Sally Ann Howes facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sally Ann Howes
Howes in 1965
Born	(1930-07-20)20 July 1930 St John's Wood, London, England
Died	19 December 2021(2021-12-19) (aged 91) Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, U.S.
Occupation	Actress, singer
Years active	1943–2021
Spouse(s)	Maxwell Coker ​ ​ (m. 1950; div. 1953)​ Richard Adler ​ ​ (m. 1958; div. 1966)​ Douglas Rae ​ ​ (m. 1972; died 2021)​

Sally Ann Howes (born July 20, 1930 – died December 19, 2021) was a talented English actress and singer. She had a long career that lasted over 60 years, working in movies, on stage, and on television. Many people remember her best as Truly Scrumptious in the magical 1968 musical film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. She was also nominated for a big award, a Tony Award, for her role in the musical Brigadoon in 1963.

Early Life and First Movies

Her Family

Sally Ann Howes was born in St John's Wood, London, England, on July 20, 1930. Her father, Bobby Howes, was a famous comedian, actor, and singer. Her mother, Patricia Malone, was also an actress and singer.

Sally Ann came from a family of performers! Her grandfather was a theater director. Her great-grandfather, Captain Joseph Malone, even won a special medal called the Victoria Cross in 1854. Her uncle, Pat Malone, was also an actor.

During World War II, Sally Ann moved to the family's country house in Essendon, Hertfordshire. She had a calm childhood, growing up with a nanny and surrounded by many pets. Her parents' friends, who were also actors, often visited.

Her First Film: Thursday's Child

Sally Ann first performed in school plays. Because she came from a theater family, a friend of her parents, who was an agent, noticed her talent. He suggested Sally Ann for a movie role.

The movie, Thursday's Child (1943), needed a talented young girl for the main part. Sally Ann's father quickly sent in her pictures. The film was written and directed by Rodney Ackland, who was also a neighbor. This movie was the start of her acting career!

Working with Ealing Studios

After Thursday's Child, Sally Ann starred in another film called The Halfway House (1944). In this movie, she played a teenager trying to help her parents stay together. This led to her signing a contract with Michael Balcon at Ealing Studios, a famous British film studio.

As a child actress, she appeared in many more films. These included Dead of Night (1945) with Michael Redgrave, Pink String and Sealing Wax (1945), Nicholas Nickleby (1947), My Sister and I (1948), and Anna Karenina (1948) with Vivien Leigh.

Working with Rank Organisation

When Sally Ann was 18, she signed a seven-year contract with the Rank Organisation, another big film company. She then made films like Stop Press Girl (1949), The History of Mr. Polly (1949) with John Mills, Fools Rush In (1949), and Honeymoon Deferred (1951). She got married to Maxwell Coker in 1950.

Musical Theater Career

Success in London's West End

A teacher friend suggested Sally Ann take singing lessons. This helped her develop her natural singing talent and also made her speaking voice lower. While still a teenager, she performed in her first musical-comedy stage show, Fancy Free. In late 1950, she starred in a BBC TV version of Cinderella.

That same year, Sally Ann took her first professional stage role in the musical Caprice. She decided to end her contract with Rank because she wasn't happy with the movie roles she was getting. She wanted to use her singing talent, which the film studios hadn't focused on.

After Caprice, she starred in Bet Your Life with Julie Wilson and Arthur Askey. She also worked on radio at the same time. She appeared in a TV version of The Golden Fool.

In 1953, she starred in the musical Paint Your Wagon in London's West End. She performed alongside her father, Bobby Howes. The show was very popular and ran for 18 months. This was followed by Summer Song, also in the West End. These roles made Sally Ann a top musical comedy star.

She then gave a highly praised performance in the play A Hatful of Rain. In the 1950s, Sally Ann's career grew to include TV appearances, modeling, and commercials.

Sally Ann even appeared as a character in TV Fun comics. She was on many magazine covers, including Life (March 3, 1958). This was when she took over Julie Andrews's role in My Fair Lady on New York City's Broadway.

Shining on Broadway

Sally Ann was offered the role in My Fair Lady twice before she finally accepted. The first time was for a U.S. tour, which she turned down. The second time was to replace Julie Andrews on Broadway, but it conflicted with her filming The Admirable Crichton (1957).

However, the creators of My Fair Lady, Lerner and Loewe, really wanted her. Sally Ann accepted the third offer, signing a one-year contract for a higher salary than Julie Andrews. She became an instant hit as Eliza Doolittle.

In January 1958, Sally Ann married Richard Adler, a composer who had won a Tony Award. The next December, she appeared in Adler's musical TV show based on O. Henry's short story The Gift of the Magi (1958), which Adler wrote just for her.

She appeared on many TV shows, including those hosted by Perry Como and Dinah Shore. She was also on The Tonight Show in 1962, The Bell Telephone Hour, The Kraft Music Hall, and The United States Steel Hour. She appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show four times.

When her contract for My Fair Lady ended, she went back to Britain. There, she filmed six one-hour episodes of The Sally Ann Howes Show, a variety show for ITV.

Sally Ann Howes in 1961.

Sally Ann was invited to sing for U.S. presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and Lyndon B. Johnson. She often appeared as a guest on game shows and was known for her quick and clever answers.

She returned to Broadway in 1961 in Kwamina, another musical Adler wrote for her. She starred opposite Terry Carter. The show explored themes that were very new and discussed a lot at the time. Sally Ann's father was also on Broadway that year in Finian's Rainbow. That year, she also performed in Jane Eyre for television.

In 1962, she starred in a short revival of the musical Brigadoon at the New York City Opera. She received a Tony Award nomination for this role, which was special because it was for a revival performance. She performed the role again at the White House for President and Mrs. Kennedy.

In 1964, she starred on Broadway with Robert Alda and Steve Lawrence in the musical What Makes Sammy Run?. This show ran for over 500 performances.

She returned to TV in 1966 with a performance of Brigadoon alongside Robert Goulet and Peter Falk. This TV special won six Emmy Awards.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Truly Scrumptious, as portrayed by Sally Ann Howes in the 1968 film, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

In 1968, Sally Ann Howes starred in the children's film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. She played the role of Truly Scrumptious, a beautiful and kind woman who was the daughter of a candy maker.

During her audition for this role, Sally Ann was asked if she could dance. Her father had taught her to always say yes if a director asked if she could do something. He told her to then learn how to do it very quickly if she couldn't! She took quick dance lessons before filming a scene where she danced like a wooden doll. She was surprised to see 150 extra people watching her film this scene, but she managed to complete it in just one take.

Later Career

Television Work

Even though Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was a big hit, it didn't lead to many more film roles for Sally Ann. She had a few guest roles in TV shows like Mission: Impossible, Marcus Welby, M.D., and The Men From Shiloh. However, a TV pilot she made called Prudence and the Chief was not picked up as a series. Also, film musicals were not doing well at the box office anymore.

Because of this, Sally Ann mostly returned to working on stage. She only appeared in a few more films and TV shows. She once said, "I would have liked a film career, but I didn't pursue it – I just loved connecting with an audience. The problem is that to be remembered, you have to do films."

Later Stage Career

In the 1970s, Sally Ann toured Britain with The King and I and later the United States with The Sound of Music. After performing The Sound of Music in Los Angeles in 1972, she went back to Britain to star in a play called Lover, which was written just for her.

In the 1970s and 1980s, she started performing in operettas, which are like light operas. She performed in Blossom Time and The Great Waltz. She also added Franz Lehár's The Merry Widow and Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music to her performances at the New York City Opera. She even played the role of Gertrude in Hamlet. In the 1980s, she appeared twice on the BBC TV show The Good Old Days, which showed old-fashioned music hall acts.

She later shared her thoughts on growing older in her career: "The moment you hit 45... your career changes. You have to rethink everything, and you have to adjust. I've never been prepared for anything, I've always jumped into the next thing, and therefore it's been a strange career. I've enjoyed experimenting. I've been so fortunate to be able to change – do cabaret, do concerts, or lectures."

In 1990, she started her own one-woman show called From This Moment On. Her last film was the 1992 miniseries Judith Krantz's Secrets. This marked her 50th year working in films.

Other projects included narrating documentaries like Cubby Broccoli, The Man Behind Bond (2000) and The Making of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang The Musical (2002). She also appeared in the documentary After They Were Famous – Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2004).

Sally Ann was mostly retired, but she still hosted events or performed a few times a year. From 2007 to 2008, she toured the U.S. in a production of My Fair Lady, playing Mrs. Higgins. When she wasn't performing, she helped the Palm Beach Theatre Guild, a group that works to save the Royal Poinciana Playhouse in Palm Beach.

Personal Life and Passing

Sally Ann Howes married Richard Adler in 1958. She adopted his sons, Andrew and Christopher, after their mother passed away in 1964. Sally Ann and Adler divorced in 1966, but she continued to raise the boys. Christopher became a Broadway lyricist and sadly passed away in 1984 at age 30.

She was married to Douglas Rae, an English literary agent, from 1972 until his death in September 2021. Her nephew said they were "inseparable."

Sally Ann Howes passed away in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, on December 19, 2021, at the age of 91.

Legacy

In May 2023, a special plaque was placed near Russell's Water, Oxfordshire. This is where the famous pond scene from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was filmed.

Performances

Filmography

• Thursday's Child (1943) as Fennis Wilson
• The Halfway House (1944) as Joanna French
• Dead of Night (1945) as Sally O'Hara (segment Christmas Party)
• Pink String and Sealing Wax (1945) as Peggy Sutton
• Nicholas Nickleby (1947) as Kate Nickleby
• Anna Karenina (1948) as Kitty Scherbatsky
• My Sister and I (1948) as Robina Adams
• Fools Rush In (1949) as Pamela Dickson
• The History of Mr. Polly (1949) as Cristabel
• Stop Press Girl (1949) as Jennifer Peters
• Honeymoon Deferred (1951) as Katherine Fry
• The Golden Year (1951) as Susan Halliday
• The Admirable Crichton (1957) as Lady Mary
• Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968) as Truly Scrumptious
• Female Artillery (1973) as Sybil Townsend
• Death Ship (1980) as Margaret Marshall
• Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There (2003) (documentary)

Theatre Performances

• Caprice (Joan) – stage debut in Glasgow
• Bet Your Life (Jane) – at the London Hippodrome – 1952
• Paint Your Wagon (Jennifer Rumson) at Her Majesty's Theatre – 1953
• Babes in the Wood (Robin Hood) – British pantomime – 1954
• Romance in Candlelight (Margaret) – at Piccadilly – 1955
• Summer Song (Karolka) – Princes Theatre – 1956
• A Hatful of Rain (Celia Pope) – Princes Theatre – 1956
• My Fair Lady (Eliza Doolittle) – Mark Hellinger Theater, Broadway – 1958
• Kwamina (Eve Jordan) - 54th Street Theatre – 1961
• Brigadoon (Fiona McLaren) – at New York City Center Light Opera Company – 1962, 1963
• What Makes Sammy Run? (Kit Sargent) – 54th St. Theatre – 1964
• Camelot (Guenevere) – St. Louis Municipal Opera – 1969
• Blossom Time (Mitzi Kranz) – 1970
• The Sound of Music (Maria) – 1970 or 1971
• The Great Waltz (Resi) – 1971
• Lover (Suzy Martin) – Theatre Royal, Brighton – 1973
• The King and I (Anna Leonowens) – British tour – 1973
• Man and Superman (Ann Whitefield) – 1973
• I Do! I Do! – Cherry County Playhouse – 1976
• Goodbye Charlie – 1976
• Robert and Elizabeth (Elizabeth) – Yvonne Arnaud Theatre – 1976
• Hans Anderson (Jenny Lind) – London Palladium – 1977
• The Sound of Music (Maria) – 1978 USA touring company
• Hamlet (Queen Gertrude) – New Shakespeare Company – 1983
• The Merry Widow – 1986
• Noël Coward's Semi-Monde – Royalty Theatre, London – 1989
• A Little Night Music (Desiree) – New York City Opera – 1990, 1992
• From This Moment On – one woman show – 1990
• Cinderella (Fairy Godmother) – New York City Opera – 1993, 1995
• Where's Charley? (Charley's Aunt) – 1998
• James Joyce's The Dead (Aunt Julia) – 1999
• Dear World (Countess Aurelia) – 2000
• My Fair Lady (Mrs. Higgins) – USA touring company – 2007

Television Films, Series, and Specials

• Cinderella (1950) (TV, BBC)
• Hallmark Hall of Fame in "The Gift of the Magi" (1958)
• The Sally Ann Howes Show (6 variety shows, UK) (1960)
• The Fifth Column (1960)
• Jane Eyre (1961)
• Play of the Week in "After Hours" (1961)
• Play of the Week in "The Old Foolishness" (1961)
• The Sally Ann Howes Special (1962)
• Brigadoon (1966)
• Prudence and the Chief (1970, TV pilot)
• The Hound of the Baskervilles (1972)
• Female Artillery (1973)
• The Good Old Days, BBC TV (1980s)
• Great Performances in "An Evening with Alan Jay Lerner" (1989)
• Judith Krantz's "Secrets" (1992, miniseries)
• After They Were Famous in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" (2004)

Television Guest Appearances

• "Cafe Continental" – variety show (1947–1953)
• "Saturday Spectacular" / "Startime" – variety show (1950s)
• "Have You A Camera?" (mid-1950s)
• "Toast of the Town" (1958, 1964, 1965, 1967)
• "Sunday Night at the London Palladium" (1959)
• "The Perry Como Show" (1958, 1959)
• "The Bell Telephone Hour" (1959, 1960, 1961, 1962)
• "Dinah Shore Show" (1960)
• "The United States Steel Hour" in "The Leonardi Code" (1961)
• "To Tell the Truth" – various appearances (1962–1965)
• "Password" – various appearances (1962–1965)
• "The Match Game" – various appearances (1963–1964)
• "I've Got a Secret" (1963)
• "The Merv Griffin Show" (1963 or 1964)
• "You Don't Say!" (gameshow) (1963, 1964 or 1965)
• "The Price Is Right" (1963 or 1964)
• "The Miss U.S.A. Pageant" (hostess) (1965)
• "The Miss Universe Beauty Pageant" (hostess) (1965)
• "Fanfare" (1965)
• "Bob Hope presents the Chrysler Theatre" in "The Enemy on the Beach" (1966)
• "Run for Your Life" in "The Savage Machines" (1966)
• "The Dean Martin Show" (1967)
• "Everybody's Talking" (1967)
• "What's My Line?" – various appearances (1968–1970)
• "The Hollywood Palace" (1969)
• "This Is Tom Jones" (1969)
• "Mission: Impossible" in "Fool's Gold" (1969)
• "It Takes Two" (1970)
• "The Hollywood Squares" (1970)
• "Bracken's World" in "Miss Isabel Blue" (1970)
• "The Virginian" in "Tate, Ramrod" (1971)
• "The Virginia Graham Show" (approx. 1971)
• "Sesame Street" (1972)
• "Marcus Welby, M.D." in "The Day After Forever" (1973)
• "Give Us a Clue" (gameshow) (1988-1989)
• "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" (1998)
• "Theatre Talk" – regarding "James Joyce's The Dead" (2000)

Radio Appearances

• Arthur's Inn – radio variety program (1952)
• Marle Becker's "Out-FM" show (2000)

Other Live Performances

• Royal Variety Performance – at the Victoria Palace Theatre (1951)
• London Palladium "Midnight Cavalcade 1954" (1954)
• London Palladium "Night of 100 Stars" (1955)
• Grand opening of the Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh, PA (1971)
• "Golden Gala" – London Palladium (1978)
• "Cinderella's Star Night" – Charity gala (1982)
• "A Royal Night of One Hundred Stars" – in aid of "Save the Children Fund" (1985)
• Memorial service for Alan J. Lerner (1986)
• A Celebration of Shakespeare "Hamlet Travestie" (1987)
• "An Evening With Alan Jay Lerner" – Theatre Royal, Drury Lane (1987)
• "An Evening With Alan Jay Lerner" – Opera House, Manchester (1988)
• Being Alive – A Celebration of the Genius of Stephen Sondheim (1989)
• "Let's Do it" – Noël Coward/Cole Porter celebration (1989)
• "Kids at Heart" – fundraising evening (1991)
• "A Glamorous Night with Evelyn Laye and Friends" (1992)
• "A Time To Start Living" – A World Aid's Day Gala (1992)
• "Jack in Review" – charity gala concert (1997)
• Cabaret at the Algonquin Hotel's Oak Room (late 1990s)
• "A Cultural Affair" – New York Pops Gala (2000)
• Broadway Honours BMI Composer Lehman Engel (2001)
• The 12th Annual New York Cabaret Convention (2001)
• Lansing Town Hall Celebrity Lecture Series (2002)
• Age Cannot Wither – A Benefit for Shakespeare Globe Centre USA (2003)
• Town Hall Celebrity Lecture Series (2003)
• Port Huron Town Hall (2003)
• The 16th Annual New York Cabaret Convention (2005)
• 23rd Annual S.T.A.G.E. event – Side by Side by Side by Side by Sondheim (2007)
• "I'd Like To Teach The World to Sing" – charity gala concert (2008)

Discography (Albums)

• Bet Your Life (1952)
• Paint Your Wagon (1953)
• Romance in Candlelight (1955)
• Summer Song (1956)
• Gift of the Magi (1958)
• Kwamina (1961)
• What Makes Sammy Run? (1964)
• Brigadoon (1966)
• Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
• Hans Andersen (1977)
• I Remember Mama (1985)
• Great Expectations (1995)
• Mary Lea, Songs My Sister Loved & Sang (1998)

Product Endorsements and Modeling

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Sally Ann Howes promoted many products:

• Blend-rite Hair Clips (late 1940s)
• Britvic Gold Pure Juice Cocktail (1953)

She also did some modeling in the 1950s and early 1960s, appearing in:

• Weldons Knitting Booklet No. 319 (c. 1953)
• TV Guide (October 13–19, 1962) – "Sally Ann Howes With Fall Fashions"

Images for kids

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  Sally Ann Howes in 1965

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  Sally Ann Howes in 1961.

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  Truly Scrumptious, as portrayed by Sally Ann Howes in the 1968 film, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.