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Tippy Walker

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tippy Walker
Walker as part of the Peyton Place cast, 1969
Born
Elizabeth Tipton Walker

(1947-02-19) February 19, 1947 (age 78)
Occupation(s)actress, art gallery owner
Years active1964–1972
RelativesZachary Taylor (great-great-great grandfather)

Elizabeth Tipton Walker (born February 19, 1947) is an American former actress, best known for her role in the film The World of Henry Orient (1964).

Early years

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Walker was born Elizabeth Tipton Walker[1] on February 19, 1947, in New York City.[2] Her father, Gordon Walker, was an engineer with Allied Chemical Corporation.[1] Her mother, Nancy, was trustee of a society involved in restoring colonial homes. She was raised in Westchester County, New York,[3] and attended The Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, New York.[1] President Zachary Taylor was her great-great-great grandfather.[2]

Career

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Walker appeared in several television shows, such as Doctor Kildare and Peyton Place, and the female lead role in the film Jennifer on My Mind. She asked producers to bill her as Elizabeth Walker on Peyton Place, partly "because I don't like strangers calling me Tippy".[4]

Personal life

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In 1968 Walker was engaged to David Milch, a Yale graduate who planned to be a writer.[4]

According to a 2012 article in The New Yorker by John Colapinto, director George Roy Hill handpicked Walker from hundreds of actresses who auditioned for the role of "Val" in the 1964 film The World of Henry Orient and reshaped the film during editing to focus more on her character. According to Colapinto, in the 2000s Walker revealed through a series of posts on IMDb that she and Hill began a relationship during filming that lasted throughout most of Walker's senior year in high school, even though Hill was married with children and, at age 44, nearly 30 years older than Walker.[5] In the posts Colapinto attributes to Walker, the retired actress describes being sexually assaulted by Hill as a 16-year-old while they were alone in his office[6] and describes how Hill, without warning, began aggressively French-kissing her. Walker also claimed that Hill swore her to secrecy about the resulting relationship, then himself told others,[6] and she states the resulting Hollywood gossip made potential employers reluctant to cast her, contributing to her decision to stop acting in the early 1970s.[5]

Filmography

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Television

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "The Girls of Henry Orient". Time magazine. May 15, 1964. Archived from the original on October 24, 2012. Retrieved 2008-05-19.
  2. ^ a b Scheuer, Steven H. (September 27, 1968). "TV Key Mailbag". The Shreveport Journal. p. 2 D. Retrieved May 17, 2025.
  3. ^ Norcross, Derek (July 21, 1968). "Tippy Walker: The Calm Before the Storm". The Huntsville Times. p. 94. Retrieved May 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b "Tippy Gets Name Change". The Shreveport Journal. October 4, 1968. p. D 17. Retrieved May 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b Colapinto, John (2012-04-03). "A Star is Born, Lost, and Found". The New Yorker. New York City. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  6. ^ a b Walker, Tippy (2007-04-01). "Tippy Walker & George Roy Hill". Retrieved 2024-02-25. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
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