Ellen Geer

---

title: "Ellen Geer" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["20th-century-american-actresses", "21st-century-american-actresses", "american-film-actresses", "american-television-actresses", "american-theatre-directors", "american-women-theatre-directors", "living-people", "american-women-educators", "american-women-film-directors", "american-women-screenwriters", "ucla-school-of-theater,-film-and-television-faculty", "year-of-birth-missing-(living-people)", "1940s-births"] description: "American actress and director" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellen_Geer" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American actress and director ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox person"]

Field	Value
name	Ellen Geer
image	Ellen Geer 1975.JPG
caption	Geer in 1975
birth_name
birth_date
occupation	Actress, professor, director
years_active	1961–present
spouse
Peter Alsop
(m. 1975)
children	3, including Willow Geer
parents	Herta Ware
Will Geer
::

| name = Ellen Geer | image = Ellen Geer 1975.JPG | caption = Geer in 1975 | birth_name = | birth_date = | birth_place = | occupation = Actress, professor, director | years_active = 1961–present | spouse = Peter Alsop (m. 1975) | children = 3, including Willow Geer | parents = Herta Ware Will Geer

Ellen Geer (born ) is an American actress, professor, and theatre director.

Personal life

Geer is the daughter of actors Herta Ware and Will Geer. Her father was best-known for playing Grandpa Zebulon "Zeb" Walton on The Waltons.

Career

In 1963, Geer joined the Minnesota Theatre Company for the opening seasons of the original Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, where, among other roles, she played the lead in Douglas Campbell’s production of Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan.

Geer began her film career appearing as a nun in the 1968 Richard Lester drama Petulia. She followed this with an appearance in 1969's The Reivers with her father, Will Geer.

In 1971, Geer played the deceased wife of the lead character in Kotch, appearing throughout the movie in flashbacks. That same year, she became a regular on The Jimmy Stewart Show (which aired until the following year) and had a supporting role in the acclaimed comedy Harold and Maude. In 1974, she starred in two films which she also wrote: Silence and Memory of Us, both of which featured her father.

The remainder of Geer's 1970s career consisted primarily of guest appearances and made-for-television movies. Television series on which she appeared during this time included Police Story, The Streets of San Francisco, Baretta, Barnaby Jones, Charlie's Angels, CHiPs, and two episodes of Fantasy Island.

Her television movie credits during this time included Babe (1975), The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case (1976), The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald (1977), and A Shining Season (1979). The only theatrical film on which she worked in the late 1970s was Jonathan Kaplan's Over the Edge in 1979.

The remainder of her television credits include guest appearances in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Silicon Avatar"; The Waltons; Quincy, M.E.; Dallas; The Practice; Stingray; CSI: Crime Scene Investigation; ER; NYPD Blue and Cold Case. She also had recurring roles on Falcon Crest and Beauty and the Beast. She played elderly Piper Halliwell on the WB series Charmed in the series finale. In October 2007, the actress returned briefly to Desperate Housewives, in which she briefly appeared before. She appeared in the fourth season of Castle in the episode called "The Blue Butterfly".

Geer has served since 1978 as artistic director of the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, a professional repertory, open-air theater in Topanga Canyon, California. Geer has also served as a visiting associate professor, teaching acting, at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Theater for 12 years.

Filmography

Film

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1968	Petulia	Nun
1969	**	Sally
1971	Kotch	Vera Kotcher
Harold and Maude	Sunshine Doré
1974	Silence	Barbara
**	Betty
1979	Over the Edge	Sandra Willat
1980	On the Nickel	Louise
1981	Bloody Birthday	Madge
1983	Heart Like a Wheel	Marianne Kalitta
Something Wicked This Way Comes	Mrs. Halloway
1985	Creator	Mrs. Spencer
1986	Hard Traveling	Norah Sloan
1987	The Wild Pair	Fern Willis
Big Shots	Bar Waitress
1989	Satan's Princess	Mary Kulik
1991	Lonely Hearts	Martha
1992	Patriot Games	Rose
1993	Midnight Witness	Valerie
1994	Clear and Present Danger	Rose
1996	Phenomenon	Bonnie
1998	Practical Magic	Pharmacist
**	Frances Unger Melnick
2005	Me and You and Everyone We Know	Ellen
2006	**	Mrs. Macon
The Gold Bracelet	Miss Hanson
2007	Man in the Chair	Mrs. Erskine
2012	**	Vernice
2014	House at the End of the Drive	Eunice Sequoia
2018	Unlovable	Nana
::

Television

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1961	Play of the Week	Susan	Episode: "The Wooden Dish"
1970	**	Sally Henderson	Episode: "The King of Denmark"
1971–1972	**	Wendy Howard	Regular role
1972	Ghost Story	Marian	Episode: "Bad Connection"
1972, 1980	**	Eva Mann, Ronie Cotter	Episodes: "The Ceremony", "The Pledge"
1973	Medical Center	Rose Sachs	Episode: "No Margin for Error"
**	Maria Findley	Episode: "The Case of the Deadly Deeds"
1974, 1980–1982	Insight	Mary Louise, Sally Carlin, Cathy, Iris	Episodes: "Eddie", "God in the Dock", "A Decision to Love", "A Gun for Mandy"
1975	Archer	Marsha	Episode: "The Arsonist"
Babe	Lilly Didrikson	TV film
1975, 1979	Barnaby Jones	Mary Wiley, Ruth Parks	Episodes: "Beware the Dog", "Man on Fire"
1976	Police Story	Jenny Benson	Episode: "The Other Side of the Fence"
**	Myra Condon	TV film
Delvecchio	Edie Parker	Episode: "The Silent Prey"
**	Sister Barbara	Episode: "Sister Jaime"
1977	**	Betty Rollins	Episode: "Who Killed Helen French?"
Westside Medical	Susan MacAllister	Episode: "Pressure Cook"
Baretta	Susan Foster	Episode: "Buddy"
The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald		TV film
1978	Night Cries	Mrs. Whitney	TV film
1978, 1980, 1982	CHiPs	Martha, Margo Adams, Julie Barris, Mrs. Williams	Episodes: "Vintage '54", "E.M.T.", "The Great 5K Star Race & Boulder Wrap Party", "Return to Death's Door"
1978, 1979	Fantasy Island	Doris Greer, Sylvia	Episodes: "Carnival", "Nobody's There"
1979	Charlie's Angels	Hutton	Episode: "Caged Angel"
Paris	Marie Castle	Episode: "Burnout"
**	Veta Mercer	TV film
1979, 1989	Dallas	Anita Krane, Mrs. Bouleris	Episodes: "John Ewing III: Parts 1 & 2", "Hell's Fury"
1980	My Kidnapper, My Love	Paula Stanley	TV film
1981	Dynasty	Charlotte	Episode: "Oil: Part 1"
**	Nellie	TV film
Strike Force	Mrs. Wilcox	Episode: "Magic Man"
1982	Code Red	Mrs. Meyers	Episode: "No Escape"
Quincy, M.E.	Dr. Solomon, Sarah Markham	Episodes: "For Love of Joshua", "Ghost of a Chance"
Trapper John, M.D.	Roberta	Episode: "You Pays Your Money"
1983	Deadly Lessons	Mrs. Grant	TV film
Voyagers!	Eleanor Roosevelt	Episode: "Destiny's Choice"
I Want to Live	Mrs. Cooley	TV film
Tales of the Unexpected	Stella Archer	Episode: "Youth from Vienna"
1984	Call to Glory	Natalie	Episode: "Call It Courage"
Buchanan High	Mrs. Dolen	Episode: "The Loyal Opposition"
1985	Stingray	Sybil Rosenberg	TV film
Too Close for Comfort	Loraine Dockery	Episode: "The British Are Coming, the British Are Coming"
1985–1987	Falcon Crest	Doris	Recurring role (seasons 5–6)
1986	Hunter	Mrs. Dudleigh	Episode: "Scrap Metal"
Moonlighting	Amy Everette	Episode: "Witness for the Execution"
1986, 1990	Santa Barbara	Dorothy, Norma Flannery	Episodes: "1.470", "1.1603"
1988	**	Bea King	TV film
1988–1990	Beauty and the Beast	Mary	Recurring role
1991	Star Trek: The Next Generation	Kila Marr	Episode: "Silicon Avatar"
1993	Sirens	Mrs. Croft	Episode: "Looks Like Christmas"
1994	Diagnosis: Murder	Lily	Episode: "Lily"
1997	JAG	Gail Sanders	Episode: "The Guardian"
**	G. Warner	Episode: "Search and Seizure"
1999–2000	Once and Again	Celeste	Episodes: "The Past Is Prologue", "Strangers and Brothers"
2001	Philly	Carol Vaughn	Episode: "Light My Fire"
2002	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Ruth Elliott	Episode: "Cats in the Cradle..."
2003	ER	Mrs. Ferguson	Episode: "Now What?"
Nip/Tuck	Annalise Anderson	Episode: "Adelle Coffin"
2003–2004	Girlfriends	Elizabeth Bickle	Episodes: "The Fast Track & the Furious", "New York Unbound"
2004	NYPD Blue	Veronica Lewis	Episode: "Old Yeller"
Cold Case	Kay Lang	Episode: "Red Glare"
June	Grandma P.	TV film
2005	American Dreams	Dorothy Day	Episode: "Home Again"
Carnivàle	The Crone	Episode: "Old Cherry Blossom Road"
2006	Charmed	Piper (elderly)	Episode: "Forever Charmed"
Our House	Rose	TV film
7th Heaven	Joyce	Episode: "You Don't Know What You've Got 'Til He's Gone"
2006, 2010	Medium	Grandma Benoit	Episodes: "Twice Upon a Time", "Allison Rolen Got Married"
2007	Supernatural	Gert Case	Episode: "Red Sky at Morning"
2007–08, 2012	Desperate Housewives	Lillian Sims	Episodes: "What Would We Do Without You?", "If There's Anything I Can't Stand", "Free", "Finishing the Hat"
2009	Bones	Anne Reilly	Episode: "The Double Death of the Dearly Departed"
2011	Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior	Mary Ellen Stahl	Episode: "Death by a Thousand Cuts"
2012	Castle	Viola Maddox	Episode: "The Blue Butterfly"
2015	**	Cynthia	Episode: "Halloween VI: Tick Tock Death"
2017	Room 104	Lorraine	Episode: "My Love"
2019	NCIS	Esther Daniels	Episode: "Going Mobile"
::

References

References

1. (August 24, 2018). "Peter Alsop's Kid Koncerts and Reunion".
2. (August 12, 1995). "Ellen Geer's Latest Play Explores the Pain of Her Actor Father's Blacklisting: Not Your Typical Family Affair". Los Angeles Times.
3. Morris, Steven Leigh. "[https://www.americantheatre.org/2016/08/12/first-and-second-geer-and-beyond-at-theatricum-botanicum/ First and Second Geer (and Beyond) at Theatricum Botanicum]", in ''American Theatre''. New York, New York: Theatre Communications Group, August 12, 2016.
4. Phillips, Michael. "'[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-jul-14-ca-52657-story.html Harold and Maude' Takes On Established Cult and Conceits]." Los Angeles, California: ''Los Angeles Times'', July 14, 2000.
5. "[https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SCS19771116&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 Sentinel TV Log: Evening: 10:00: Baretta]." Santa Cruz, California: ''Santa Cruz Sentinel'', November 16, 1977.
6. "[https://newspaperarchive.com/cambridge-daily-jeffersonian-oct-23-1975-p-27/ TV Best Bets: Thursday: 9 p.m.]" Cambridge, Ohio: ''Cambridge Daily Jeffersonian'', October 23, 1975.
7. Person, James E., Jr. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=QHMXZ9C0QxIC&dq=%22Ellen+Geer%22&pg=PA243 Earl Hamner: From Walton's Mountain to Tomorrow]'', pp. 87, 243. Nashville, Tennessee: Cumberland House, 2005.
8. "Theatricum Botanicum".
9. [http://beta.tft.ucla.edu/faculty/ellen-geer/ UCLA School of Theater] {{Webarchive. link. (2011-07-20 , accessed on June 6, 2008.)

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::