Mary Frances Heflin (September 20, 1920 – June 1, 1994) was an American actress. She is best known for her role as Mona Kane Tyler on the soap opera All My Children (1970–1994).
Early life
Heflin was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the daughter of Fanny Bleecker (née Shippey) and Dr. Emmett Evan Heflin, a dentist. She had two older brothers, Martin, a public relations executive, and the actor Van Heflin.12 Through Martin, she was the aunt of actress Marta Heflin.3
Career
Heflin made her Broadway debut in her teens and was later featured in the original productions of The Skin of Our Teeth (1942), The World's Full of Girls (1943), I Remember Mama (1944), and the U.S. premiere of Bertolt Brecht's Galileo on July 30, 1947 in Los Angeles. Other Broadway credits included The Physicists, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Tempest, Sheppey, All in Favor, and The Walrus and the Carpenter.4 She starred in London's West End, in John Gielgud's UK premiere of The Glass Menagerie as Laura opposite Helen Hayes.5
Heflin's film debut came in The Molly Maguires (1970), as she portrayed the wife of a leader of that Irish secret society.6
A life member of The Actors Studio,7 Heflin had varying roles on many television series in the 1950s and 1960s, including small roles on Kraft Television Theatre and The Patty Duke Show. But her most notable and enduring role was of Mona Kane Tyler, mother of Erica Kane, on the soap opera All My Children. She played the role from January 1970 until her death in June 1994.
Heflin began her professional career on radio, where she was heard on Aunt Jenny, Betty and Bob, Cavalcade, Columbia Workshop, Grand Central Station, and other programs.8 She portrayed Nora Holiday in the CBS radio comedy Holiday and Company.9
Personal life
Heflin was briefly married to filmmaker Sidney Kaufman from 1944 to 1945, before marrying composer Sol Kaplan in 1945. Heflin and Kaplan remained together until his death in 1990, and had three children: Jonathan Kaplan, a film director, and Nora Heflin and Mady Kaplan, both actresses.1011
Death
Heflin died of lung cancer on June 1, 1994 in New York City. She was 73 years old.1213
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | The Molly Maguires | Mrs. Frazier | |
| 1973 | The Student Teachers | Mrs. Updegrove | |
| 1977 | Mr. Billion | Mrs. Apple Pie |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Kraft Television Theatre | — | Episode: "Blind Alley" |
| 1955, 1958 | The United States Steel Hour | Grace Ward / Emily | 2 episodes |
| 1961 | Tallahassee 7000 | Jane Rogers | Episode: "The Men from Tallahassee" |
| 1963 | Naked City | Josephine Hendon | Episode: "Her Life in Moving Pictures" |
| 1964, 1965 | The Patty Duke Show | Cissy Lane / Miss Harvey | 2 episodes |
| 1965 | The Defenders | Mrs. Kraft | Episode: "Fires of the Mind" |
| 1970–1994 | All My Children | Mona Kane Tyler | 465 episodes |
Radio appearances
| Year | Program | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1947 | Cavalcade of America | Episode: "The School for Men"14 |
External links
- Frances Heflin at IMDb
- Frances Heflin at the Internet Broadway Database
- Frances Heflin at the Internet Off-Broadway Database (archived)
References
"Obituary for Martin Heflin". The Daily Oklahoman. February 14, 1972. https://www.newspapers.com/article/131501562/obituary-for-martin-heflin/ ↩
"Martin Heflin Rites". The New York Times. April 28, 1972. https://www.nytimes.com/1972/04/28/archives/martin-heflin-rites.html ↩
Vitello, Paul (September 26, 2013). "Marta Heflin, Actor, Dies at 68; Waif Seen in Altman Films". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/26/arts/marta-heflin-actor-dies-at-68-waif-seen-in-altman-films.html ↩
"Search for Frances Heflin". Playbill. Retrieved April 23, 2016. http://www.playbill.com/searchpage/search?shows=on&qasset=00000150-ac82-d16d-a550-ecbebcf40000& ↩
"The Glass Menagerie". Theatricalia. Retrieved May 7, 2022. https://theatricalia.com/play/3sp/the-glass-menagerie/production/npr ↩
"Frances Heflin in screen debut". Nevada State Journal and Reno Evening Gazette. May 11, 1968. p. 10 - Entertainment. Retrieved December 13, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/151444776/?match=1&terms=%22Frances%20Heflin%22 ↩
Garfield, David (1980). "Appendix: Life Members of The Actors Studio as of January 1980". A Player's Place: The Story of The Actors Studio. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc. p. 278. ISBN 0-02-542650-8. 0-02-542650-8 ↩
"Understudy Makes Good: Frances Heflin Won Chance By Pinch-Hitting Roles". The Sunday Star. District of Columbia, Washington. November 1, 1942. p. E 3. Retrieved December 13, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/868256564/?match=1&terms=%22Frances%20Heflin%22 ↩
Aitchison, Marion (February 1, 1946). "Radio Programs". The Miami Herald. p. 39. Retrieved December 13, 2024 – via Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/617011302/?match=1&terms=%22By%20Marion%20Aitchison%22 ↩
"Frances "Fra" Heflin Kaplan". The Oklahoman. June 4, 1994. https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/1994/06/04/frances-fra-heflin-kaplan/62423599007/ ↩
"Frances Heflin; Stage, Film, TV Actress". Los Angeles Times. June 6, 1994. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-06-06-mn-923-story.html ↩
"Frances "Fra" Heflin Kaplan". The Oklahoman. June 4, 1994. https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/1994/06/04/frances-fra-heflin-kaplan/62423599007/ ↩
"Frances Heflin; Stage, Film, TV Actress". Los Angeles Times. June 6, 1994. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-06-06-mn-923-story.html ↩
"Those Were the Days". Nostalgia Digest. 42 (2): 32. Spring 2016. ↩