---
name: "Polly Bergen"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/polly-bergen"
fi1m_id: "polly-bergen"
imdb_id: "nm0000917"
tmdb_id: 40175
wikidata_id: "Q267051"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "14 July 1930"
died: "20 September 2014"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 1
updated: "2026-10-03T08:11:21.686761+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Polly Bergen

## Identity

Polly Bergen

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/polly-bergen
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** polly-bergen
- **IMDb ID:** nm0000917
- **TMDB ID:** 40175
- **Wikidata ID:** Q267051
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polly_Bergen, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q267051, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000917/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/40175

Actor. Born 14 July 1930 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. Died 20 September 2014.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 14 July 1930, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
- **Died:** 20 September 2014
- **Also known as:** Nellie Paulina Burgin
- **Primetime Emmy Awards:** 1 Emmy (1 won)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polly_Bergen, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q267051, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000917/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/40175

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Cape Fear*](https://film.one/film/cape-fear-1962.md) (82)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Polly Bergen (born Nellie Paulina Burgin) was an American actress and singer. She made her film debut in the late 1940s and appeared in several Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis comedies in the early 1950s. She played Peggy Bowden in the 1962 film *Cape Fear*.

Bergen won an Emmy Award in 1958 for her performance as Helen Morgan in a television production. She hosted *The Polly Bergen Show* and was a regular panelist on the game show *To Tell the Truth*. Later roles included appearances in *The Sopranos* and *Desperate Housewives*. She received a Tony Award nomination for her stage performance in the 2001 revival of *Follies* and was nominated for a Golden Globe for *The Caretakers* (1963). She also wrote books on beauty and fashion and ran her own cosmetics and jewellery businesses.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Cape Fear* (1962), Fi1m 82, as Peggy Bowden — [page](https://film.one/film/cape-fear-1962.md)

## Complete filmography (75)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Struck by Lightning* (2013), as Grandma
- *Candles on Bay Street* (2006), as Rosemary
- *A Very Serious Person* (2006), as Mrs. A
- *Commander in Chief* (2005), series, as Kate Allen
- *Desperate Housewives* (2004), series, as Stella Wingfield — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/desperate-housewives.md)
- *Twice in a Lifetime* (1999), series, as Judge Deborah
- *The Sopranos* (1999), series, as Fran Felstein — Fi1m 94, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-sopranos.md)
- *For Hope* (1996), as Molly Altman
- *In the Blink of an Eye* (1996), as Murial
- *Once Upon a Time... When We Were Colored* (1996), as Miss Maybry
- *The Surrogate* (1995), as Sandy Gilman
- *Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde* (1995), Actor
- *Touched by an Angel* (1994), series, as Stella Applegate
- *Leave of Absence* (1994), as Janet
- *Burke's Law* (1994), series, as Rachel Doucet
- *Perry Mason: The Case of the Skin-Deep Scandal* (1993), as Barbara Fox
- *The Lightning Incident* (1991), as Carol
- *Baby Talk* (1991), series, as Doris Campbell
- *Cry-Baby* (1990), as Mrs. Vernon-Williams
- *My Brother's Wife* (1989), as Myra Gilbert
- *The Haunting of Sarah Hardy* (1989), as Emily Thetford
- *Mother, Mother* (1989), as Barbara Cutler
- *She Was Marked for Murder* (1988), as Laura Lee Webster
- *War and Remembrance* (1988), series, as Rhoda Henry
- *Addicted to His Love* (1988), as Vivien Langford
- *Jake and the Fatman* (1987), series, as Emma Julian
- *Making Mr. Right* (1987), as Estelle Stone
- *Murder, She Wrote* (1984), series, as Dr. Jocelyn Laird
- *Velvet* (1984), as Mrs. Vance
- *The Winds of War* (1983), series, as Rhoda Henry
- *Born Beautiful* (1982), as Marion Carmody
- *Hotel* (1982), series, as Elizabeth Hastings
- *The Million Dollar Face* (1981), as Jo Burns
- *Li'l Abner in the Dogpatch Today* (1978), as Phyllis Shoefly
- *How to Pick Up Girls!* (1978), as Dana Greenberg
- *Telethon* (1977), as Dorothy Goodwin
- *79 Park Avenue* (1977), series, as Vera Keppler
- *The Love Boat* (1977), series, as Maisie Nolan, Dana Pierce
- *Bob Hope's World of Comedy* (1976), as (archive footage)
- *Murder on Flight 502* (1975), as Mona Briarly
- *Ellery Queen* (1975), series, as Dina Carroll-Winer
- *Death Cruise* (1974), as Sylvia Carter
- *Thriller* (1973), series, as Suzy Hunter
- *An Echo of Theresa* (1973), as Suzy Hunter
- *A Guide for the Married Man* (1967), as Technical Adviser
- *The Dean Martin Show* (1965), series, Actor
- *Kisses for My President* (1964), as Leslie McCloud
- *Move Over, Darling* (1963), as Bianca Steele
- *The Caretakers* (1963), as Lorna Melford
- *Belle Sommers* (1962), as Belle Sommers
- *Cape Fear* (1962), as Peggy Bowden — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/cape-fear-1962.md)
- *Dr. Kildare* (1961), series, as Janice Graham / Cathy Brandon
- *Kraft Music Hall* (1958), series, Actor
- *The Polly Bergen Show* (1957), series, as Host
- *Wagon Train* (1957), series, as Kitty Allbright
- *The Helen Morgan Story* (1957), as Helen Morgan
- *Alfred Hitchcock Presents* (1955), series, as Crystal Coe
- *Max Liebman Presents* (1954), series, Actor
- *The Blue Angel* (1954), series, as Co-Host
- *Escape from Fort Bravo* (1953), as Alice Owens
- *The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse* (1953), series, as Host
- *Arena* (1953), as Ruth Danvers
- *Fast Company* (1953), as Carol Maldon
- *Cry of the Hunted* (1953), as Janet Tunner
- *General Electric Theater* (1953), series, as Susan Barry
- *Hallmark Hall of Fame* (1951), series, as Rosemary
- *Warpath* (1951), as Molly Quade
- *The Stooge* (1951), as Mary Turner
- *Schlitz Playhouse of Stars* (1951), series, as Shirley, Dellie
- *That's My Boy* (1951), as Betty 'Babs' Hunter
- *At War with the Army* (1950), as Helen
- *The Jack Benny Program* (1950), series, as Polly Bergen
- *The Men* (1950), as Nightclub Singer (Uncredited)
- *Across The Rio Grande* (1949), as Polly Burgin
- *Champion* (1949), as Radio and Jukebox Singer (voice) (uncredited)

## Gallery

- ![Publicity photo of Polly Bergen in 1953](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-d5a49a963889.jpg) Publicity photo of Polly Bergen in 1953 — Publicity photo, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/80/Polly_Bergen_1953.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Polly Bergen](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-88210dd55549.jpg) Polly Bergen — David Shankbone, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Polly_Bergen_2012_Shankbone.JPG/1280px-Polly_Bergen_2012_Shankbone.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Photo of Andy Williams (as the gangster) with guest stars Woody Allen (as the boxer) and Polly Bergen (as the showgirl) on The Andy Williams Show. The scene sho (1965)](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-84511fe73772.jpg) Photo of Andy Williams (as the gangster) with guest stars Woody Allen (as the boxer) and Polly Bergen (as the showgirl) on The Andy Williams Show. The scene sho (1965) — NBC Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Woody_Allen_Polly_Bergen_Andy_Williams_Andy_Williams_Show_1965.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Polly Bergen and Chris Colfer at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival premiere of Struck by Lightning.](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-93c9eceb9088.jpg) Polly Bergen and Chris Colfer at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival premiere of Struck by Lightning. — David Shankbone, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8b/Polly_Bergen_Chris_Colfer_2012_Shankbone.JPG/1280px-Polly_Bergen_Chris_Colfer_2012_Shankbone.JPG?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Polly Bergen](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-915860fa2327.jpg) Polly Bergen — Image via TMDB
- ![Polly Bergen](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-dada4185038f.jpg) Polly Bergen — Image via TMDB
- ![Polly Bergen](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-df82ef0bd2b9.jpg) Polly Bergen — Image via TMDB
- ![Agent Irving Lazar and actress Polly Bergen at party for Earl Blackwell in Los Angeles (1975)](https://film.one/media/person/5519039/gallery-2158831ddf5a.jpg) Agent Irving Lazar and actress Polly Bergen at party for Earl Blackwell in Los Angeles (1975) — Kathleen Ballard, Los Angeles Times, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Irving_Lazar_and_Polly_Bergen.jpg/1280px-Irving_Lazar_and_Polly_Bergen.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)

## Awards

### Primetime Emmy Awards — 1 won

- 1958: Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie (won), for *Playhouse 90*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/polly-bergen