Inger Stevens facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Inger Stevens
Inger Stevens in 1967
Born	Ingrid Stensland (1934-10-18)October 18, 1934 Stockholm, Sweden
Died	April 30, 1970(1970-04-30) (aged 35) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Years active	1954–1970
Spouse(s)	Anthony Soglio ​ ​ (m. 1955; div. 1958)​ Ike Jones ​ (m. 1961)​
Awards	Best TV Star (TV Guide) – Female 1964 The Farmer's Daughter

Inger Stevens (born Ingrid Stensland; October 18, 1934 – April 30, 1970) was a Swedish-American film, stage and Golden Globe-winning television actress.

Early life

Inger Stevens was born in Stockholm, Sweden, the eldest child of Per Gustaf and Lisbet Stensland. When she was six years old, her mother abandoned the family, taking her youngest son Peter with her. Soon after, Stevens' father moved to the United States, leaving Stevens and her brother Ola in the custody of the family maid and then later with an aunt in Lidingö, near Stockholm. In 1944, Stevens and her brother moved to the United States and lived with their father and his new wife in New York City where he was completing his PhD in Education at Columbia University. At age 13, Stevens moved with her family to Manhattan, Kansas, where her father taught at Kansas State University. Stevens attended Manhattan High School.

At 15, Stevens fled to Kansas City, where she worked in burlesque shows. At 18, she returned to New York City, where she worked as a chorus girl and in the Garment District while taking classes at the Actors Studio.

Career

Stevens in 1957

Stevens appeared on television series, in commercials and in plays until she received her big break in the film Man on Fire, starring Bing Crosby.

Roles in major films followed, including a starring role opposite Harry Belafonte in 1959's The World, the Flesh and the Devil, but she achieved her greatest success in the television series The Farmer's Daughter (1963–1966) with William Windom. Previously, Stevens had appeared in episodes of Bonanza, Route 66, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, The Eleventh Hour, Sam Benedict, The Aquanauts and The Twilight Zone.

Following the cancellation of The Farmer's Daughter in 1966, Stevens appeared in several films: A Guide for the Married Man (1967), Hang 'Em High, 5 Card Stud and Madigan. At the time of her death, Stevens was attempting to revive her television career with the detective drama series The Most Deadly Game.

Personal life

Stevens's first husband was her agent Anthony Soglio, to whom she was married from 1955 to 1957.

In January 1966, she was appointed to the advisory board of the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute by California governor Edmund G. "Pat" Brown. She also was named chairman of the California Council for Retarded Children. Her aunt was Karin Stensland Junker, author of The Child in the Glass Ball.

After Stevens's death, Ike Jones, the first black person to graduate from UCLA's School of Theater, Film and Television, revealed that he had secretly married Stevens in 1961 in Mexico. Some doubted Jones's claim because of the lack of a marriage license, the maintenance of separate homes and the filing of tax documents as single people. However, when Stevens's estate was being settled, her brother Carl O. Stensland confirmed in court that Stevens had hidden her marriage to Jones "out of fear for her career." Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner A. Edward Nichols ruled in Jones's favor and named him administrator of her estate. A photo exists of the two attending a banquet together in 1968.

Death

On the morning of April 30, 1970, Stevens's roommate and companion Lola McNally found Stevens on the kitchen floor of their Hollywood Hills home. According to McNally, Stevens opened her eyes, lifted her head and tried to speak but was unable to utter any sound. McNally told police that she had spoken to Stevens the previous night and had seen no signs of trouble. Stevens died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. On arrival, medics removed a small bandage from her chin that revealed a small amount of fresh blood oozing from a cut that appeared to have been a few hours old. .....

Filmography

Film

Television

Stevens appeared in two episodes of Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone (image at his home in 1960

Broadway credits

• Debut (1956)
• Roman Candle (1960)
• Mary, Mary (1962)

Awards and nominations

See also

In Spanish: Inger Stevens para niños