Joan Benedict Steiger is an American actress of film, television and stage, best known for her role as Edith Fairchild on General Hospital. Benedict Steiger was born in Brooklyn, New York and first performed at the age of seven at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. She continued her training at Rome Opera Ballet School before studying with legendary acting coaches Robert Lewis and Stella Adler, founders of the Actor’s Studio in New York.
Her list of stage credits include acclaimed productions of contemporary offerings such as “Promises, Promises,” “The Beauty Queen of Leenane,” “Collected Stories” by Donald Margulies, P.J. Barry’s “The Octette Bridge Club,” Horton Foote’s “The Traveling Lady,” and Morris West’s “The World is Made of Glass;” opposite Don Knotts in the comedy “The Mind with the Dirty Man;” classics like “Richard III,” “The Dyubbuk,” and “Dr. Faustus;” and her two solo shows, “Leona” (about notorious “Queen of Mean” Leona Helmsley) and
the recent “The Loves of My Life,” based on her own life. On screen, she also co-starred with Knotts and Tim Conway in the comedy “The Prizefighter.”
Benedict Steiger is also known for a classic bit from the original version of “Candid Camera,” where she played a lost tourist looking for directions from passersby, making sure that her fancy hat – beplumed with a particularly large feather – would distract them at every opportunity. She was also part of the ensemble of the original “Steve Allen Show,” where she did double duty as the spokesperson for Hazel Bishop cosmetics. On daytime drama, she had regular and recurring roles on “General Hospital,” “Days of our Lives,” and “Capitol.” Her dozens of series guest appearances include classic series like “Fantasy Island,” “T.J. Hooker,” “The Incredible Hulk” and Fox’s “Dollhouse.” She has a starring role the 2011 feature “Dead Border.”
Decades of work on stage, screen, and television and the love of three devoted men sounds like a full life but in many ways, the story is just beginning for veteran performer Joan Benedict Steiger. With credits dating back to the original “Candid Camera” on television to her acclaimed solo performance as Leona Helmsley, she has lived the artistic life she first dreamed of as a child in Brooklyn, New York – and the dream shows no signs of ending.
“I always thought when I was little I would be a dancer,” Steiger recalls today. “I was never really built for ballet, but I was tap dancing in public at age seven when I performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. I remember the first film I ever saw was with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, and as I was leaving the theatre, I wanted to run back in, I knew I had to be a part of that world.”
As the only grandchild in a large family – she had seven uncles – Steiger grew up in her grandfather’s house off Prospect Park, where she describes herself as “Eloise at the Plaza – every one of those rooms was my magic room.” Encouraged by her mother, young Steiger studied at the Rome Opera Ballet School, and spent time in Paris, soaking up her craft and European culture and learning French and Italian. Back in America, Steiger continued her theatrical education by studying with legendary acting coaches Robert Lewis and Stella Adler, founders of the Actor’s Studio in New York. That pursuit of her craft continues today, as she continues to get a charge out of the challenge that each new acting job brings.
“The theatre for me is like being in church,” she says with sincerity. “When you feel the audience, and feel that communication with other souls, it’s like music. As a performer, I’m always pursuing that wonderful experience where you are completely alert and clear, and yet transported through your imagination.”
Indeed, perhaps Joan Benedict Steiger’s career is all the more remarkable for having endured through three long-term relationships, to what she describes as “three of the greatest guys in the world.” While marriages between professional actors are often fraught with jealousy and competition, Joan has found lightning in a bottle all three times.
“Both of my husband’s, and my lifetime partner Jeremy, were wonderful men who respected me as an actress,” she recalls. “They all died from different forms of cancer, so my memories are sometimes bittersweet, but with no regrets.”
“Strangely, I met all three of these men when I was in New York, just beginning my career while I was still a teenager,” she says. She was only 19 when she met actor Rod Steiger, who took an instant liking to her when they appeared on the same television show together. “I was in complete awe of him at the time,” she admits. “I remember walking out after seeing him in the play ‘Rashomon’ on Broadway, and seeing his face on the marquee across the street for the movie ‘Al Capone.’ I thought, what a life – starring on Broadway and starring in a movie! Knowing him at that age was like living in a fantasy.”
Though the initial romance with Rod was short-lived, given their respective dedication to pursuing their careers, Joan soon found herself in love with leading stage actor John Myhers. “He toured in ‘The Sound of Music’ for three years as Captain von Trapp, and I would take time off to travel with him,” she says. Settling in a home near Sunset Plaza in the Hollywood Hills, their marriage lasted thirty years before Myhers’ passing. Then, in the late 1990s, Rod and Joan found each other again. Rod had heard rave reviews of some of Joan’s stage work. “I got a call from him out of the blue…he’d been at a party where someone had mentioned me, and we got together again after all those years.”
Joan and Rod were nearly inseparable for the final years of his life, becoming creative partners as well as spouses. “Rod was very impressed with my acting. Whenever a script would arrive at the house, he’d ask me to read it for my feedback, then he’d say ‘Did you pick out your part yet?’” They appeared in two films together, “A Month of Sundays” and the telefilm “The Flying Dutchman.”
After a long life marked by tremendous highs and crushing lows – Steiger acknowledged suffering from chronic depression for much of his professional career – the Academy Award winning actor seemed to find new confidence and peace with his newly rediscovered love. “On one of the films we made, on the last day of shooting, Rod presented me with an Oscar-like statue he had made with my name on it, in front of the entire crew,” Joan remembers. “With me he said he was another person, and the only time in his life he had such happiness. He told me I was the only woman who could bring love out of a stone.”
heart.
Throughout her life, Joan Benedict Steiger has worked simultaneously on stage, in film, and on television. She’s still remembered for a classic bit from the original version of “Candid Camera,” where she played a lost tourist looking for directions from passersby, making sure that her fancy hat – beplumed with a particularly large feather – would distract them at every opportunity. She was also part of the ensemble of the original “Steve Allen Show,” where she did double duty as the spokesperson for Hazel Bishop cosmetics. On daytime drama, she had regular and recurring roles on “General Hospital,” “Days of our Lives,” and “Capitol.” Her dozens of series guest appearances include classic series like “Fantasy Island,” “T.J. Hooker,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Kojak” and “Hotel,” with the latter being directed by series star James Brolin. Most recently Joan guested on Fox’s “Dollhouse.”
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Joan was asked if she could go to New York to rehearse the film – playing Taylor’s part – with director Daniel Mann and the rest of the cast. Joan worked for weeks reading Taylor’s lines, and her dedication paid off when she was awarded a small part (a single line) in the film – for which she still earns residuals.
The role won Taylor her only Academy Award, but curiously, their paths would cross again years later through their mutual acquaintance with Rod Steiger. “When Rod and I were first dating, he went to see Elizabeth about working on a new project,” she says. “This was a period when she wasn’t feeling well, and Rod was one of the people who really encouraged her to get well and return to public life. That lead to speculation that Rod and Liz were dating and he was going to be her next husband. Rod and I were on an airplane to Spain, and he liked to read the tabloids: when I saw the headline saying Liz and Rod were going to wed, I said, ‘What’s this all about?’ And he smiled at me and said, “Joan, I’m sitting next to YOU!”
For now, Joan keeps busy preserving the legacy of her late husband, as well as continuing her stage, film, and television work whenever the right opportunity presents itself. ‘There’s still so much I can do, I’m still learning after all these years,” she explains. “I have a regular table at my favorite restaurant in Malibu and it faces the door, because I want to watch everyone walk in, I want to observe the way they use their body, because that’s so much a part of my process as an actress.” Although she has written her memoirs, Joan still knows that there are more chapters of her life left to live, and many more roles left to play.
Joan Benedict Steiger is an exceptionally talented and accomplished American actress of film, television and stage. She is in conversation with Namita Nayyar, President Women Fitness.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: You became a performer at an early age of seven years studying ballet & tap dancing. Your first recital was at the famous Brooklyn Academy of Music. You went as a young student to the Rome Opera Ballet School and subsequently, lived in Paris and later began to pursue acting as an actress in films, television and on stage. You reached the pinnacle of success for the role as Edith Fairchild on General Hospital, an American daytime television medical drama that is listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running American soap opera in production. Tell us about your journey that took you to where you are now in the world of acting?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: I started when I was 15. My journey started with iconic acting teachers like Betty Samin, Bobby Lewis and Stella Adler in the beginning of the great age of television. I starred on The Steve Allen show, Candid Camera and Kraft Theater, making my way finally to a stage and have now done 40 stage plays. I have become a member of several top acting groups over the years. I married Academy Award winner Rod Steiger. I also married a Broadway stage star John Myhers (who starred as Captain Von Trapp in the original Sound of Music) I’ve been dancing my whole life. I studied at the Rome Opera Ballet.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: You are a leading actress of films, television and theater. Which medium and platform of performance brings the best of professional satisfaction in you?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: Very simple, the stage…. theater.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: What exercises comprise your fitness regime or workout routine you shall like to share?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: I’ve been tap dancing since the age of seven and I take tap classes three times a week.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: Do you take some special diet or have a strict menu that you follow to remain healthy and physically fit?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: I have a protein drink in the morning for breakfast. I have my dinner at lunch time fish and vegetables which I love! I stay away from desserts. For dinner I have yogurt and fruit. I also take about a thousand vitamins which I have done for 20 years.
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Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: It was actually a one woman cabaret show. My stage show was called “Leona.” It was my favorite show.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: Advice and motivational words for our inspiring and budding actresses who all are your fans, what should they do for their climb to the ladder of success in field of acting?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: Always be a positive thinker, be dedicated and prepared with your work. The best advice I have is to listen to your own heart and mind.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: You worked with actor and your husband Rod Steiger (2001, New York International Independent Film and Video Festival Award for Best Actor) in the film “A Month of Sundays”. Tell us about the experience of working in this film and your memories with Rod Steiger as an actor?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: I met Rod in the early days, the 50s. I was acting with him on a TV show. I was trained with the same acting method as he (Stella Adler) so we both had the same approach to acting. Acting with Rod was easy because when you have someone who is so consummate and professional, it’s great.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: Who has been your inspiration and motivation that led you to your success in the world of acting?
Ms. Namita Nayyar: You acted in the TV show “Candid Camera”. Tell us about this endeavor of yours?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: It was fabulous because I did one of the most famous episode, “the feather bit.” I had to pretend I was lost in a railroad station and I found a man to talk to. He didn’t know it was being filmed and I was trying to get him involved by helping me out. I had an unusual long curl feather and I was supposed to get the feather in his eyes and ears. He was acting like nothing was happening. It was so funny.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: You once said “The theatre for me is like being in church”. Elaborate on this expression of yours?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: When you’re on stage and you are communicating ideas directly to a live audience it’s like being in church because you are so intimate with your soul and heart and you are communicating this live as opposed to being taped on film. When it’s live and you have an audience of several hundred people the feeling is incredible and makes you feel close to a lot of souls.
Ms. Namita Nayyar: What you wish to say about the website Womenfitness.net and message for its visitors?
Ms. Joan Benedict Steiger: First, believe that you are lucky to be on this earth as a human being and you have been given this great gift of life, I feel it’s my duty to make my image, my inner body and outer body the best that I can. And to make the best of life with my mind, heart and soul. I do my best to be a better person and to be a better communicator. I love to be in the best physical and mental condition and not a “fly on the wall.”
Women Fitness Team thanks Joan Benedict Steiger for giving her valuable time for this interview and quenching the thirst of her fans to know more about her and also wish to thank Lori De Waal from De Waal & Associates who made this interview happen.
To know more about Joan Benedict Steiger, check her out at: http://www.joanbenedictsteiger.com/
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All content on this site is copyright of Women Fitness and no part of any article found on this site may be reproduced without an express permission and highlighted, do follow link crediting http://www.womenfitness.net/ or preferably the original page as the source. This interview is exclusive and taken by Namita Nayyar President womenfitness.net and should not be reproduced, copied or hosted in part or full anywhere without an express permission.
All Written Content Copyright © 2016 Women Fitness