MANILA, Philippines?One of the reasons I became a film buff is because I fell in love with the willowy and contralto-voiced Alexis Smith in ?San Antonio,? a western she appeared in opposite Errol Flynn. In that cowboy adventure, the blue-green eyed, 5?9? tall actress sang ?Some Sunday Morning? to the Tasmanian charmer. I thought she was gorgeous, and she also looked like she could handle Tinseltown?s macho men.

The graceful beauty acted with Hollywood?s most exciting leading men?from Cary Grant and Humphrey Bogart to Clark Gable and William Holden?during her heyday in the ?40s and ?50s. She was born Gladys Smith in Canada, but her parents migrated when she was a child to California, where she was trained in ballet and theater. She performed as a dancer in ?Carmen,? where she was discovered by a Hollywood agent.

Smith rose from the ranks, although she was soon playing supportive wives of characters played by George Gershwin and Cole Porter. However, in 1959, she starred with Paul Newman and Cliff Robertson in ?The Young Philadelphians.?

During the filming, she fell off a horse and broke her back. Incapacitated for some time, Smith toured her night club act and performed in plays opposite her husband of 49 years, Craig Stevens. The good-looking actor was best-known for the TV series, ?Peter Gunn.?

Scenes

One of my most memorable celebrity experiences was meeting the couple during a function at the Manila International Film Festival in the ?70s. Smith was rather amused when I told her I still fondly recalled her scenes in ?San Antonio? and sang a part of her song. I also surprised her hubby when I turned to him and asked, ?And, you, I take it, are Peter Gunn?,? then hummed the movie?s Mancini tune.

Alexis was on the cover of Time Magazine when she was chosen as the Broadway lead for Sondheim?s musical, ?Follies,? in which she was praised by critics for ?her biting rendition? of ?Could I Leave You?? She later won a Tony for Best Actress in a Musical.
Amiable actress

In 1990, she earned an Emmy nomination for guesting on ?Cheers.? She was popular not only with her costars, but also with the stagehands, who considered Smith ?one of the boys.? The amiable actress had no ego problems.

Smith was never involved in scandals. She remained married to the same man, although the couple never had any children. She is remembered as one of the stars of Hollywood?s golden age, along with Ann Sheridan, Ida Lupino, Jane Wyman, Eleanor Parker, etc. No matter the quality of the vehicle, Alexis was praised for her fine performances.

However, rumors of Smith?s sexuality spread when lesbian author, Ruby Mae Brown, dedicated her book, ?Rubyfruit Jungle,? to the actress. After her death, Boze Hadleigh declared Alexis a bisexual in his seminal book on Hollywood lesbians.