Elaine Stewart, Actress and Game Show Hostess
A striking presence in 1950s films, Stewart later turned to television and appeared on 1970s game shows.
Elaine Stewart, an actress who was a striking presence in 1950s films and later became a co-hostess of two hit game shows in the ‘70s, died June 27, 2011, at her home in Beverly Hills. She was 81.
According to news reports, Stewart passed away following a long illness.
A high point in Stewart's career came in 1954, when she starred opposite Gene Kelly and Van Johnson in Brigadoon and played a harem princess in The Adventures of Hajji Baba, with John Derek. Other films of note included The Bad and the Beautiful and Take the High Ground!.
She was born Elsy Steinberg on May 31, 1930, in Montclair, New Jersey. In 1952 she beat out hundreds of young models to earn a photo layout in See magazine, winning the title of Miss See. The opportunity led to a film contract withy MGM. She made her movie debut in the Dean Martin-Jerry Lewis comedy Sailor Beware.
In all, Stewart appeared in 18 films in the ‘50s and on March 22, 1953, she appeared on the cover of Life magazine with the headline, "Budding Starlet Visits the Folks in Jersey."
In the ‘60s, she appeared in such television dramas as Bat Masterson, The Third Man, Burke’s Law and Perry Mason.
Stewart's first marriage ended in divorce. On December 31, 1964, she married the game show creator Merrill Heatter) and retired from show business to start a family.
In 1972, she returned to television as the co-hostess of the Heatter-Quigley game show Gambit with emcee Wink Martindale. The show became a hit for CBS. She later joined Alex Trebek for NBC's nighttime game show High Rollers.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by a son and a daughter.