Olive Sturgess, who appeared in about two dozen TV Westerns and played Vincent Price’s daughter in the Roger Corman 1963 cult horror spoof “The Raven,” has died at age 91.
Sturgess died February 19, 2025 of natural causes in Los Angeles, California, her daughter, Amy Anderson Sanchez, told The Hollywood Reporter. Her death came after losing her home of 60 years in the Pacific Palisades fire. At the time of her passing, she was living with her daughter.
Through two decades beginning in the mid-1950s, the fresh-faced Canadian actress appeared in approximately 300 episodes of television, including 12 episodes from 1956 to 1959 as the girlfriend of Dwayne Hickman’s character on the NBC-CBS sitcom “The Bob Cummings Show.”
Born on October 8, 1933, in Ocean Falls, British Columbia, and raised in Vancouver, Sturgess took ballet and piano lessons as a youngster. She was inspired to enter show business after seeing Mary Martin perform in “Peter Pan.”
Sturgess recalled to Tom Weaver in his 2014 book “I Talked With a Zombie” that, while seated in the front row of the balcony, she witnessed a performer dramatically flying out onto the stage. In that moment, she described feeling as though she was witnessing something magical, which solidified her desire to pursue acting as her life’s calling.
After her family moved to California in 1954, Sturgess attended Whittier College and acted at the Beverly Hills Playhouse when she met Hank Garson, a well-known writer of radio shows at CBS. This connection led to her appearances on TV programs such as “Matinee Theater,” “Studio 57,” “The Millionaire,” “The People’s Choice,” and “The Red Skelton Hour.”
She later signed a contract with Universal-International, where Clint Eastwood performed her screen test with her. Before long, as she noted, “You’d see me twice a week on TV in the ’50s.”
While Western shows dominated her résumé, Sturgess also appeared on numerous other series including “West Point,” “Perry Mason,” “Panic!,” “The Donna Reed Show,” “Hawaiian Eye,” “The Danny Thomas Show,” “Petticoat Junction,” “Dr. Kildare,” and “Ironside.”
Her Western credits were extensive, including appearances on “Bonanza,” “The Virginian,” “Destry,” “Wide Country,” “Maverick,” “Whispering Smith,” “Bronco,” “The Tall Man,” “The Rebel,” “Laramie,” “Lawman,” “Have Gun — Will Travel,” “Rawhide,” “U.S. Marshal,” “Sugarfoot,” “Cheyenne,” and “Tales of Wells Fargo.”
A notable moment in her career came when she guest-starred alongside Mickey Rooney on a 1960 episode of NBC’s “Wagon Train,” where she had the opportunity to wear the wedding dress used by Elizabeth Taylor in “Father of the Bride” (1950).
Sturgess said her work on two episodes of the Boris Karloff-hosted NBC horror anthology series “Thriller” in 1960 and 1961 opened the door for her to land the role of Estelle Craven, daughter of the sorcerer Dr. Erasmus Craven (Vincent Price), in American International Pictures’ “The Raven.”
In the film, which took about two weeks to shoot, she worked alongside legendary actors Peter Lorre and Boris Karloff, who played sorcerers Dr. Adolphus Bedlo and Dr. Scarabus, respectively. A young Jack Nicholson, then about 26, portrayed Rexford Bedlo, the son of Lorre’s character.
Reflecting on her experience working with these iconic actors in Tom Weaver’s book, Sturgess expressed how thrilling it was “because of the way they used their voices and the way they spoke. It made you chill just to hear it.”
She recalled feeling chills run up her spine whenever Mr. Karloff turned to her during a scene and spoke about her, his delivery making a profound impact. She described the experience as an incredible education simply being in his presence.
As for Nicholson, she described him as “sort of ‘different’ … you could feel this talent of his, but he wasn’t letting it out yet.”
Standing at 5 feet 2 inches tall, Sturgess knew how to ride a horse and performed in rodeos. She also appeared in one Western feature film, “Requiem for a Gunfighter” (1965).
Her final onscreen credit may have come on a 1974 episode of “The Rookies,” but she continued to receive and respond to fan mail until her death.
Sturgess was married to Dale Anderson, a percussionist and Hollywood studio musician who often worked with John Williams, from 1964 until his death in 2003. In addition to her daughter Amy, survivors include her son Stephen, son-in-law Lorenzo, daughter-in-law Rikke, and granddaughter Jennifer.
In her later years, Sturgess reflected on the quality of television during her time in the industry compared to modern shows.
