Brett Somers

Brett Somers (born Audrey Dawn Johnston; July 11, 1924 – September 15, 2007) was a Canadian-American game-show personality, actress, and singer. Brett was best known as a panelist on the 1970s game show Match Game and for her recurring role as Blanche Madison opposite her real-life husband, actor Jack Klugman, on ABC's The Odd Couple. Personal life Born Audrey Dawn Johnston in Halcomb, near Miramichi, New Brunswick, Canada, Somers grew up near Portland, Maine. At age 18, she moved to New York City to pursue a career in acting, settling in Greenwich Village. Her chosen first name, Brett, came from the lead female character in Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises. Her chosen last name, Somers, was her mother's maiden name. After settling in New York, she married businessman Robert H. Klein in 1948. Together they had one child, Leslie Klein (who died of lung cancer in 2003), but their marriage ended in divorce. She married actor Jack Klugman in 1953; they had two sons, David and Adam. It was long reported that Somers and Klugman separated in 1974 but remained legally married until her death; this mistaken belief was furthered by the fact that Klugman waited until after Somers died to marry his second wife. However, California court records indicate the couple actually divorced in August 1977. Somers became a U.S. citizen late in life.