Connie Clausen

Connie Clausen was an actress, author and literary agent. She was born in Menasha, Wisconsin and in her teens she moved with her family to Sarasota, Florida, then winter quarters of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. While walking down Sarasota's Main Street she was stopped by John Ringling North, who remarked that her long hair was perfect for portraying "Alice in Wonderland" on a float in that season's fairy tale finale. She spent two years in the circus and then left for Hollywood, where she worked in M-G-M Studio's Publicity Department. She rose from a messenger to Director of Special Promotions. An M-G-M studio photographer encouraged her to pursue an acting career, and she moved to New York where she first worked as a Conover model and then had a successful career as a television and stage actress. She appeared on Broadway and in hundreds of television programs and commercials during the 1950's and 60's. She was a spokeswoman for many major brands including Westinghouse and Beech-Nut, and she was a regular on the "Dr. Spock Show" with her twin sons. In 1961 she wrote a memoir based on her two seasons in the circus, "I Love You Honey But the Season's Over" (Holt, Rinehart and Winston). In 1970 she began a new career in publishing with MacMillan Publishing Company, rising to Vice President. During her tenure at MacMillan she was instrumental in promoting the bestsellers "Jonathon Livingston Seagull" and Watership Down" In 1976 she founded her own literary agency, "Connie Clausen and Associates". Her agency produced many bestsellers including a Pulitzer Prize winning biography of Jackson Pollack, and her clients included the fashion photographer Francesco Scavullo and the British author Quentin Crisp . She died in Manhattan at the age of 74 of a stroke. The role of Connie Clausen in the 2009 British ITV film production of "An Englishman in New York" is played by the actress Swoosie Kurtz.