Anjanette Comer, the Texas-born actress who became a familiar face in Hollywood during the 1960s through films including The Loved One and The Appaloosa, has died at the age of 86.
Comer died May 28 at UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center, according to a death certificate obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. She had been dealing with leukemia and heart-related health problems.
The actress enjoyed a rapid rise to prominence during the 1960s, appearing in major films and television productions. However, her career also became notable for several opportunities she turned down, including two roles in films that went on to become major releases: Barefoot in the Park and Bonnie and Clyde, both released in 1967.
Jane Fonda ultimately starred opposite Robert Redford in Barefoot in the Park, while Faye Dunaway took the female lead opposite Warren Beatty in Bonnie and Clyde.
A Hollywood Career That Rose Quickly
Born Aug. 7, 1939, in Dawson, Texas, Comer developed an interest in acting at a young age. She attended Dawson High School before studying at the Pasadena Playhouse in California.
Her early television work included appearances on My Three Sons and The Donna Reed Show in 1962. A year later, she appeared on Gunsmoke, Ben Casey and the ABC drama Arrest and Trial. Her performance in the latter earned her an Emmy nomination for supporting actress.
Comer made her feature-film debut in 1964 with Quick, Before It Melts, a comedy directed by Delbert Mann and starring George Maharis and Robert Morse.
Her breakthrough came soon afterward when she was cast as Aimee Thanatogenous in Tony Richardson’s dark comedy The Loved One (1965), an adaptation of Evelyn Waugh’s satirical novel about the funeral industry.
Interestingly, Comer initially did not believe she had much chance of getting the part. She eventually met Richardson personally and was offered the role shortly afterward.
Her performance opposite Robert Morse became one of the memorable elements of the film. As Aimee, Comer delivered several of the movie’s distinctive comic moments and established herself as one of Hollywood’s promising young actresses.
From ‘The Appaloosa’ to ‘The Baby’
Comer continued building an impressive résumé throughout the decade.
In 1966, she appeared opposite Marlon Brando and John Saxon in The Appaloosa, directed by Sidney J. Furie. She later appeared alongside Robert Wagner and Jill St. John in Banning (1967).
Her film work also included Guns for San Sebastian (1968), In Enemy Country (1968), Rabbit, Run (1970) and The Firechasers (1971).
One of her more unusual later roles came in The Baby (1973), a horror film in which she played a social worker. The movie has since developed a cult following.
Actress Marianna Hill, who also appeared in The Baby, later remembered Comer as a serious and thoughtful performer who worked deeply on developing her characters.
Turning Down Two Major 1967 Films
Perhaps the most intriguing chapter of Comer’s career involved the opportunities she chose not to pursue.
She was offered the chance to star opposite Robert Redford in Barefoot in the Park and was also considered for the female lead in Bonnie and Clyde, which eventually went to Faye Dunaway.
In a 1981 interview with UPI, Comer explained that a personal relationship influenced her decisions at the time. She later acknowledged that she had been young and inexperienced and believed those choices had negatively affected her career.
Her career was also disrupted by her decision to leave Germany during production of Funeral in Berlin, the Michael Caine spy thriller and sequel to The Ipcress File. Comer was subsequently replaced by Eva Renzi.
Looking back years later, Comer described herself as unprepared for the sudden attention that came with becoming a successful young actress.
Television and Later Film Work
Although her career never reached the level that some of her early opportunities suggested it might, Comer continued working for decades.
Her television credits included appearances on Bonanza, The Mod Squad, Love, American Style, Mannix, Columbo, The Blue Knight, Hotel, Jake and the Fatman and The Practice.
Her later film credits included Lepke (1975), Fire Sale (1977), Steven Soderbergh’s The Underneath (1995) and A Bird of the Air (2011).
Comer was married to writer and filmmaker Robert Klane, whose credits included Where’s Poppa?, Fire Sale and Weekend at Bernie’s. The couple married in 1976 and divorced in 1983.
Remembering Anjanette Comer
Comer’s career remains an interesting chapter in the history of 1960s Hollywood. She moved quickly from television appearances to prominent film roles and worked with major stars including Marlon Brando, Robert Morse and Michael Caine.
Her own reflections on her career were marked by both regret and determination. In the 1981 interview, Comer expressed confidence that she could once again reach the heights she had experienced earlier in her career.
Comer’s survivors include her older sister, Jerra Tillman.
Anjanette Comer leaves behind a body of work spanning film and television and a legacy as one of the distinctive actresses to emerge from Hollywood’s changing landscape of the 1960s.