Joan Shawlee ( Fulton; March 5, 1926Joan Shawlee's date of birth, familysearch.org; accessed February 14, 2016. – March 22, 1987) was an American film and television actress. She is known for her recurring role as Fiona "Pickles" Sorrell in The Dick Van Dyke Show, a career-defining turn in Billy Wilder's comedy Some Like It Hot (1959) playing Sweet Sue, the abrasive martinet in charge of Marilyn Monroe's all-girl jazz band, and as the flamboyant Madame Pompey in the 1957 Maverick episode "Stampede" with James Garner. She was sometimes credited under her birth name.
Early years Shawlee was born in Forest Hills, New York to Theodore Cuyler Fulton, an automobile salesman, and Esther L. (Ring) Fulton."Joan Fulton". My Heritage. Retrieved July 1, 2022. She moved with her parents and two brothers, Theodore Cuyler Fulton Jr. and Albert Fulton, to Vancouver, British Columbia, when she was five years old.
Career
Dancing and modeling Shawlee studied ballet under Ernest Belcher. At the age of fourteen, she began to work as a model for the John Robert Powers agency in New York, and worked later as a showgirl on Broadway. Billed as Joyce Ring, she appeared in the musical productions By Jupiter (1942) and A Connecticut Yankee (1943).
Film A tall woman (5'9"), she was known for small parts in Jack Lemmon and Billy Wilder films. She is probably best remembered for her role as bandleader Sweet Sue in Some Like It Hot (1959) starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Lemmon. She appeared as Sylvia in The Apartment (1960), and as Amazon Annie in Irma la Douce, both of which starred Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine. She also appeared in Wilder's final film, Buddy Buddy (1981).
Television Shawlee had a recurring role on TV in The Dick Van Dyke Show as Fiona "Pickles" Sorrell,Heffernan, Harold (November 9, 1950). "12 New Film Beauties Selected For Musical". The Blade. Toledo, Ohio. wife of writer Maurice "Buddy" Sorrell (Morey Amsterdam). She played the lead in The Adventures of Aggie (1956–57), which ran for only one season. She played Lorna Peterson on Betty Hutton's short-lived series Goldie; Margo on the 1976–77 crime drama The Feather and Father Gang; and Tessie on Joe's World. She was also a regular on The Abbott and Costello Show. She played a dead criminal's wife in Stories of the Century with Jim Davis and a 1957 episode of Maverick titled "Stampede", starring James Garner and Efrem Zimbalist Jr., in which she portrayed the exuberant Madame Pompey. Her final acting appearance was in an episode of Crazy Like a Fox in 1985.
Comedy team In the early 1960s, Shawlee and actress Mitzi McCall teamed up as a night club act. They opened at the Club Robaire in Cleveland. In January 1961, syndicated newspaper columnist Dorothy Kilgallen reported that the team was "causing quite a stir", while drawing attention to – and exaggerating – their discrepancy in height: "Joan being six feet, three inches tall and Mitzi four feet, 10 inches short."
Personal life Shawlee and her second husband, Eddie Barchet, had a daughter, Angela.Birth record of Angela Barchet
Death Shawlee died of breast cancer, in Hollywood, California, on March 22, 1987, aged 61. She was cremated and her ashes scattered at sea.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes1945Men in Her DiaryCourtroom SpectatorUncreditedThis Love of OursChorus GirlUncreditedFrontier GalHostessUncredited1946Because of HimAutograph SeekerIdea GirlMabelSwing High, Swing SweetShortTangierRocco's BlondeHouse of HorrorsStella McNallyMamie 'Baby' WillisInside JobRuthLover Come BackJanieCuban PeteAnnWhite Tie and TailsVirgie1947I'll Be YoursBlondeSoubretteSong of ScheherazadeFrench GirlUncreditedBuck Privates Come HomeSylvia HunterBen's Girl1950Woman on the RunTipsy Blonde in BarPrehistoric WomenLotee1951Two Tickets to BroadwayTall Brunette in BoardinghouseUncredited1952Tall Party Dancer / Woman at Airport (uncredited)Sound OffShowgirlUncreditedSomething for the BirdsWoman in Subway StationUncreditedBecause of YouAutograph SeekerUncredited1953All AshoreHedyLoose in LondonTall Girl at PartyUncreditedFrom Here to EternitySandraUncredited1954Pride of the Blue GrassMrs. CaseyCasanova's Big NightBeatrice D'BrizziUncreditedAbout Mrs. LeslieJill - Nightclub GirlFrancis Joins the WACSSergeant KippA Star Is BornJoanUncredited1955Bowery to BagdadVelma 'Cindy Lou' CalhounConquest of SpaceRosie McCannBorn for TroubleAggie Anderson1957A Farewell to ArmsBlonde NurseUncredited1959Some Like It HotSweet Sue1960Sylvia1963Critic's ChoiceMarge OrrIrma la DouceAmazon Annie1964Guerillas in Pink LaceMiss Gloria Maxine1966Momma Monahan1967Blonde in BarEdna, Frank's GirlfriendUncreditedTony RomeFat Candy1968Live A Little Love A LittleRobbie's Mother1971One More Train to RobBig NellieWillardAlice1975Flash and the FirecatRoseFarewell, My LovelyGarrulous Woman in Dance Hall1981Buddy BuddyReceptionistLongshotMotel Manager1982Kiss My GritsWanda1984City HeatPeggy Barker
Television Year Title Role Notes1952–1953My Little MargieSandra Fleming2 episodes1953The Registrar / Marion2 episodesYour Jeweler's ShowcaseJaniceEpisode: "Lady's Choice"General Electric TheaterAngie McGonigleSeason 2 Episode 12: "The Marriage Fix"Miss Brown / Telephone Operator / Twin Waitresses (uncredited) / Opera-Loving Lady in Park / Marriage License Bureau Clerk / Cash Register Lady / Eyewitness in Courtroom / Receptionist / Girl in Doctor's Office8 episodes1954Season 1 Episode 17: "Farewell Performance"Stories of the CenturySarah BrinkleySeason 1 Episode 21: "The Doolin Gang"1956Ethel Barrymore TheatreSeason 1 Episode 5: "The Peabody's"1956–1957AggieSeries regular1957MaverickMadame PompeySeason 1 Episode 9: "Stampede"1958ZorroBarmaid Clara2 episodes1959–1960Lorna11 episodes1961Some Like It HotSweet SueTV MovieMary WoodsonSeason 3 Episode 32: "The Lonesome Bride"1963Pickles Sorrell3 episodesDr. HornsbySeason 1 Episode 1: "Man It's Like Progress"GlynisDance Hall HostessSeason 1 Episode 2: "Ten Cents a Dance"1965HazelMrs. FoxSeason 5 Episode 3: "How to Lose 30 Pounds in 30 Minutes"1967Run for Your LifeLandladySeason 2 Episode 23: "The Assassin"Ruby - San Fernando's SecretarySeason 17 Episode 13: "Little Old Rainmaker: He"1968Adam-12Mrs. Lorena GetzSeason 1 Episode 3: "Log 11: It's Just a Little Dent, Isn't It?"Something for a Lonely ManHookerTV MovieMrs. BronsonSeason 1 Episode 14: "Pineapple Rose"1970Love, American StyleBernice FranksSeason 1 Episode 21: "segment: Love and the Marriage Counselor"Storefront LawyersAunt SadieSeason 1 Episode 3: "Murph Collins vs. Tomorrow"1971ArnieMyraSeason 2 Episode 3: "Honey, I'm Sorry, But..."ColumboMitildaSeason 1 Episode 4: "Suitable for Framing"Dead Men Tell No TalesPolly GrantTV Movie1972JosieSeason 1 Episode 5: "Covenant with Death"1974Trudy KrollSeason 1 Episode 11: "The Illusion of the Curious Counterfeit: Part I"Mannix(Annie) DuchessSeason 7 Episode 21: "Mask for a Charade"Movin' OnJuleen WallaceSeason 1 Episode 2: "Roadblock"1974–1976Emergency!Wife / Heather2 episodes1975Matt HelmThe SalesladySeason 1 Episode 0: "Matt Helm"S.W.A.T.Parlor Owner Season 1 Episode 11: "Blind Man's Bluff"Police StoryEmmaSeason 3 Episode 6: "Face for a Shadow"1976–1977MargoSeries regular1977Joanie BiederbeckSeason 1 Episode 13: "Case: The Hooper Affair"Never Con a KillerMargoTV Movie1978Quincy M.E.NurseSeason 4 Episode 8: "No Way to Treat a Body"Starsky and HutchMrs. KruppSeason 4 Episode 12: "Starsky's Brother"1979Delta HouseVerona MargolefskySeason 1 Episode 5: "The Lady in Weighting"1980AgnesSeason 1 Episode 13: "Dorm Window"Joe's WorldTessie2 episodes1981Child Bride of Short CreekIsaac's MotherTV Movie1981–1982Hart to HartMrs. Goodrich / Marie2 episodes1982Archie Bunker's PlaceJoanieSeason 4 Episode 1: "Archie's Night Out"1985Highway to HeavenWoman in ParkSeason 1 Episode 20: "The Banker and the Bum"Crazy Like a FoxManagerSeason 1 Episode 12: "Suitable for Framing"
References
External links