{"id":842,"date":"2026-09-01T15:15:34","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T08:15:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogtamsu.com.vn\/?p=842"},"modified":"2026-09-01T15:15:34","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T08:15:34","slug":"iconic-star-trek-and-batman-actress-dies-at-90","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogtamsu.com.vn\/index.php\/2026\/09\/01\/iconic-star-trek-and-batman-actress-dies-at-90\/","title":{"rendered":"Iconic Star Trek and Batman actress dies at 90"},"content":{"rendered":"

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ollywood has lost a familiar face from television\u2019s golden age.<\/strong><\/p>\n

But Leslie Parrish\u2019s story went far beyond the screen.<\/strong><\/p>\n

More and more stars from Hollywood\u2019s Golden Age are leaving us, and with every passing, another piece of film and television history is lost.<\/p>\n

Now, sadly, we have to add another name to that list: actress Leslie Parrish.<\/p>\n

Parrish, whose career included memorable appearances in\u00a0The Manchurian Candidate<\/em>,\u00a0Batman<\/em>,\u00a0Perry Mason<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Star Trek<\/em>, died in Washington state in 2025 at the age of 90, according to reports.<\/p>\n

Her stepdaughter, Erica Berdan, confirmed her death to\u00a0The Hollywood Reporter<\/a>\u00a0in August 2026.<\/p>\n

Tucked away in the mountains<\/h2>\n

Born Marjorie Hellen on March 18, 1935, in Melrose, Massachusetts, Leslie Parrish spent her early childhood there until her parents divorced when she was seven.<\/p>\n

After the divorce, Parrish moved with her mother to Upper Black Eddy, a tiny Pennsylvania valley town of only about 600 people, tucked away in the mountains of Bucks County.<\/p>\n

It was an isolated childhood \u2014 so isolated that Parrish later recalled having almost no access to modern entertainment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was no television, and no radio could reach us over those high mountains. Can you imagine it, with Philadelphia only about 60 miles away,\u201d Parrish said in a 1960 interview.<\/p>\n

American actress Leslie Parrish poses for a portrait in New York, New York, circa 1960. (Photo by TPLP\/Getty Images)<\/figure>\n

As a young girl, Parrish dreamed of becoming a concert pianist. Determined to pay for her musical education, she took a job as a waitress and eventually earned a place at the Philadelphia Conservatory.<\/p>\n

But her money eventually ran out, forcing her to put her formal piano studies on hold. Her talent never disappeared, though. During her younger years, she continued playing and even gave piano lessons to aspiring young musicians.<\/p>\n

She eventually returned to waitressing, but her friends and customers began encouraging her to try something completely different: modeling.<\/p>\n

Taking their advice, Parrish traveled to New York City to give it a shot.<\/p>\n

And almost immediately, she found work.<\/p>\n

That decision would set her on a path she could never have imagined \u2014 from a tiny Pennsylvania mountain town to the bright lights of Hollywood.<\/p>\n

A familiar face on both the big and small screens<\/h2>\n

Her life changed when a Twentieth Century Fox scout discovered her and offered her a studio contract. Fox gave her the stage name Leslie Parrish and sent her to Hollywood.<\/p>\n

The golden-blonde, hazel-eyed young actress\u00a0wasted little time making an impression. In 1955 alone, she appeared in at least five films, including\u00a0A Man Called Peter<\/em>\u00a0and the Fred Astaire and Leslie Caron musical\u00a0Daddy Long Legs<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Over the next two decades, Parrish became a familiar face on both the big and small screens. Her television credits included beloved series such as\u00a0Perry Mason<\/em>,\u00a0Bat Masterson<\/em>,\u00a0The Man From U.N.C.L.E.<\/em>,\u00a0Star Trek<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Batman<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Her connection to\u00a0Batman<\/em>\u00a0was particularly memorable. She appeared in three episodes of the classic Adam West series, portraying different characters. In Season 2, she played Glacia Glaze, a henchwoman working for the villainous Mr. Freeze.<\/p>\n

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Leslie Parrish publicity portrait for the film \u2018Light In The Piazza\u2019, 1962. (Photo by 20th Century-Fox\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On\u00a0Star Trek<\/a><\/em>, she appeared in the Season 2 episode \u201cThe Apple,\u201d playing Lieutenant Carolyn Palamas aboard the USS\u00a0Enterprise<\/em>.<\/p>\n

But Parrish\u2019s most celebrated film role came in 1962, when she played Jocelyn Jordan, the fianc\u00e9e of Laurence Harvey\u2019s character in John Frankenheimer\u2019s political thriller\u00a0The Manchurian Candidate<\/em>.<\/p>\n

She also appeared in movies including\u00a0Li\u2019l Abner<\/em>, Jerry Lewis\u2019\u00a0Three on a Couch<\/em>,\u00a0Sex and the Single Girl<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0The Giant Spider Invasion<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Protesting the Vietnam War<\/h2>\n

Yet as her Hollywood career progressed, Parrish found herself increasingly drawn toward something bigger than acting.<\/p>\n

She became deeply involved in political and environmental causes, protesting the\u00a0Vietnam War<\/a>\u00a0and campaigning for Tom Bradley, who would go on to become Los Angeles\u2019 first Black mayor. After his 1973 victory, Parrish was appointed to his Blue Ribbon Commission.<\/p>\n

She also founded the anti-war organization Speakers and Talent Organized for Peace.<\/p>\n

Her final acting credit came in the 1978 television movie\u00a0No Margin for Error<\/em>. After that, she largely left\u00a0Hollywood<\/a>\u00a0behind and devoted herself to conservation.<\/p>\n

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American actress Leslie Parrish at London Airport (later Heathrow), UK, 14th March 1963. (Photo by Evening Standard\/Hulton Archive\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Together with her second husband, author Richard Bach, Parrish co-founded the Spring Hill Wildlife Sanctuary on Washington\u2019s Orcas Island. Through a series of conservation agreements, 168 acres of forest and wildlife habitat were ultimately protected.<\/p>\n

For Parrish, that work became one of the most meaningful accomplishments of her life. She once described her conservation efforts as\u00a0\u201cwhat I\u2019m most proud of.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

From Hollywood star to passionate activist and environmentalist, Leslie Parrish lived a life that stretched far beyond the roles audiences saw on screen.<\/p>\n

She was 90.<\/p>\n

Rest in peace, Leslie Parrish.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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