Elizabeth Allen, 77; Versatile Actress Had Two Tony Nominations

Elizabeth Allen, 77, a two-time Tony Award-nominated actress who played opposite John Wayne in “Donovan’s Reef” and appeared in “Diamond Head” and “Cheyenne Autumn,” died of kidney failure Sept. 19 at a nursing home in Fishkill, N.Y.

Born Jan. 25, 1929, in Jersey City, N.J., Allen worked as a high-fashion model with the Ford Modeling Agency before she began acting. She later became known as “The Away We Go” girl, who introduced skits on “The Jackie Gleason Show.”

Allen, who was a member of the Helen Hayes Repertory Company in New York City for several years, played Juliet in David Merrick’s production of “Romanoff and Juliet,” which opened on Broadway in 1957.

Her Tony nominations came in 1962 for best supporting actress in a musical for “The Gay Life” and 1965 for best actress in a musical for “Do I Hear a Waltz?”

Allen, whose film credits also include “From the Terrace,” “The Star Spangled Girl” and “The Carey Treatment,” played Paul Lynde’s wife on the short-lived 1970s sitcom “The Paul Lynde Show.” She also was a cast member on the dramatic series “Bracken’s World” and on Don Rickles’ sitcom “C.P.O. Sharkey,” as well as the soap operas “Another World” and “Texas.”