Caitlin Clarke (born Katherine Anne Clarke;[1] May 3, 1952 – September 9, 2004)[2] was an American actress best known for her roles as Valerian in the 1981 fantasy film Dragonslayer and Charlotte Cardoza in the 1998–1999 Broadway musical Titanic.

Caitlin Clarke
Clarke in Dragonslayer (1981)
Born
Katherine Anne Clarke

(1952-05-03)May 3, 1952
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedSeptember 9, 2004(2004-09-09) (aged 52)
Education
OccupationActress
Years active1978–2001

Biography

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Clarke was born in Pittsburgh, the oldest of five sisters, the youngest of whom is Victoria Clarke.[3][4] Her family moved to Sewickley when she was ten.[5]

Clarke received her B.A. in theater arts from Mount Holyoke College in 1974 and her M.F.A. from the Yale School of Drama in 1978. During her final year at Yale, Clarke performed with the Yale Repertory Theater in such plays as Tales from the Vienna Woods.[citation needed] Clarke starred in the 1981 fantasy film Dragonslayer.[3]

After appearing in three Broadway plays in 1985,[2] Clarke moved to Los Angeles for several years as a film and television actress. She appeared in the 1986 film Crocodile Dundee as Simone, a friendly prostitute. She returned to theater in the early 1990s, and to Broadway as Charlotte Cardoza in Titanic.[6]

Clarke was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2000. She returned to Pittsburgh to teach theater at the University of Pittsburgh and at the Pittsburgh Musical Theater's Rauh Conservatory as well as to perform in Pittsburgh theatre until her death on September 9, 2004.[7]

Stage

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Broadway

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Off-Broadway

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  • 1979 – Othello
  • 1981 – No End of Blame
  • 1983 – Summer
  • 1984 – Total Eclipse
  • 1984 – Quartermaine's Terms
  • 1984 – Thin Ice
  • 1994 – Three Birds Alighting On A Field
  • 1994 – Unexpected Tenderness

Regional

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  • 1978 – Tales from the Vienna Woods (New Haven)
  • 1979 – The Winter's Tale (Washington)
  • 1980 – Bal (Chicago)
  • 1981 – Plenty (Chicago)
  • 1982 – Summer Vacation Madness (Minneapolis)
  • 1984 – As You Like It (San Diego)
  • 1984 – Not Quite Jerusalem (New Haven)
  • 1989 – Our Country's Good (Los Angeles)
  • 1991 – The Queen And The Rebels (Baltimore)
  • 1996 – Mrs. Warren's Profession (New Haven)
  • 1997 – Indiscretions (Dallas)
  • 1997 – The Glass Menagerie (Portland, Maine)
  • 1999 – Griller (Baltimore)
  • 2000 – Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf (Rochester, NY)
  • 2002 – The Gigli Concert (Pittsburgh)
  • 2002 – Aristocrats (Pittsburgh)

Film

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Television

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Series: Northern Exposure ("Only You"), The Equalizer, Once a Hero, Moonlighting, Sex And The City, Law & Order ("Menace", "Juvenile", "Stiff"), Matlock ("The Witness").

Movies: Mayflower Madam (1986), Love, Lies and Murder (1991), The Stepford Husbands (1996).

References

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  1. ^ Batz, Bob Jr. (September 13, 2004). "Obituary: Caitlin A. Clarke / Stage-screen actress and teacher". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on June 3, 2011. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Caitlin Clarke". Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Archived from the original on December 7, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Anderson, George (June 25, 1981). "She leaps from PPT to movies in just six years". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on August 11, 2024. Retrieved August 11, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Blank, Ed. (1986-08-03). "Movie brings Caitlin Clarke back to her roots" (pages 1 and 2). The Pittsburgh Press. Archived from the original (pages 1 and 2) on 2024-08-12. Retrieved 2024-08-12 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "The Caitlin Clarke Page: Biography". www.andywest.org. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  6. ^ "Titanic at LuntFontanne Theatre 1997-1999". www.abouttheartists.com. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  7. ^ Jones, Kenneth (September 16, 2004). "Caitlin Clarke, Regional and Broadway Actress, Dead at 52". Playbill. Archived from the original on August 11, 2024. Retrieved August 11, 2024.
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