Ann Sothern Net Worth

What Was Ann Sothern's Net Worth?

Ann Sothern was an American actress who had a net worth equal to $16 million at the time of her death in 2001 (after adjusting for inflation). Ann Sothern acted onstage as well as on film, television, and radio. Her career started in the 1920s with small parts in films, and she made her Broadway debut in a 1930 production of "Smile." She later appeared in the Broadway shows "America's Sweetheart" (1931), "Everybody's Welcome" (1931–1932), "Of Thee I Sing" (1933), and "Faithfully Yours" (1951). Sothern starred as Maisie Ravier in the films "Maisie" (1939), "Congo Maisie" (1940), "Gold Rush Maisie" (1940), and several other films. She played Susan Camille "Susie" MacNamara on the CBS sitcom "Private Secretary" (1953–1957), which earned her three Primetime Emmy nominations. From 1958 to 1961, she starred on another CBS sitcom, "The Ann Sothern Show," which won a Golden Globe for Best TV Show in 1959. She also provided the voice of Gladys Crabtree on the NBC series "My Mother the Car" (1965–1966).

Ann had more than 100 acting credits to her name, including the films "Blind Date" (1934), "Dulcy" (1940), "Brother Orchid" (1940), "Lady Be Good" (1941), "April Showers" (1948), and "The Best Man" (1964). Her final film was 1987's "The Whales of August," and she earned her only Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In 1960, Sothern received stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1612 Vine Street for Motion Picture and 1634 Vine Street for Television. Ann Sothern passed away on March 15, 2001, at the age of 92.

Early Life

Ann Sothern was born Harriette Arlene Lake on January 22, 1909, in Valley City, North Dakota. Her mother, Annette Yde, was a concert singer, and her father, Walter J. Lake, had a career in the importing and exporting business. Ann was the granddaughter of Danish violinist Hans Nielsen. She grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, with two younger sisters, Bonnie and Marion. Sothern was four years old when her parents split up, and she started taking piano lessons the following year. Annette taught piano at McPhail School of Music, and Ann studied there. She would sometimes accompany Annette on concert tours. By the age of 11, Sothern was an accomplished pianist, and she sang in her church choir. She started taking voice lessons when she was 14 and continued studying music composition and piano. Ann attended Minneapolis Central High School, where she was cast in several stage productions. She also directed school productions. As a teenager, she won three state-sponsored contests for student composers. After graduating in 1926, Sothern moved to Seattle with her father, while her mother moved to Los Angeles and worked at Warner Bros. studios as a vocal coach. Ann enrolled at the University of Washington, but she dropped out after her freshman year.

Career

While visiting her mother, Sothern landed a role in the 1929 Warner Bros. film "The Show of Shows." After doing a screen test for MGM, she signed a six-month contract with the studio. She later met Florenz Ziegfeld, and he offered to cast her in one of his Broadway shows. Ann moved to New York and made her Broadway debut in "Smile" in 1930. After having uncredited roles in several films, she appeared in "Let's Fall in Love" (1933), "Melody in Spring" (1934), "The Hell Cat" (1934), "Blind Date" (1934), "The Party's Over" (1934), "Kid Millions" (1934), "Folies Bergère de Paris" (1935), "Hooray for Love" (1935), "Grand Exit" (1935), "Don't Gamble with Love" (1936), "Walking on Air" (1936), "Smartest Girl in Town" (1936), "There Goes the Groom" (1937), and "She's Got Everything" (1937). In 1939, Sothern starred as Maisie Ravier / Mary Anastasia O'Connor in the comedy film "Maisie." She reprised the role in nine films: "Congo Maisie" (1940), "Gold Rush Maisie" (1940), "Maisie Was a Lady" (1941), "Ringside Maisie" (1941), "Maisie Gets Her Man" (1942), "Swing Shift Maisie" (1943), "Maisie Goes to Reno" (1944), "Up Goes Maisie" (1946), and "Undercover Maisie" (1947). She also voiced the character on the radio program "The Adventures of Maisie" from 1945 to 1953.

In the '40s, Ann appeared in the films "Brother Orchid" (1940), "Dulcy" (1940), "Lady Be Good" (1941), "Panama Hattie" (1942), "Three Hearts for Julia" (1943), "April Showers" (1948), "Words and Music" (1948), "The Judge Steps Out" (1948), and "A Letter to Three Wives" (1949), followed by "Nancy Goes to Rio" (1950), "Shadow on the Wall" (1950), and "The Blue Gardenia" (1953) in the '50s. From 1953 to 1957, she starred as Susan Camille "Susie" MacNamara on the CBS sitcom "Private Secretary." Her performance earned her three Primetime Emmy nominations. From 1958 to 1961, she returned to CBS for "The Ann Sothern Show," which won a Golden Globe for Best TV Show in 1959. In the '60s, Sothern played Rosie Harrigan, the Countess Framboise, in seven episodes of the CBS sitcom "The Lucy Show," and she starred in the films "The Best Man" (1964), "Lady in a Cage" (1964), "Sylvia" (1965), "Chubasco" (1968), and "The Greatest Mother of Them All" (1969). Next, she appeared in the films "The Killing Kind" (1973), "Golden Needles" (1974), "Crazy Mama" (1975), "The Manitou" (1978), and "The Little Dragons" (1979), the miniseries "Captains and the Kings" (1976), and the TV movie "A Letter to Three Wives" (1985). Ann received an Academy Award nomination for her performance as Tisha Doughty in her final film, 1987's "The Whales of August."

Personal Life and Death

Ann married actor/band leader Roger Pryor on September 27, 1936. They separated in 1941, and Sothern filed for divorce the following year on grounds of mental cruelty. The divorce was finalized in May 1943, and less than a week later, Ann wed actor Robert Sterling. The couple welcomed a daughter, Patricia Ann (better known as Tisha), on December 10, 1944. Ann and Robert divorced in March 1949. At one point, Ann owned an incredible 23-room mansion in Bel Air. She downsized to a ranch property in Idaho later in life and sold most of her former possessions.

Ann contracted infectious hepatitis shortly after she filmed 1985's "A Letter to Three Wives." The cause was an impure serum shot, and she was confined to her bed while recuperating. In 1974, Sothern suffered a fractured lumbar vertebra after a prop tree fell on her back during a stage production of "Everybody Loves Opal." The accident also damaged nerves in her legs, and she was hospitalized, put in traction, and required to wear a back brace. For the rest of her life, Sothern dealt with numbness in her feet and had to walk with a cane. On March 15, 2001, Ann passed away from heart failure at her Idaho home at the age of 92. She was laid to rest at Ketchum Cemetery.

Awards and Nominations

In 1988, Sothern received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for "The Whales of August." The film also earned her an Independent Spirit Award nomination. She received five Primetime Emmy nominations: Best Actress Starring in a Regular Series (1955), Best Actress – Continuing Performance (1956), and Best Continuing Performance by a Comedienne in a Series (1957) for "Private Secretary," Best Actress in a Leading Role (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series (1959) for "The Ann Sothern Show," and Best Comedienne (1956). Ann earned two Golden Globe nominations, winning for Television Achievement for "The Ann Sothern Show" in 1959. Her other nomination was for Best Supporting Actress for "The Best Man" in 1965. Sothern won Photoplay Awards for "Maisie" (1939), "Gold Rush Maisie" (1940), "Dulcy" (1940), "Brother Orchid" (1940), "Congo Maisie" (1940), "Lady Be Good" (1941), and "April Showers" (1948).

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