Ellen Geer

Ellen Geer
Geer in 1975
Born	New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Actress, professor, director
Years active	1961–present
Spouse(s)	Ed Flanders ​ ​ (m. 1963; div. 1968)​ Peter Alsop (m. 1975)
Children	3, including Willow Geer
Parent(s)	Herta Ware Will Geer

Ellen Geer is an American actress, professor, and theatre director.

Personal life

Geer was born in New York City, the daughter of actors Herta Ware and Will Geer. Her father was best-known for playing Grandpa Zebulon "Zeb" Walton on The Waltons.

She is married to children's musician Peter Alsop, and was previously married to actor Ed Flanders. She and Flanders had a son, Ian Geer Flanders. She and Alsop have two daughters, Megan and Willow.

Career

In 1963, Geer joined the Minnesota Theatre Company for the opening seasons of the original Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, where, among other roles, she played the lead in Guthrie's production of Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan.

Geer began her film career appearing as a nun in the 1968 Richard Lester drama Petulia. She followed this with an appearance in 1969's The Reivers with her father, Will Geer.

In 1971, Geer played the deceased wife of the lead character in Kotch, appearing throughout the movie in flashbacks. That same year, she became a regular on The Jimmy Stewart Show (which aired until the following year) and had a supporting role in the acclaimed comedy Harold and Maude. In 1974, she starred in two films which she also wrote: Silence and Memory of Us, both of which featured her father.

The remainder of Geer's 1970s career consisted primarily of guest appearances and made-for-television movies. Television series on which she appeared during this time included Police Story, The Streets of San Francisco, Baretta, Barnaby Jones, Charlie's Angels, CHiPs and two episodes of Fantasy Island.

Her television movie credits during this time included Babe (1975), The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case (1976), The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald (1977) and A Shining Season (1979). The only theatrical film on which she worked in the late 1970s was Jonathan Kaplan's Over the Edge in 1979.

The remainder of her television credits include guest appearances in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Silicon Avatar", The Waltons, Quincy, M.E., Dallas, The Practice, Stingray, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, ER, NYPD Blue and Cold Case. She also had recurring roles on Falcon Crest and Beauty and the Beast. She played elderly Piper Halliwell on the WB series Charmed in the series finale. In October 2007, the actress returned briefly to Desperate Housewives which she briefly appeared in before. She appeared in the fourth season of Castle in the episode called "The Blue Butterfly".

Geer has served since 1978 as artistic director of the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, a professional repertory, open-air theater in Topanga Canyon, California. Geer has also served as a visiting associate professor, teaching acting, at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Theater for 12 years.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1968	Petulia	Nun
1969	The Reivers	Sally
1971	Kotch	Vera Kotcher
1971	Harold and Maude	Sunshine Doré
1974	Silence	Barbara
1974	The Memory of Us	Betty
1979	Over the Edge	Sandra Willat
1980	On the Nickel	Louise
1981	Bloody Birthday	Madge
1983	Heart Like a Wheel	Marianne Kalitta
1983	Something Wicked This Way Comes	Mrs. Halloway
1985	Creator	Mrs. Spencer
1986	Hard Traveling	Norah Sloan
1987	The Wild Pair	Fern Willis
1987	Big Shots	Bar Waitress
1989	Satan's Princess	Mary Kulik
1991	Lonely Hearts	Martha
1992	Patriot Games	Rose
1993	Midnight Witness	Valerie
1994	Clear and Present Danger	Rose
1996	Phenomenon	Bonnie
1998	Practical Magic	Pharmacist
1998	The Odd Couple II	Frances Unger Melnick
2005	Me and You and Everyone We Know	Ellen
2006	The Visitation	Mrs. Macon
2006	The Gold Bracelet	Miss Hanson
2007	Man in the Chair	Mrs. Erskine
2012	The Misadventures of the Dunderheads	Vernice
2014	House at the End of the Drive	Eunice Sequoia
2018	Unlovable	Nana

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1961	Play of the Week	Susan	Episode: "The Wooden Dish"
1970	The Name of the Game	Sally Henderson	Episode: "The King of Denmark"
1971–1972	The Jimmy Stewart Show	Wendy Howard	Regular role
1972	Ghost Story	Marian	Episode: "Bad Connection"
1972, 1980	The Waltons	Eva Mann, Ronie Cotter	Episodes: "The Ceremony", "The Pledge"
1973	Medical Center	Rose Sachs	Episode: "No Margin for Error"
1973	The New Perry Mason	Maria Findley	Episode: "The Case of the Deadly Deeds"
1974, 1980–1982	Insight	Mary Louise, Sally Carlin, Cathy, Iris	Episodes: "Eddie", "God in the Dock", "A Decision to Love", "A Gun for Mandy"
1975	Archer	Marsha	Episode: "The Arsonist"
1975	Babe	Lilly Didrikson	TV film
1975, 1979	Barnaby Jones	Mary Wiley, Ruth Parks	Episodes: "Beware the Dog", "Man on Fire"
1976	Police Story	Jenny Benson	Episode: "The Other Side of the Fence"
1976	The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case	Myra Condon	TV film
1976	Delvecchio	Edie Parker	Episode: "The Silent Prey"
1976	The Bionic Woman	Sister Barbara	Episode: "Sister Jaime"
1977	The Streets of San Francisco	Betty Rollins	Episode: "Who Killed Helen French?"
1977	Westside Medical	Susan MacAllister	Episode: "Pressure Cook"
1977	Baretta	Susan Foster	Episode: "Buddy"
1978	Night Cries	Mrs. Whitney	TV film
1978, 1980, 1982	CHiPs	Martha, Margo Adams, Julie Barris, Mrs. Williams	Episodes: "Vintage '54", "E.M.T.", "The Great 5K Star Race & Boulder Wrap Party", "Return to Death's Door"
1978, 1979	Fantasy Island	Doris Greer, Sylvia	Episodes: "Carnival", "Nobody's There"
1979	Charlie's Angels	Hutton	Episode: "Caged Angel"
1979	Paris	Marie Castle	Episode: "Burnout"
1979	A Shining Season	Veta Mercer	TV film
1979, 1989	Dallas	Anita Krane, Mrs. Bouleris	Episodes: "John Ewing III: Parts 1 & 2", "Hell's Fury"
1980	My Kidnapper, My Love	Paula Stanley	TV film
1981	Dynasty	Charlotte	Episode: "Oil: Part 1"
1981	The Princess and the Cabbie	Nellie	TV film
1981	Strike Force	Mrs. Wilcox	Episode: "Magic Man"
1982	Code Red	Mrs. Meyers	Episode: "No Escape"
1982	Quincy, M.E.	Dr. Solomon, Sarah Markham	Episodes: "For Love of Joshua", "Ghost of a Chance"
1982	Trapper John, M.D.	Roberta	Episode: "You Pays Your Money"
1983	Deadly Lessons	Mrs. Grant	TV film
1983	Voyagers!	Eleanor Roosevelt	Episode: "Destiny's Choice"
1983	I Want to Live	Mrs. Cooley	TV film
1983	Tales of the Unexpected	Stella Archer	Episode: "Youth from Vienna"
1984	Call to Glory	Natalie	Episode: "Call It Courage"
1984	Buchanan High	Mrs. Dolen	Episode: "The Loyal Opposition"
1985	Stingray	Sybil Rosenberg	TV film
1985	Too Close for Comfort	Loraine Dockery	Episode: "The British Are Coming, the British Are Coming"
1985–1987	Falcon Crest	Doris	Recurring role (seasons 5–6)
1986	Hunter	Mrs. Dudleigh	Episode: "Scrap Metal"
1986	Moonlighting	Amy Everette	Episode: "Witness for the Execution"
1986, 1990	Santa Barbara	Dorothy, Norma Flannery	Episodes: "1.470", "1.1603"
1988	The Town Bully	Bea King	TV film
1988–1990	Beauty and the Beast	Mary	Recurring role
1991	Star Trek: The Next Generation	Kila Marr	Episode: "Silicon Avatar"
1993	Sirens	Mrs. Croft	Episode: "Looks Like Christmas"
1994	Diagnosis: Murder	Lily	Episode: "Lily"
1997	JAG	Gail Sanders	Episode: "The Guardian"
1997	The Practice	G. Warner	Episode: "Search and Seizure"
1999–2000	Once and Again	Celeste	Episodes: "The Past Is Prologue", "Strangers and Brothers"
2001	Philly	Carol Vaughn	Episode: "Light My Fire"
2002	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Ruth Elliott	Episode: "Cats in the Cradle..."
2003	ER	Mrs. Ferguson	Episode: "Now What?"
2003	Nip/Tuck	Annalise Anderson	Episode: "Adelle Coffin"
2003–2004	Girlfriends	Elizabeth Bickle	Episodes: "The Fast Track & the Furious", "New York Unbound"
2004	NYPD Blue	Veronica Lewis	Episode: "Old Yeller"
2004	Cold Case	Kay Lang	Episode: "Red Glare"
2004	June	Grandma P.	TV film
2005	American Dreams	Dorothy Day	Episode: "Home Again"
2005	Carnivàle	The Crone	Episode: "Old Cherry Blossom Road"
2006	Charmed	Piper (elderly)	Episode: "Forever Charmed"
2006	Our House	Rose	TV film
2006	7th Heaven	Joyce	Episode: "You Don't Know What You've Got 'Til He's Gone"
2006, 2010	Medium	Grandma Benoit	Episodes: "Twice Upon a Time", "Allison Rolen Got Married"
2007	Supernatural	Gert Case	Episode: "Red Sky at Morning"
2007–08, 2012	Desperate Housewives	Lillian Sims	Episodes: "What Would We Do Without You?", "If There's Anything I Can't Stand", "Free", "Finishing the Hat"
2009	Bones	Anne Reilly	Episode: "The Double Death of the Dearly Departed"
2011	Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior	Mary Ellen Stahl	Episode: "Death by a Thousand Cuts"
2012	Castle	Viola Maddox	Episode: "The Blue Butterfly"
2015	The Middle	Cynthia	Episode: "Halloween VI: Tick Tock Death"
2017	Room 104	Lorraine	Episode: "My Love"
2019	NCIS	Esther Daniels	Episode: "Going Mobile"

External links

• Ellen Geer at IMDb
• Ellen Geer at AllMovie