Rowena Dolores Heath, known as Dodie Heath and Dody Heath, was an American actress of stage, film, and television.
17 Facts About Dodie Heath
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Rowena Dolores Heath was born in Seattle, Washington, on August 3,1926, to Wilfrid Paul Heath and Alice Heath.
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Dodie Heath's father was an inventor, who patented processes for using carbonization in the production of ice cream and butter.
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Dodie Heath printed both the photo and letter in a Chicago-area newspaper advertisement, preserving the details of Heath's birth and foreshadowing her life in the public eye.
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The family relocated to Richmond Beach, Shoreline, Washington by 1940, their fortunes recovering as Dodie Heath's father turned to selling electronics, enabling him to provide Dodie Heath with a university education.
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Dodie Heath lived here, helped by a $75 a month subsidy from her parents, until her second Broadway stage job enabled her to get her own apartment.
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Dodie Heath first appeared on the Broadway stage as a replacement in the role of "Ensign Sue Yeager" for South Pacific during late 1950.
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Dodie Heath left in February 1951 when signed for a new musical, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
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Dodie Heath left half way thru the run when she caught the eye of director Vincente Minnelli, who signed her for his next MGM film, Brigadoon.
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Dodie Heath was cast as forward Scottish lass "Meg Brockie", which in the stage production was a secondary lead with two songs.
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Dodie Heath did her first television acting role in January 1953, on an episode of the New York based CBS mystery series The Web.
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Dodie Heath started work on her third film, Ask Any Girl, during September 1958.
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Dodie Heath dropped out of professional casting directories after 1963, but continued to do films.
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From 1954 to 1959, Dodie Heath was linked in gossip columns with circus owner John Ringling North, who was twenty five years older.
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However, by August 1955 it was reported that Dodie Heath did not want to marry him and give up her career.
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Dodie Heath married agent turned producer Jack Cushingham in Rome, Italy in November 1962.
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The variant spelling "Dodie Heath" can be traced back to syndicated newspaper columnist George Hamilton Combs Jr in March 1951.