Starting in the mid-1960s and for the next thirty years, Diana Muldaur was one of the busiest performers on television. The dark-haired actress with the striking eyes guest starred in dozens of TV series, ranging from Hawaii Five-O to Kung Fu, Fantasy Island, Charlie’s Angels, and Hart to Hart. She appeared in two episodes of Gene Roddenbery’s original Star Trek: playing a scientist whose body becomes possessed by an intelligent alien in season 2’s “Return to Tomorrow” and portraying a blind telepath in season 3’s “Is There Truth No Beauty.” Two decades later, Roddenberry added Muldaur to the cast of StarTrek: The Next Generation as the Enterprise’s chief physician, Dr. Kate Pulaski. She left the hit series after a single season, stating in a People Magazine interview in 2000: “I don’t think they were happy to have me there.”
In 1989, the same year in which she left The Next Generation, she joined McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak on NBC’s popular L.A. Law. She earned two Emmy nominations for her portrayal of aggressive attorney Rosalind Shays in seasons 4 and 5. But it was her character’s shocking death—Shays fell down an elevator shaft—that earned her a place in television lore.
Muldaur also played game warden (and best-selling author) Joy Adamson in Born Free, a short-lived 1974 series adapted the hit movie about Elsa the lioness.
Though she occasionally had roles in theatrical films, big screen stardom eluded Muldaur. Still, she played opposite John Wayne in McQ and had her best screen role in Thomas Tryon’s The Other.
Off screen, Diana Muldaur served as board member on the Screen Actors Guild and as president of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. She has been married twice. Her first husband, actor James Vickery, died of cancer in 1979. She has been married to writer-producer Robert Dozier since 1981. She has bred Airedale Terriers and served as a judge at dog shows.
She's really "bad news" as the widow in Mc Q. and has lots of fun doing it.
ReplyDeleteAnd as Dr .Pulaski she really gave Data a rough time. Do I see a trend here?
Aki, I think my favorite Diana Muldaur role, is Chris, the New York reporter. In the TV show McCloud.
ReplyDeleteAki, I had to look Diana up on the IMDB. She has an enormous resume! I don't remember if I saw the "Born Free" series back in high school but it sounds like it would have been something I would have enjoyed sampling. This was an interesting write up. Thanks for your post!
ReplyDeleteI will always remember Diana in her L.A. Law role. Her portrayal of the vindictive Rosalind added a lot of spice to the show and her fall down the elevator shaft is one of TV's most memorable moments. Thanks for the great post.
ReplyDeleteAki, I remember Diana Muldaur best from THE OTHER and a Gene Roddenbery TV-movie called PLANET EARTH. The latter was Roddenberry's second of three attempts to launch a TV series about a man in suspended animation who awakes in a future Earth. The first attempt was called GENESIS II and the third called STRANGE NEW WORLD. None of them resulted in a series!
ReplyDeleteRick and Aki, Alex Cord was the male star in Genesis II ,and John Saxon was the star of the second.
ReplyDeleteWow! I was going to volunteer to do a Diana Muldaur article for this spot myself! You have great taste! I still think LA Law started its decline when Roz Shays went down the elevator shaft. She was also great as the voice of Dr. Leslie Tompkins on Batman The Animated Series. Thanks for paying tribute to this great actress.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the nice comments. I have always liked Diana. She used to be in so many TV shows and quite a few movies. I would see her all the time. I have a friend who got her autograph from a Star Trek convention (TOS) because her two episodes were favorites among the fans. Gilby, she was excellent on LA Law and I missed her when she took the great fall down.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite actress in the whole world! I have a blog dedicated to her (http://dianamuldaurisagoddess.blogspot.com/)! I really think that Rosalind Shays on L.A. Law is the greatest TV character ever.
ReplyDeleteWas watching White Christmas, and I swear she is one of the dancers in a purple dress with Danny Kaye.
ReplyDeleteWith everything that I saw her in (and I've seen HOURS of guest shots of hers), the elevator shaft death of Rosalind Shays will be the one thing I will remember Diana Muldaur best for. I saw it when it first aired and it shocked the living crap out of me, and when I view it again on YouTube (the entire L.A. Law series is there, and I intend on re-watching it from the beginning), it will probably still be just as shocking!
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