Natalie Schafer
Life
She began her acting career in the 1920s at New York's Broadway. In 1933 she married the star actor Louis Calhern; the marriage was divorced in 1942. In 1941, she moved to Hollywood to go into the movie business. She was seen in the following years, particularly in supporting roles, including The Snake Pit (1948 ), Trapped (1949 ), and Anastasia (1956).
Her most famous role was that of versnobbten, yet warm-hearted millionaire wife Eunice Howell, called " Lovey " on the CBS sitcom Gilligan's Island ( 1964-1967 ). At this time she kept her real age a secret since she was thirteen years older than Jim Backus, her husband in the series.
She played well into old age in various Hollywood and television productions, including 1975 in John Schlesinger's Nathanael West film The Day of the Locust.
Schafer was also a successful business woman and has been through their real estate transactions a millionaire. Contradictory rumored she gave her fortune to her cat either or but Dawn Wells, who had played in Gilligan's Island, the country bumpkin Mary Ann Summers. In fact, Schafer and Wells had not only in the series a kind of mother - daughter relationship; Wells has not commented on the rumors about the inheritance until today.