Ellen Geer

Ellen Geer, the daughter of actors Will Geer and Herta Ware, has worked continuously for 40 years in television and motion pictures since making her debut in Richard Lester's "Petulia (1968)" (1968) in support of Julie Christie and George C. Scott.

Probably best remembered for her turn as the committed actress who is lined up as the third (and last) date for "Harold" by his mother in the cult classic Harold and Maude (1971) (1971) (and who confounds "Harold" by recognizing his "suicide" by hari-kari as an act and eagerly joins in, playing "Juliet" to his "Romeo"), Geer has played character and supporting parts in scores of movies and television shows.

Upon the death of her father in 1978, Ellen took over as artistic director of Theatrical Botanicum, an outdoor amphitheater in Topanga Canyon, California, where she has both acted and directed in 50 productions, including "A Streetcar Named Desire", "Medea" and "The Madwoman of Chaillot". Under Geer's direction over the past 28 years, the "Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum" has developed from essentially a workshop to a respected theatrical company with an Equity contract.

She and her mother Herta Ware both made guest appearances on Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) and Beauty and the Beast (1987).

She is currently an acting professor at UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television, working both with undergraduate and Master of Fine Arts students. [March 2005]

A member of the ensemble cast of Omnium Gatherum, the closing show of Theatricum Botanicum's 2006 season. [October 2006]