi."

I really hope someone can fill in the blanks of what happened to Bonnie Scott and Betty Connor.

I can more than 50% assure you lovely Bonnie Scott is still alive. The social security death index reports no Bonnie Scott born February 20, 1941 (according to Imdb) dead. Bonnie Scott honey if you are still alive stay alive and God bless you!

[Best Man]

There is another posting about lovely Bonnie Scott on this message board. Shouldn't this have been printed there?

[Bonnie Scott]

Originally Posted by Shindigger

Does anyone know what happened to Bonnie Scott- why she left That Girl and if she did anything afterward?

IMDb

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10 February 1941, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA


Birth Name
Bonnie Ann Paul


Mini Biography
It was on her 20th birthday that Bonnie Scott signed the contract to create the role of Rosemary in the original Broadway production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying."

Bonnie Ann Paul was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Blanche and Albert Paul. The family of four, which included her older brother Jordan, moved to Los Angeles in 1945. For eight days, the family traveled across the country, with all of their belongings, in a 1932 Ford that had no trunk, air conditioning or radio.

Little Bonnie had been joyfully singing and dancing since the age of 2. Beginning at age 8, she performed live on the weekly ABC TV show, Soapbox Theatre, for two years. Bonnie appeared in the films Vicki (1953), for 20th Century-Fox, Beware, My Lovely (1952) for RKO, Love Is Better Than Ever (1952) for MGM, and Dondi (1961) for Allied Artists. On television she was seen on the The Jerry Lewis Show (1957) (TV), "Playhouse 90" (1956), The Adventures Of Ozzie and Harriet (1952)_, _American Bandstand (1952)_ and the Groucho Marx show "You Bet Your Life" (1950). At 15, Bonnie changed her name from Bonnie Paul to Bonnie Scott, when she began recording for RCA Records because there was a Bunny Paul recording on Capitol Records. She toured the country for ten days promoting her first record, played LA clubs, and at 17, after completing high school, began a three month engagement singing in the lounge at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas.

On stage in Hollywood, Bonnie performed in four off-Vine Street musicals, starting with "Going Up" at age 13, where she stopped the show every night. The next musical was "Best Foot Forward", then "Paint Your Fingers" and "Vintage '60". Broadway producer 'David Merrick' brought "Vintage '60" to New York, and although it closed before the end of the first week, it did bring Bonnie lovely notices from the New York critics. Richard Watts Jr. wrote in his New York Post review, "And a tall, beautiful brunette named Bonnie Scott is a performer of notable attractiveness."

Back in LA again, Bonnie entertained four nights a week at the 23 Skidoo, with songs from the Roaring 20's. It was a beer hall near UCLA that had no stage -- so she performed atop the piano.

The William Morris Agency placed her name on a list of female singers the agency was sending to audition for producer Cy Feuer, who was in town looking for a leading lady for his upcoming Broadway musical. Rumor had it that 'Pretty Perky' 'Peggy King' was just about set for the part but it wasn't as yet a done deal. At the audition, while everyone else was singing more standard fare, Bonnie decided to sing one of her comedy songs from the 20's, "How Could Red Riding Hood Have Been So Very Good And Still Keep The Wolf From Her Door?" At first Feuer looked confused. But then he burst out laughing. When the song ended he made Bonnie an offer: "cut your hair like Jackie Kennedy and I'll fly you to New York to audition". Before she knew it, she was on a New York stage spending her 20th birthday auditioning for the role of a lifetime. After singing Red Riding Hood for Feuer, Ernest Martin, Frank Loesser, Abe Burrows and many others associated with the production, Loesser came up on stage with Bonnie. He put her through what were his well known, standard vocal paces, by having her sing the first two notes of "Blue Skies" higher and higher up the scale. Frank Loesser loved big voices and Bonnie's voice made him very happy. Feuer then congratulated her on getting the female lead and everyone in the theatre sang Happy Birthday to Bonnie. "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying", with Bonnie as Rosemary, opened on Broadway October 14, 1961 to unanimous rave reviews worldwide. The next day Pinkerton guards had to be hired to keep order in the long lines of people waiting to buy tickets. "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" was the biggest smash hit since "My Fair Lady" in 1956. "How to Succeed..." went on to win every major award, including the Pulitzer Prize.

After the opening, Bonnie met and married Robert Parker Hutchins, II, one of the backers of "How to Succeed..." In June 1962 she left the show when her pregnancy intervened. Prior to her leaving, Feuer requested Bonnie sign a contract to return to How to Succeed in one year. He was less than pleased when Bonnie declined. It was a gut-wrenching, difficult decision for her because she loved the show and performing in it. But she knew she was heading into uncharted territory and had no idea how she'd feel in a year. It turned out to be the right decision as Bonnie wound up having twins and a marriage headed for the rocks. Bonnie's successors include, among many others, Michele Lee, who later played the role in the film, and Dyan Cannon, who played the part in the first U. S. road company.

Now a single mother, Bonnie and the twins moved back to LA in early 1966 to be near her family. She soon signed for a co-starring role on TV's "That Girl" (1966) as Marlo Thomas neighbor Judy. After the first season of working twelve to eighteen hour days, she left the show in order to devote her time to being mom to three year old Wendy and Douglas. From then on, Bonnie worked only infrequently, with guest roles on "He & She" (1967), "The Streets of San Francisco" (1972), and others.

Bonnie married her true love, Jon Armstrong, a public finance investment banker, in 1978. While the twins were away in college Bonnie attended the UCLA School of Design for four years and began another burgeoning career. Her design work appeared in and on the cover of many publications. However, a congenital heart problem progressively deteriorated throughout her life until she was in heart failure. In 1994 her heart was repaired by a brilliant cardiac surgeon and his team at the University of California at San Francisco Medical Center using a titanium ring, a Gortex cord and the hands of a true artist. Since 1988, The Armstrongs have lived in Northern California where Bonnie manages the family investment portfolio, and relaxes with her art, cooking, gardening and Norwich Terriers.

IMDb Mini Biography By: jcbuell


Trivia
It was on her 20th birthday that Bonnie Scott signed the contract to create the role of Rosemary in the original Broadway production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying".

[JMFabiano524]

Originally Posted by Shindigger

Watching the first season shows on DVD, I'm seeing that Bonnie's Judy character was really good. She wasn't colorless or secondary in any sense and just in general was a plus to the cast. She could play a slightly "dizzy" character, but it was never over the edge. She was also very pretty and was a good contrast to Ann.

I liked the Ruth character, but it just didn't seem the same without Judy, and the role just didn't seem as well defined.

I would be remiss in this discussion if I didn't mention Pete and how great she was too. Gotta love Ruth Buzzi!