Truman Gaige Movies
A New York native who found success as a Broadway actor, Truman Gaige also took on the occasional film and television role in addition to appearing on-stage on the West Coast and in numerous touring productions. Following his stage debut in stock at San Francisco's Alcazar Theater, the young actor soon landed his first Broadway role with Appearances in 1928. Changing his name from Stanley Ruhland shortly thereafter, the Broadway roles kept rolling in and Gaige went on the road for productions of Kismet, Saratoga, and Three Waltzes. With his Broadway career drawing to a close with such late-'60s productions as Hadrian VII and 1776, Gaige turned increasingly to television roles with appearances in The Mating Season (1980) and The Electric Grandmother (1981). A sole feature credit for 1984's Grace Quigley brought the cinematic stage of his career to an end, and in mid-April 2002, Gaige died at the Englewood, NJ, Actor's Fund Home following an extended illness. He was 95. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide- 1984
When first released as Grace Quigley, this odd little black comedy proved too fey and quirky even for the most devoted fans of Katharine Hepburn. The star plays the title character, an old, worn-out woman with nothing to live for. Accordingly, she hires professional assassin Seymour Flint (Nick Nolte) to kill her, albeit gently. As she ponders the prospect of a peaceful death as opposed to a miserable life, Grace convinces Seymour to murder not only herself, but all other poor souls who have grown tired of life. As it turns out, there are several people who'd be willing to pay for this "courtesy," and soon Grace and Seymour, together with his ditsy girlfriend Muriel (Kit Le Fever), are conducting a land-office business! Entered into competition at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival, Grace Quigley made no impression whatsoever. Screenwriter A. Martin Zweibeck withdrew the film, recut it to his satisfaction, and reissued it as The Ultimate Solution of Grace Quigley. Though this version was a marked improvement over the original, the film was still not quite the Harold and Maude-like "cult favorite" that everyone hoped it would be. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Katharine Hepburn, Nick Nolte, (more)
- 1981
Essentially a light-weight made for TV romance between different classes - this time a female attorney who meets a laundromat owner at a bird-watching retreat. ~ Tana Hobart, All Movie Guide
