biography

Carol Ohmart Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on June 3, 1927, beautiful actress Carol Ohmart grew up in the Seattle, Washington area but returned to Utah upon her parents' divorce. The beautiful teenager became Miss Utah 1946, and she was fourth runner-up in the 1946 Miss America contest. Relocating to New York and beginning a modeling career in the late 1940s, Ohmart often appeared on the covers of a variety of magazines through the mid 1950s. She also did commercials for early TV programs, first appearing on the NBC program Versatile Varieties in 1949 doing floor wax commercials alongside Anne Francis and Eva Marie Saint; the three actresses also hosted the show, which ended in 1951. An early marriage to Ken Grayson ended in 1951.

Carol OhmartCarol OhmartCarol OhmartCarol OhmartWayde Preston and Carol Ohmart

LEFT and CENTER A: Magazine covers featuring Carol Ohmart: 1947 National Police Gazette cover and October 1953 American Hairdresser cover. CENTER B and C: Paramount promotional photos. RIGHT: Ohmart at a premiere with second husband Wayde Preston, star of the 1957-1960 TV series Colt .45. Preston and Ohmart married in 1956 and parted company in 1958

In 1955, Ohmart signed a contract with Paramount Studios, and studio press releases proclaimed her their answer to Marilyn Monroe. Though she was indeed gorgeous, her roles were the opposite of Monroe's vulnerable, naive characters. Rather, Ohmart excelled in portraying ruthless characters who were often driven to murderous, deviant behavoir. Her first two films were the film noir entries The Scarlet Hour (1956; with Tom Tryon and James Gregory) and The Wild Party (1956; with Anthony Quinn and Arthur Franz). Paramount did not pick up Ohmart's contract option, so from there she acted in numerous television shows, including Bronco and Hawaiian Eye and freelanced in several low-budget films, such as Born Reckless (1958; with Mamie Van Doren and Jeff Richards) and House on Haunted Hill (1959; with Vincent Price and Richard Long).

the films of carol ohmart

The Scarlet Hour (1956)

Carol OhmartCarol OhmartTom Tryon and Carol OhmartCarol Ohmart and James Gregory

LEFT and CENTER A: As femme fatale Paulie Nevins in Paramount's The Scarlet Hour, Ohmart's first film. CENTER B: With Tom Tryon. RIGHT: With James Gregory

The Wild Party (1956)

Carol OhmartArthur Franz, Anthony Quinn, and Carol OhmartCarol Ohmart, Anthony Quinn, and Arthur Franz

From the film noir release The Wild Party. LEFT: United Artists promotional photo. CENTER and RIGHT: With Arthur Franz and Anthony Quinn

House on Haunted Hill (1958)

Carol Ohmart and Vincent PriceCarol OhmartCarol OhmartCarol OhmartCarol OhmartCarol Ohmart

From the Allied Artists horror gem House on Haunted Hill, directed by William Castle. LEFT: With Vincent Price as Ohmart's husband. CENTER A, B, and C: As Annabelle Loren (thanks to Michael Barnum). LEFT: Ohmart meets her end

Born Reckless (1958)

Jeff Richards and Carol Ohmart

With Jeff Richards in the Warner Bros. drama Born Reckless

The Scavengers (1959)

Carol Ohmart

As Marion Allison in the low-budget crime drama The Scavengers

One Man's Way (1964)

Don Murray and Carol Ohmart

From the United Artists biopic One Man's Way with Don Murray as Norman Vincent Peale

Spider Baby (1964)

Sid Haig and Carol Ohmart

With cult favorite Sid Haig in Jack Hill's brilliant horror flick Spider Baby. Shot in early 1964 for $65,000, this film sat on the shelf until its January 1968 release

Branded (1965-1966 NBC TV series)

Carol Ohmart and Burgess Meredith

Ohmart guest-starred on an April 1966 episode of the NBC western series Branded titled Headed for Doomsday. Also pictured is Burgess Meredith

The Spectre of Edgar Allan Poe (1974)

Carol Ohmart

Ohmart portrays Lisa Grimaldi in the Cinerama horror flick The Spectre of Edgar Allan Poe, Ohmart's last film

later years

Carol Ohmart is remembered best for her role as Annabelle Loren in the 1958 Allied Artists release The House on Haunted Hill, in which she portrays Vincent Price's murder-plotting wife. This film was directed by William Castle, who used to spice up his horror films with "ballyhoo" designed to bring in audiences. The gimmick used in The House on Haunted Hill was "Emerg-O," which amounted to little more than a skeleton mounted on a wire that would swoop down on audiences during climactic moments.

While Ohmart's film career was never what it should have been, she logged many hours as a guest-star on popular television shows, including Perry Mason, Route 66, Get Smart, and Mannix, among others. Her few film appearances in the 1960s include Jack Hill's Spider Baby (1964; with Lon Chaney, Jr. and Sid Haig), One Man's Way (1964; with Don Murray), and the seldom-seen Caxambu (1967; with John Ireland and Keith Larsen). In the late 1960s, Ohmart abandoned her acting career, briefly picking it up again in the early 1970s on television and in her final film, The Spectre of Edgar Allen Poe (1974; with Robert Walker Jr. and Cesar Romero). Afterward, Ohmart left Hollywood and acting for good in favor of studying metaphysics. She remarried in late 1978 and relocated to Utah and, later, Washington; she and her husband eventually settled in Colorado. Sadly, Carol Ohmart passed away on January 1, 2002, at the age of 74. She was survived by her third husband, Bill.

filmography

FILM
The Spectre of Edgar Allan Poe (1974) with Robert Walker Jr., Tom Drake, and Cesar Romero
Caxambu (1967) with John Ireland and Keith Larsen
Spider Baby (1964) with Lon Chaney, Jr., Sid Haig, Beverly Washburn, Jill Banner, and Quinn Redeker
One Man's Way (1964) with Don Murray and Diana Hyland
Wild Youth (1960) with Robert Hutton
The Scavengers (1959) with Vince Edwards and Vic Diaz
Born Reckless (1958) with Mamie Van Doren, Jeff Richards, Arthur Hunnicutt, and Don 'Red' Barry
House on Haunted Hill (1958) with Vincent Price, Elisha Cook, Jr., and Richard Long; directed by William Castle
The Wild Party (1956) with Anthony Quinn, Arthur Franz, Kathryn Grant, and Barbara Nichols
The Scarlet Hour (1956) with Tom Tryon, James Gregory, Elaine Stritch, E.G. Marshall, Billy Gray, and Nat 'King' Cole

TELEVISION SERIES
Versatile Varieties, live NBC variety series produced from 1949 through 1951

TELEVISION GUEST APPEARANCES
Barnaby Jones, episode A Little Glory, a Little Death, originally aired April 29, 1973
Mannix, episode The Crimson Halo, originally aired October 1, 1972
Branded, episode Headed for Doomsday, originally aired April 10, 1966
Get Smart, episode Aboard the Orient Express, originally aired December 11, 1965
The Third Man, episode Mischka, originally aired July 9, 1962
Everglades, episode The Four Day Weekend, originally aired June 12, 1962
Coronado 9, episode Blonde Herring, originally aired May 23, 1961
77 Sunset Strip, episode Designing Eye, originally aired May 12, 1961
77 Sunset Strip, episode Open and Close in One, originally aired March 19, 1961
Michael Shayne, episode Murder Is a Fine Art, originally aired March 17, 1961
Perry Mason, episode The Case of the Angry Dead Man, originally aired February 25, 1961
Michael Shayne, episode The Man with a Cane, originally aired January 6, 1961
Route 66, episode Sheba, originally aired January 6, 1961
Ripcord, episode Air Carnival, originally aired 1961
77 Sunset Strip, episode The Affairs of Adam Gallante, originally aired December 9, 1960
Dante, episode The Bavarian Barbarians, originally aired November 28, 1960
Tales of Wells Fargo, episode The Wade Place, originally aired November 28, 1960
The Chevy Mystery Show, episode Murder by the Book, originally aired September 4, 1960
Tombstone Territory, episode The Siesta Killer, originally aired May 20, 1960
Lock Up, episode Poker Club, originally aired March 12, 1960
Men Into Space, episode Dark of the Sun, originally aired March 9, 1960
Bat Masterson, episode Six Feet of Gold, originally aired February 25, 1960
Richard Diamond, Private Detective, episode Seven Swords, originally aired January 18, 1960
M Squad, episode The Ivy League Bank Robbers, originally aired December 25, 1959
77 Sunset Strip, episode The Texas Doll, originally aired December 11, 1959
Hawaiian Eye, episode The Quick Return, originally aired December 2, 1959
Shotgun Slade, episode Marked Money, originally aired November 16, 1959
Bachelor Father, episode Bentley and the Dog Trainer, originally aired September 24, 1959
Man Without a Gun, episode Devil's Acres, originally aired June 30, 1959
Bat Masterson, episode Promised Land, originally aired June 10, 1959
77 Sunset Strip, episode Strange Girl in Town, originally aired May 29, 1959
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp, episode The Actress, originally aired April 14, 1959
Bronco, episode Backfire, originally aired April 7, 1959
Special Agent 7, episode Border Masquerade, originally aired January 15, 1959
The Millionaire, episode The Pete Hopper Story, originally aired December 10, 1958
Northwest Passage, episode The Assassin, originally aired November 16, 1958
The 20th Century-Fox Hour, episode The Still Trumpet, originally aired April 3, 1957
Lux Video Theatre, The Guilty, originally aired October 11, 1956
Lights Out, episode Mary, Mary Quite Contrary, originally aired March 27, 1950

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Watch the trailer for Carol Ohmart's 1959 horror film House on Haunted Hill

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Watch Carol Ohmart's 1959 horror film House on Haunted Hill
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