Dawn Addams

For the American legislator, see Dawn Adams.

Dawn Addams
Addams with Alan Young in the television show The Alan Young Show, 1953.
Born	Victoria Dawn Addams (1930-09-21)21 September 1930 Felixstowe, Suffolk, England
Died	7 May 1985(1985-05-07) (aged 54) London, England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1951–83
Spouses	Don Vittorio Emanuele Massimo, Prince of Roccasecca ​ ​ (m. 1954⁠–⁠1971)​ (2 children) Jimmy White ​ (m. 1974)​
Children	2

Victoria Dawn Addams (21 September 1930 – 7 May 1985) was a British actress, particularly in Hollywood motion pictures of the 1950s and on British television in the 1960s and 1970s. She became a princess in 1954 (until 1971).

Early years

Addams's mother died when she was young.

Career

Dawn Addams and
Susan Cabot, 1953

Addams' face and physique attracted the attention of talent agents. In December 1950, she signed a seven-year contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios. Her film career began with a role in Night into Morning (1951), and her subsequent MGM films included Singin' in the Rain (1952), Plymouth Adventure (1952), Young Bess (1953) and the female lead opposite Peter Lawford in The Hour of 13 (1952). She played David Niven's daughter in The Moon Is Blue (1953). She also embarked on a USO tour the same year to help entertain troops in Korea. She worked steadily in films during the remainder of the 1950s, including a heavily publicised role as Richard Carlson's model girlfriend in the science fiction film Riders to the Stars (1954) and the female lead opposite actor-director-filmmaker legend Charlie Chaplin in his final comedy to star himself, A King in New York (1957). During the 1960s and 1970s, she appeared mainly in British TV shows and French films.

She was a semi-regular on the instructional series En France (1962) and the leading lady in several episodes of The Saint (1962–69), which starred Roger Moore as Simon Templar. Among her last film credits were two British horror films, The Vampire Lovers (1970) and The Vault of Horror (1973), and she was also a regular in the British sitcom Father, Dear Father (1971–1973). One of her last television roles was in the science fiction serial Star Maidens (1977). Addams retired in the early 1980s, dividing her remaining years between Europe and the United States.

On 1 May 2024 the book, Dawn Addams - My Life As Chaplin's Leading Lady - Filming Charles Chaplin's A King in New York - By John Francis Lane. Introduction and Afterword by James Pepper, was published by James Pepper Rare Books, Inc., Santa Barbara, California.

Personal life

She married Don Vittorio Emanuele Massimo, Prince of Roccasecca, in 1954; the wedding was the subject of a cover story in Life magazine. Their son, Prince Stefano, married Atalanta Foxwell, daughter of film producer Ivan Foxwell and Lady Edith (Lambart), granddaughter of the 9th Earl of Cavan.

Death

Addams died in 1985 in a London hospital at age 54 from lung cancer.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1951	Night into Morning	Dotty Phelps
	The Unknown Man	Ellie Fansworth
1952	Singin' in the Rain	Teresa, Lady-in-Waiting	Uncredited
	The Hour of 13	Jane Frensham
	Plymouth Adventure	Priscilla Mullins
1953	Young Bess	Kate Howard
	The Moon Is Blue	Cynthia Slater
	Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach	Cynthia Slader	English translation: The Virgin on the Roof
	The Robe	Junia
1954	Riders to the Stars	Susan Manners
	Mizar	Mizar
	The Bed	Janet
	Return to Treasure Island	Jamesina 'Jamie' Hawkins
	Khyber Patrol	Diana Rivington
	The Count of Bragelonne	Hélène de Winter
1955	Rommel's Treasure	Sofia
	I quattro del getto tonante	Moglie di Rovi
1956	The House of Intrigue	Mary
1957	A King in New York	Ann Kay, TV Specialist
1958	The Silent Enemy	Third Officer Jill Masters, W.R.N.S.
1959	The Scarlet Baroness	Szaga de Bor
	Temptation Island	Victoria
	Pensione Edelweiss	Nadia Rakesy
	Prisoner of the Volga	Irina Tatyana
	The Treasure of San Teresa	Hedi von Hartmann
	The Black Chapel	Tilla Turner
	Secret professionnel	Dr. Catherine Langeac
	Come Dance with Me	Anita Florès
1960	Die zornigen jungen Männer	Irene
	The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll	Kitty Jekyll
	The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse	Marion Menil
1961	House of Sin	Norma O'Brien
	Follow That Man	Janet Clark
1962	Sentimental Education	Catherine Dambreuse
1963	Come Fly with Me	Katie Rinard
1964	The Black Tulip	La marquise Catherine de Vigogne
1965	Ballad in Blue	Gina Graham
1966	Where the Bullets Fly	Felicity 'Fiz' Moonlight
1969	Zeta One	Zeta
1970	The Vampire Lovers	The Countess
1971	Sapho ou la Fureur d'aimer	Marianne
1973	The Vault of Horror	Inez

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1950	The Alan Young Show	Kay Prindall	Sketch comedy
1953	Racket Squad	Betty Grant	Episode: "The Case of Lady Luck"
1955	Sherlock Holmes	Doreen Meredith	Episode: "The Case of the Careless Suffragette"
1956	I Tre moschettieri	Alvina - Countess of Aragon	Episode: "The Hapsburg Hare"
1959	Sunday Night Theatre	Epifania Fitzfassenden	Episode: "The Millionairess"
	The Third Man	Eva	Episode: "Barcelona Passage"
	ITV Play of the Week	Jane Lockridge	Episode: "Sweet Poison"
1962	Edgar Wallace Mysteries	Maxine Hagen	Episode: "The £20,000 Kiss"
1963	The Saint	Magda Vamoff	Episode: "The Fellow Traveller"
1964	Danger Man	Martine/Gerdi	Episodes: "The Battle Of The Cameras" and "Fish on the Hook"
	The Saint	Countess Audrey Morova	Episode: "The Lawless Lady"
1966	The Saint	Queen Adana	Episode: "The Queen's Ransom"
1967	Emergency Ward 10	Diane Parker	Episode: "Second Sight"
1969	Department S	Dianne Lynne	Episode: "Handicap Dead"
	Playhouse	Alma Rostalba	Episode: "Romans and Friends"
1970	Armchair Theatre	Margo	Episode: "A Room in Town"
	Ryan International	Francoise Albert	Episode: "Evidence of Murder"
1971	Armchair Theatre	Cynthia Fenton	Episode: "The Bargain Hunters"
1971-1973	Father, Dear Father	Georgie Thompson	Series regular
1972	The Troubleshooters	Lady Diana	Episode: "Whatever Became of the Year 2000?"
	Crime of Passion	Therese	Episode: "Therese"
	Sez Les		1 episode
1973	The Adventurer	Lady Anne Benson	Episode: "The Case of the Poisoned Pawn"
1974	Dial M for Murder	Sybil Willis	Episode: "Murder on Demand"
1976	Star Maidens	Clara	5 episodes
1977	Crossroads	Katherine Lambert	1 episode
1983	Triangle	Mrs. Landers	Recurring role

External links

• Dawn Addams at IMDb