Ruta Lee (born May 30, 1936) is a Canadian actress and dancer who appeared as one of the brides in the movie Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. She is also known for her guest appearance in The Twilight Zone in 1959, and for being a semi-regular on a number of game shows, including the Hollywood Squares, What's My Line?, and as Alex Trebek's co-host on High Rollers.

Early life and career

Ruta Lee was born Ruta Mary Kilmonis in Montreal, Quebec, and she was the only child of two Lithuanian immigrants. Her father was a tailor and her mother was a homemaker.Schwartz, Harry (June 3, 1998). - "Asian slaw proves a treat for Ruta Lee". - Tulsa World. - Retrieved on 2009-06-22. In 1948, her family moved to Los Angeles, Calif., where she attended high school at Hollywood High School, and began studying acting and appearing in high school plays.. - GlamourGirlsOfTheSilverScreen.com. She attended both Los Angeles City College and the University of California at Los Angeles.
Ruta worked as a cashier, an usherette, and a candy girl at the famous Grauman's Chinese Theater, but when she was $40.00 short in her cash account at the end of her shift one night, she was dismissed and lost her job.
Lee then got a break with a spot on TV with George Burns and Gracie Allen. She next found an agent, who found her a job in an episode of the Roy Rogers show, followed by a spot on the series Adventures of Superman in 1953. That same year, while doing a small theater production of On the Town, she landed a role in the Academy Award-nominated musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. After Seven Brides, Lee appeared in several films including Anything Goes (1956), Funny Face , Witness for the Prosecution (1957), and Marjorie Morningstar (1958) with Natalie Wood. In 1962, Ruta appeared in the comedy/western film Sergeants 3 along wiht Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Peter Lawford.

Lee has also appeared on numerous television shows such as Gray Ghost, Playhouse 90, Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer, The Lineup, M Squad, The Twilight Zone, Hawaiian Eye, The Wild Wild West, Rawhide and 77 Sunset Strip. In 1967, Lee appeared on The Lucy Show starring Lucille Ball, playing a substitute secretary to Mr. Mooney (played by Gale Gordon) when Lucy Carmichael is supposed to go on vacation. During this period, Lee also began appearing regularly on game shows such as Hollywood Squares and Match Game.

In the early 1970s, Lee continued to appear in both films and television roles including stints on Love, American Style, The Mod Squad, and a role in the 1972 film The Doomsday Machine. By 1974, Lee grew frustrated by the lack of roles she was landing and took a job co-hosting the daytime game show High Rollers. She remained with the show until 1976.

During the 1980s, she lent her voice to episodes of The Flintstone Comedy Show and The Smurfs, in addition to roles on CHiPs, The Love Boat, Charles in Charge. In 1989, she played the role of Sally Powers in the tv movie Sweet Bird of Youth with Elizabeth Taylor. In the 1990s, Lee continued to appear in episodic television, most notably in the series Roseanne. Lee appeared as the girlfriend of Roseanne Connor's (Roseanne Barr) mother, Bev Harris (Estelle Parsons), who had disclosed that she was a bisexual.

In 2006, Lee received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to the television industry.

In February 2008, Lee appeared as Clairee in a production of Steel Magnolias with Sally Struthers at the Casa Mañana Theatre in Fort Worth, Texas.

Personal life

Ms. Lee married the Texan restaurant executive Webster B. "Webb" Lowe, Jr., in 1976. The two of them divide their time between their houses near Hollywood (in Laurel Canyon, which was once the home of Rita Hayworth and Orson Welles), Palm Springs, Fort Worth, and Las Hadas, Mexico. One of Lowe's business ventures: Life Way Slender Mist, an appetite-suppressing mouth spray.

Charity work

In addition to acting, Lee is also known as a defender of human rights. In 1964, Lee called then Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev asking him to pardon her grandmother, Ludvise Kamandulis. Lee's grandmother had been in an internment camp in Siberia since World War II. The pardon was granted and Lee's grandmother was allowed out of the country to live with Lee in California in 1966, but she died two years later. Lee again rescued a relative from the former Soviet Union when she secured custody of her 18-year old cousin Maryte Kaseta from Lithuania in 1987.

Lee has been involved with the charitable organization "The Thalians" for over fifty years. In addition to raising money and providing services for troubled youth and mental health organizations, Lee, who is also the board chairman, has co-produced the annual Ball of the Thalians with Debbie Reynolds for over fifty years.

Selected filmography