Angie Dickinson was one of the most famous actresses of her generation. She received awards for her stunning performances and was recognised for her acting skills.
But years later, at the age of 92, it seems that the actress’s glamour has long faded. To find out what her life is like now, read on…
Angeline Dickinson, better known as Angie, is an American actress who had a huge television career. She started out appearing in anthology shows in the early 1950s. She then landed a role in The Human Weapon, but you may also remember her from the series Rio Bravo, which earned her a Golden Globe Award.
In addition to television, she also appeared in many films. She had roles in such films as Jessica, The Chase, The Stranger, The Art of Love, Killers, Ocean’s Eleven (1964), The Girl Can’t Wait, and many others. She was a highly sought-after actress throughout the 1960s and 1970s.
But perhaps her most memorable role was that of Sergeant Pepper Anderson in the film The Female Cop. It was the first time an actress had played the lead role in a television show, and it was a hit. Her role also inspired several young women to join the police force.
The actress herself admitted how ‘unique’ it was to see a woman in uniform on television. While female police officers are often seen on television today in series such as CSI or Law & Order, at that time it was a unique experience.
In a PBS series called Pioneers of Television, the actress talked about her participation in this role and how positively viewers reacted to crime shows even back then.
She also lamented the missed opportunity presented by the series ‘Police Woman.’ She said that the series did not show more. She felt that the series was ‘too clean.’ She did not like that every episode ended perfectly and that there was little violence in them.
The actress said she would have liked her series to show the worst consequences for bad guys. She appreciates modern series such as Southland and Detroit 1-8-7, which show such circumstances better than her show did.
When the series was at its most popular, the actress said she often received letters from fans telling her how she had inspired them to join the police force.
The actress was over 40 when she starred in ‘The Woman Cop,’ and she worked incredibly hard to show herself in all her glory. She worked twice as hard as actresses younger than her, and even with age, her beauty seemed to intensify rather than fade.
She charmed many people. That is why there are rumours that she was incredibly close to the Rat Pack. There were rumours that the actress had a 10-year affair with Frank Sinatra after they starred together in the original Ocean’s Eleven film. There were also rumours that Angie was involved with Dean Martin and former President John F. Kennedy.
The actress also played her famous role in the 2001 film Ocean’s Eleven with George Clooney. She is still considered a Hollywood legend today, revered by the entire industry.
In 2020, the actress made a startling revelation in an interview. She appeared on CBS’s Sunday Morning, where she was asked about her role in The Female Cop. She said that when she was first offered the role, she wanted to ‘throw up.’
At the time, she said it was a ‘terrible idea.’ She said that each season consists of 20 to 21 episodes, which would be an exhausting task. She told the showrunners that she would give them four years, but no more!
She worked on the series for four years and now says she was underpaid for it. In the end, she says, it ‘took years off her life’ and ‘wasn’t worth it.’
When asked what made her accept the role, the actress simply replied that David Gerber told her it would make her famous. But she said that at the time she wanted it herself, but people’s desires are constantly changing.
The actress was married twice in her life. She married her first husband, Gene Dickinson, in 1952, and their marriage ended in 1960. Later, the actress met and married Bert Bacharach. She lived with him from 1965 to 1981. It was Bacharach’s second marriage.
The couple had a daughter, their first child. They named her Nikki. She was born prematurely, three months before her due date, in 1966. Years later, Angie learned that her daughter had Asperger’s syndrome, which is part of the autism spectrum and is often referred to as a type of ‘high-functioning autism.’
Nikki studied geology at Lutheran University. Unfortunately, her eyesight was getting worse and worse, which prevented her from pursuing a career. Her parents then took her to a specialised facility, where she lived for ten years.
Sadly, Nikki died by suicide in 2007 at her home in Thousand Oaks. She was 40 at the time, and a statement released to the public said she took her own life to ‘escape the devastation’ in her mind.
Angie later said of her daughter, “She was very smart, funny and wonderful. Yes, that’s why all my memories of her are my best memories.”
When Angie got together with Baharach, he was still unknown in the industry, while she was famous. But soon Baharach wrote songs for Dionne Warwick and Butch Cassidy, which helped him gain great popularity.
While he was busy, Angie was happy to take a back seat to be the best mother and wife she could be. She even turned down projects so she could always be close to home. She stayed out of the spotlight for a while until the film The Female Cop came along.
When she got the job, her contract included a clause stating that she would be home by 6 p.m., but of course, things didn’t turn out the way she wanted. She often brought Italian food with her on her way home from work so that her family could eat on time. At the time, Baharach told her that she was always angry, but it took her years to understand what he meant.
Much later, she realised that she blamed herself for the smallest things, which also hurt her marriage. Later, she wondered if it was worth being a Hollywood mum and if her husband would have loved her more if she had been a housewife.
The couple lived together for five years before divorcing. During that time, they dated other people, but Angie always kept photos of Baharach in her home because he was the father of her daughter.
Her daughter was also a musician and played the drums. The relationship between them was unstable and tense, especially when Nikki joined a religious cult at the age of 14.
Nikki was also not very feminine and said that she would ‘never be as feminine’ as her mother. Nevertheless, the women had a wonderful bond, and Angie always wanted her daughter to be close to her.
While working on The Pearl, she took Nikki with her to Hawaii. However, when the two of them were in the water, they were caught in a rip current and crashed into a coral reef. Angie was sure they would not survive. Fortunately, she managed to keep her daughter safe and afloat.
Since Nikki was born prematurely, she had certain health problems, such as vision problems. She also suffered from autism. At times, Nikki lashed out at her mother, but Angie always understood her daughter’s discontent.
When Nikki’s health required more attention, Angie stepped away from her career to focus on her daughter. She said, “It wasn’t a sacrifice. Would I have worked? Yes, I would have done plays in Chicago or something like that if I didn’t have a daughter who needed me. But I needed her. I didn’t have the gift of free time.”
When her daughter committed suicide, Angie turned to her friends for support. Among them was Gregory Peck’s widow, Veronique, who was also acquainted with Tony Kushner. The actress found solace in one of his plays, which dealt with themes related to loss.
Bert Bacharach also passed away earlier this year, on 8 February 2023, at the age of 94. While he had other children, Nikki was Angie’s only child. The actress separated and divorced the famous composer for various reasons, including his infidelity, which he admitted to in his autobiography.
Angie often said that the composer did not love her in the way that people usually love others. She said, ‘He didn’t respect me.’ When asked if she loved him, she replied, ‘Yes.’
The actress now lives a reclusive but peaceful life in her own home in Beverly Hills. She is rarely seen on the street, which is understandable given her advanced age. Her last film appearance was in 2004 in Elvis Has Left the Building, and in 2009 she starred in the television film Mending Fences.
But even after that, she continued to appear on camera. She starred in a PBS documentary about Sammy Davis Jr. called I Must Be Myself. When she was 79, the actress said she was ‘lucky.’ She said, “I came along at the right time for so many great things. I met some great stars and stayed friends with many, and some became lovers. It’s been a fantastic life, really. And it’s still going on.”
When asked about resuming her acting career, she said she would not want to play ‘grandmother roles.’ But she was considering the possibility of participating in a ‘one-woman show’ or theatre productions.
At 93, she says that filming movies and working on television can be challenging. According to her, she still thinks about her appearance: ‘Even at my age, I’m still prone to the glamorous girl syndrome: you know, she has great legs, but she can’t act.’
In 2008, she sat next to Clint Eastwood, who joked with the actress that at his age, make-up artists had stopped teasing him. The actress, however, said that this was not the case for her. She said that she was so used to her hairstyle and make-up that she felt naked without them.
She later said, ‘You become obsessed with your appearance. If there’s no mirror in the lift, I’m done for. I don’t care who you are, but when you’re over 50, everything changes.’
The actress is known for not revealing anything about her personal life. According to her, this may be why publishers are not interested in her talking about herself. She said: ‘But I’m not going to write about myself in detail, you know? It’s not in my nature. If I ever have the energy, maybe I’ll go out and do a show for one woman.’
Alexandra Beckett, a writer for LA Magazine, said that she often looked after Angie’s cat and that in a neighbourhood where many Hollywood celebrities live, Angie was ‘the nicest neighbour I could have hoped for.’
According to available information, the actress lives alone. We hope she is doing well and does not feel lonely!
All these modern statements about ‘finally strong women’ confuse me. Angie was kicking ass long before all these so-called ‘firsts,’ and she did it with grace, beauty, and a ‘take no prisoners’ attitude.
There were many strong women in film and television when I was growing up, and they were doing it at a time when they were pioneers. It seems like everyone has just forgotten about that.
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