Katharine Crosby, who appeared in films such as “The 7th Voyage of Sinbad,” “Anatomy of a Murder” and “Operation Madball” before marrying famed singer and Oscar-winning actor Bing Crosby, has died. She was 90 years old.
A family spokesman said Saturday that she died of natural causes on Friday night at her home in the Northern California city of Hillsborough.
Performing under the stage name Catherine Grant, she co-starred with Tony Curtis in “Mr. Corley” in 1957 and with Victor Mature in “The Big Circus” in 1959. She also appeared in five films with film noir director Phil Karlson, including “Tight Spot” in 1955 and “Phoenix City.”
Other leading actors included Jack Lemmon in Madball, James Darren in The Brothers Rico, and James Stewart in Otto Preminger’s Anatomy of a Murder.
Olive Katherine Grandstaff was born on November 25, 1933 in West Columbia, Texas, and graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in fine arts before moving to Hollywood in 1953 and beginning her film career.
She wrote a Hollywood column for her local newspaper and met Bing Crosby while interviewing for the column, and the two were married in 1957. She was 23 and he was 54 at the time.
After her marriage, Crosby scaled back her acting career, but she made frequent appearances with him and their three children, including in his Christmas specials and in Minute Maid orange juice commercials. She became a registered nurse in 1963.
In the 1970s, she hosted a morning talk show on KPIX-TV in Northern California.
After Crosby’s death at age 74 from a heart attack after playing golf in Spain in 1977, she appeared in plays “Same Time Next Year” and “Charlie’s Auntie.” In 1996 she co-starred with John Davidson and Andrea McArdle in the Broadway revival of “State Fair.”
For 16 years until 2001, she hosted the Crosby National Golf Tournament at Bermuda Run in North Carolina.
She is survived by her three children, Harry; Mary, an actor best known for the TV show “Dallas,” and Nathaniel, a successful amateur golfer. She was married to Maurice Sullivan for 10 years until he was killed in a car accident in 2010 that left Crosby severely injured.
Harris is a contributor to The Associated Press.