Camilla Carr, a character actress who carved out a lasting legacy in cult horror films and delivered a memorable turn on the television series Designing Women, died on , in El Paso, Texas. She was 83. Her death was due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease and a dislocated hip, according to her son, Caley O’Dwyer, a writer, poet, and painter.
Who Was Camilla Carr?
Born on , in Memphis, Texas, Camilla Carr pursued a career built on a willingness to embrace challenging and often unsettling roles. She studied at Kermit High School and later attended the University of North Texas before dedicating herself to acting.
Carr began her career in theatre and film, quickly finding a niche in the burgeoning exploitation and horror genres of the 1970s. While often working on low-budget productions, she consistently stood out for her intense performances and a fearless approach to material that many would have avoided.
Camilla Carr’s Cult Horror Film Career
One of Carr’s early and most recognizable roles came in Don’t Look in the Basement (1973), where she played a disturbed patient who commits a shocking act of violence. She followed this with the role of a manipulative hillbilly daughter in Poor White Trash Part II (1974), also known as Scum of the Earth, a film that gained a devoted following on the drive-in circuit.
In Keep My Grave Open (1977), Carr delivered a particularly striking performance as a woman grappling with a violent split personality, believing herself to also be her brother. All three of these films were directed by S.F. Brownrigg, a filmmaker noted for his ability to create chilling atmospheres despite extremely limited resources.
Camilla Carr’s Memorable Role on Designing Women
Carr’s television career reached a high point with a guest appearance on CBS’s Designing Women in 1987. In the episode “They’re Killing All the Right People”, she portrayed Mrs. Imogene Salinger, a client of the Sugarbaker firm who expressed deeply offensive views about the AIDS epidemic.
Her character delivered a particularly jarring line, stating, “As far as I’m concerned, this disease has one thing going for it: It’s killing all the right people.”
According to her son, “It was a shitty character, but she did a great job for an important cause.” The episode, written by series creator Linda Bloodworth Thomason, whose mother had died after contracting AIDS through a blood transfusion, earned Thomason an Emmy nomination.
Camilla Carr’s Television, Theatre, and Later Work
Beyond her horror work and the Designing Women appearance, Carr appeared in Michael Anderson’s Logan’s Run (1976) and played housekeeper Nellie Maxwell in three episodes of CBS’s Falcon Crest in 1988. She also had smaller roles in television series such as One Day at a Time and Another World.
Carr also maintained a presence on stage, performing in several productions for the Los Angeles Theatre Center, including a 1991 production of Tennessee Williams’ The Night of the Iguana, where she portrayed the character of Maxine.
In 2015, Carr briefly returned to the screen to appear in Don’t Look in the Basement 2, directed by Anthony Brownrigg, the son of the original film’s director, S.F. Brownrigg.
Camilla Carr’s Writing Career and Personal Life
Carr’s creative pursuits extended beyond acting. She worked as a writer on telefilms and authored the comic novel Topsy Turvy Dingo Dog (1989). The novel follows Mary Jane Shady, a B-movie actress who returns to her hometown of Uncertain, Texas, for her 20th high school reunion.
Carr was married to Oscar-winning screenwriter Edward Anhalt, known for his work on Panic in the Streets and Becket, from 1968 to 1976. She was one of his five wives.
