As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter anti matter.
Most of you reading this, will recognize the above actress, Kathryn Hays, from her appearance on Star Trek as Gem the Empath. The other night I was watching Chuck Connors in Branded, which is one of my favorite Westerns as the writing is phenomenal and the guest cast all went on to become favorites all through entertainment.
As I was watching this episode, there was this hot chic with a gun, long black hair, a real ranch vixen power woman, and then I said to TL, "That is Gem from Star Trek!".
See I was a fan of As the World Turns a CBS soap opera and that is where I first noticed Katherine Hays, who was born in Illinois. She was always a foundation character of the series, and the same quiet disposition and suffering of Gem as Kim Hughes. The thing is in Branded, I was watching a much better and more edgy emotional actress. She simply shown as a western woman. I have no idea why that cowboy hat, guns and horses transformed her, but she was like all these guest stars, memorable.
As you can see she was paired with the big stars like Robert Vaughn and held her own as she did with Chuck Connors as much as William Shatner, and it mystifies me why she never had a break out role, as honestly as this ranch woman she had as much presence as Katherine Hepburn.
Don Hastings is the actor she was paired with Larry Bryggman as the nemesis. Don Hasting you will remember in his brother had more television and movie roles, like the "Russian pilot" on Hogan's Heroes.
Kathryn Hays had a longer and more successful career than most actresses. Pictured with her is Colleen Zenk from ATWT who showed promise in her younger years, but blew off her fans fat too often as she was absorbed with her second husband at the time.
This though is one actress which I would have loved to have written a time line for. For all of the air brain roles of Audrey Hepburn, Kathryn Hays would have provided depth and strength which Audrey Hepburn never could bring to the screen. Imagine her opposite William Holden or Carey Grant.
In real life, she was married to Glenn Ford for a few years, which apparently did nothing for her career. For me she is always going to be the hot ranch chic. Put a gun in a woman's hand, put horses in the scene and a cowboy hat, and you got something of legend.
Katherine Hays.
Nuff Said.
agtG
