Barbara Nichols

Barbara Nichols
in 1956
Born	Barbara Marie Nickerauer (1928-12-10)December 10, 1928 Mineola, New York, U.S.
Died	October 5, 1976(1976-10-05) (aged 47) Hollywood, California, U.S.
Cause of death	Complications from organ damage
Resting place	Pinelawn Memorial Park, Farmingdale, New York, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1953-76

Barbara Marie Nickerauer (December 10, 1928^[1] – October 5, 1976), better known as Barbara Nichols, was an American actress who played brassy comic roles in films in the 1950s and 1960s.

Early life and career

Nichols was born as Barbara Marie Nickerauer to George and Julia Nickerauer, and raised in Queens, New York. She began modeling for pinup magazines in the late 1940s. In the mid-1950s, she moved to Hollywood and began appearing regularly in second leads in a number of films including Miracle in the Rain (1956), The King and Four Queens (1956), The Naked and the Dead (1958), The Pajama Game (1957), Sweet Smell of Success (1957), That Kind of Woman (1958), Where the Boys Are (1960).^[2]

On Broadway, she appeared in the 1952 revival of Pal Joey (she also appeared in the 1957 film version) and in Let It Ride (1961).^[3]

Nichols was a popular model in cheesecake magazines of the era and was considered a minor rival to Marilyn Monroe. Unlike the others, she rarely starred in films, but had showy supporting roles in A-films starring such actors as Clark Gable, Susan Hayward, Sophia Loren, and Doris Day. One of her few starring roles was in the 1965 science fiction film The Human Duplicators.

Nichols was also a frequent guest star on many television series including It's a Great Life, The Jack Benny Television Show, The Twilight Zone (in the episode "Twenty Two)", The Untouchables, The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, Going My Way, Batman (episodes 35 and 36), Hawaii Five-O, and The Beverly Hillbillies. Her final film was Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood in 1976.

Death

Nichols died on October 5, 1976, aged 47, from complications of a damaged spleen and liver which had initially occurred about twenty years earlier in an automobile accident.^[4] She is interred at Pinelawn Memorial Park in Farmingdale, New York.

Filmography

References

Further reading

• That Kind of Woman: The Life and Career of Brbara Nicholas. Richard Koper. 3 September 2015. ISBN 978-1-62933-079-2. 

External links

• Barbara Nichols at the Internet Movie Database
• Barbara Nichols at the Internet Broadway Database
  
• Barbara Nichols at AllMovie