Monique van Vooren

Monique van Vooren
Van Vooren in 1975
Born(1927-03-25)March 25, 1927
Brussels, Belgium
DiedJanuary 25, 2020(2020-01-25) (aged 92)
Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
Other namesMonique Vooren
CitizenshipUnited States
OccupationsActress, dancer
Years active1950–2012
Spouses
  • Jakobson (details unknown)
    Kurt Henry Pfenniger (m. 1950-195?; divorced)
Gerard Walter Purcell
​
​
(m. 1958⁠–⁠2002)​
, his death);[1][2]
PartnerOrin Lehman (2001–2008; his death)
Children1

Monique van Vooren (March 25, 1927 – January 25, 2020) was a Belgian-American actress, singer, and writer. Her career spanned Broadway, cabaret, film, and television. She appeared in films such as Tarzan and the She-Devil (1953) and Andy Warhol's Frankenstein (1973), and made guest appearances on TV shows including Batman (1968) as the Penguin's associate. Her album, Mink in Hi-Fi, was released in 1958 and her book, Night Sanctuary, was published in 1981. Van Vooren died of cancer at age 92 in Manhattan.[3]

Early life and education

Monique Bronz was born in 1927 Brussels to George Bronz (or Bronze) and Louise van Vooren. She was a champion skater and a beauty queen in Belgium.

Reportedly, she arrived in New York in 1950 on a Fulbright scholarship.[4] She had studied philosophy in Europe before enrolling at New York University.[4] She spoke six languages: English, Italian, French, German, Spanish, and Dutch.[3] "I can also read Greek and Latin," she stated.[5]

Career

Theater

Van Vooren performed in several Broadway plays including John Murray Anderson's Almanac (1953–54), Destry Rides Again (1960), and Man on the Moon (1975).[6][7]

In the 1960s, she starred in summer stock theatre productions of Damn Yankees and A Shot in the Dark in the United States.[4][8]

Music

In 1958, her debut album Mink in Hi-Fi was released on RCA Victor Records.[9] Backed by Skitch Henderson and his orchestra, it included a blend of English and French songs.[9] She was wearing only diamonds for the album cover, swathed in expensive-looking furs of various colors.[3] According to John S. Wilson's glowing New York Times review, she had been "hiding her real talent under a bushel of cheesecake."[3]

She appeared frequently in cabaret performances.[10][11] She performed at the Mocambo on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood in 1957.[12] In 1976, she performed at the Rainbow Grill at Rockefeller Center in New York City.[13]

Film and television

Her first film role was as a schoolgirl in the 1950 Italian drama Domani È Troppo Tardi (Tomorrow Is Too Late), which starred Vittorio De Sica.[3] She costarred with Lex Barker and Joyce MacKenzie in her second movie, "Tarzan and the She-Devil" (1953), portraying a malevolent ivory poacher. She starred in two French crime dramas in 1955: "Ça Va Barder" (Give ' em Hell) and Série Noire (The Infiltrator).[3]

Her other film credits include the romantic comedy Happy Anniversary (1959), starring David Niven and Mitzi Gaynor; Ash Wednesday (1973), featuring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton; the low-budget erotic revenge drama Sugar Cookies (1973); and Flesh for Frankenstein (1973), also known as Andy Warhol's Frankenstein. In the latter, while her husband is preoccupied with creating monsters, Van Vooren's character, Baroness Frankenstein, becomes romantically involved with the stable boy, played by Warhol superstar Joe Dallesandro.[3]

On television, she had roles in a 1959 NBC adaptation of What Makes Sammy Run? and as Miss Clean on Batman (1968).[3] She also appeared on game shows, including To Tell the Truth and Password.[3]

Writing

In 1981, Van Vooren's book Night Sanctuary was published, for which she received the highest advance ever that Simon & Schuster's Summit Books paid for a new novelist.[14][15] She described the book as being about "the dark side of people."[16]

Death

Van Vooren died of cancer in Manhattan on January 25, 2020. She was survived by her son Eric Purcell, and a granddaughter.[17][3]

Personal life

Van Vooren was a longtime friend of ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev.[14][18]

Marriages and relationships

By 1957, Van Vooren had been married and divorced twice.[12] She married second husband Kurt (or Curt) Henry Pfenniger in 1950; they separated in 1954 and later divorced.[3] Her third husband was New York businessman Gerard Walter "Jerry" Purcell. They were married from 1958 until Purcell died in 2002.[1]

Van Vooren had various young lovers, including actor Hiram Keller.[18] In 2001, Van Vooran began dating Orin Lehman, a longtime New York State parks commissioner, and former fiancé of comedian Joan Rivers.[19] Rivers retorted by making fun of the new couple's advanced ages on Howard Stern's radio show. Van Vooren responded, telling Page Six: "She’s one to talk. She's got more miles on her than an old Checker cab. As for dear Orin, he's been a friend of mine before Rivers came along, while they were together and after he wisely dumped her."[19] They were together until Lehman's death in 2008.[20][21]

In 1983, Van Vooren was found guilty of lying before a federal grand jury and "ordered to get psychiatric help and perform 500 hours of community service as part of a suspended sentence."[22] The sentence resulted from an investigation of "whether she had pocketed her dead mother's Social Security payments."[22]

Filmography

References

  1. ^ a b "Paid Notice: Deaths PURCELL, GERARD W." The New York Times. March 20, 2002. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  2. ^ "Desert Sun". Cdnc.ucr.edu. June 13, 1958. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Gates, Anita (February 1, 2020). "Monique Van Vooren, Actress With a Diverse Résumé, Dies at 92". The New York Times. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Jensen, David S. (September 4, 1962). "Town House 'Damn Yankees' Stars Monique Van Vooren". The Reporter Dispatch. p. 24. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  5. ^ "Beauty Hinders Acting Career -- Monique van Vooren". Standard-Speaker. December 16, 1961. p. 19. Retrieved October 19, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Destry Rides Again – Broadway Musical – Tour | IBDB". www.ibdb.com. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  7. ^ Parker, Jerry (January 26, 1975). "Sky-High Hopes For A Lunar Musical". Newsday. Nassau Edition. pp. Part II / 5. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  8. ^ "Monique van Vooren To Star In Canal Fulton Production". The Daily Times. July 19, 1963. p. 7. Retrieved October 19, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ a b Garnet, Betty (January 26, 1958). "They Took Monique Off Ice And Brother, What a Thaw!". The Miami Herald. p. 29. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
  10. ^ "Music as Written" (PDF). Billboard. May 12, 1956. p. 14. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
  11. ^ Kleiner, Dick (January 30, 1958). "Life's Not Just Song To Monique". San Angelo Standard-Times. p. 8. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
  12. ^ a b Thomas, Bob (February 16, 1957). "Blonde Belgian Singer Cocks Practiced Eye at U.S. Women". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. p. 4. Retrieved October 19, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Arts and Leisure Guide". August 8, 1976. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  14. ^ a b Mann, Roderick (April 5, 1979). "Slavic Lover" Is It Nureyev?". The Los Angeles Times. pp. 14 Part lV. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  15. ^ Suplee, Curt (January 5, 1982). ""DAZZLING"". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
  16. ^ Kleiner, Dick (April 10, 1982). "Monique van Vooren turns to writing". The Index-Journal. p. 26. Retrieved October 19, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "Monique van Vooren, Actress in 'Tarzan and the She-Devil' and 'Batman,' Dies at 92". The Hollywood Reporter. January 28, 2020.
  18. ^ a b Kavanagh, Julie (2007). Rudolf Nureyev: The Life. London: Fig Tree. p. 369. ISBN 978-1-905490-15-8.
  19. ^ a b "RIVERS GETS THE HOOK". Page Six. October 9, 2001. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
  20. ^ Hevesi, Dennis (February 23, 2008). "Orin Lehman, 88, Parks Steward, Dies (Published 2008)". Retrieved October 25, 2025.
  21. ^ "WRONG WORDS". Page Six. March 5, 2008. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
  22. ^ a b "Monique van Vooren Sentenced". The Dispatch. September 24, 1983. p. 2. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
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