Kate Murtagh

Kate Murtagh was an American singer-comedienne and actress who began in a family vocal trio before moving into Broadway, television and film. Born in Los Angeles in 1920, she and her sisters Jean and Onriett performed as a harmony group coached by their musician parents, appearing on local radio from 1934 and on RKO's vaudeville circuit by 1935. The trio made soundies in 1942 and toured in Hellzapoppin before Murtagh went solo around 1946. In 1949 she took the Broadway role of Melissa Tatum in Texas, Li'l Darlin and then took television roles. Her film credits included Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), Farewell, My Lovely (1975), Switchblade Sisters (1975), The Car (1977) and Doctor Detroit (1983). On television she played Iona Dobson in It's a Man's World and appeared on The Munsters, I Dream of Jeannie and The Twilight Zone. She retired from acting in 1999 and died in 2017.