Cynthia Morgan looks baCk on 30-plus years in ... - InMaricopa.com

Remembering
Former actress and model <strong>Cynthia</strong> <strong>Morgan</strong>
parts the curtain on her storied career
By Michael K. Rich
Photo courtesy of <strong>Cynthia</strong> <strong>Morgan</strong>
<strong>Cynthia</strong> MORGAN SITS
in her quiet Province home,
dreaming of the day she and
her husband will own and
operate a dinner theater in
Maricopa. “This town is ready
for a theater,” <strong>Morgan</strong> says.
For many the dream would appear
farfetched, but, for a woman who went
from humble beginnings in Indianapolis
to stardom in Southern California, the
vision seems like the next logical step in
her career and life.
<strong>Morgan</strong> was born <strong>Cynthia</strong> Stone in
October 1948 and by age 3 developed an
obsession with song, dance and beauty. “I
dreamed of one day going to Hollywood,”
she says.
There were many obstacles in her way,
however, including an intense Southern
Baptist father who, according to <strong>Morgan</strong>,
viewed anything fun as a sin. Luckily for
<strong>Morgan</strong> her mother pushed her toward
her dream and allowed her to have some
fun, even when it meant helping her
daughter to sneak out of the house to
attend her high school prom.
In Front oF thE Camera
<strong>Morgan</strong>’s career as an actress started in
her hometown of Indianapolis when she
was shooting a television commercial in a
fountain for the Glendale Shopping Center.
“I just remember how cold it was,” she says.
At the time of the shoot <strong>Morgan</strong> was
working for a talent agency whose owner
was a friend of Sammy Davis Jr. “The owner
told Sammy he had to meet me, and, when
he did, he told me I was too beautiful and
talented to be working in Indiana,” <strong>Morgan</strong>
says. “He said I should go to Hollywood,
and he would open a door for me.”
<strong>Morgan</strong> took the advice and left
behind her family to audition for a role as
a Golddigger on the Dean Martin show, a
role she landed.
“Thousands of aspiring actresses and
actors head to Hollywood every day and
have to wait an eternity to find work,” <strong>Morgan</strong>
says. “I was one of the lucky ones who
got a job the second day I was in the city.”
<strong>Morgan</strong> worked on the show from 1972
until it was canceled in 1974, at which time
she considered a move to New York to
continue her career. “When the show was
canceled, my agent told me I could either
go to New York and starve and be cold or
stay in California and starve and be warm,”
she recalls. “I decided to be warm.”
Starve she did not, however.
<strong>Morgan</strong> relied on her beauty and
modeling talents to land gigs in magazines,
on product wrappers and more. Among the
clients she modeled for were Pepsi, Nissan,
Porsche, Keystone Rims, Dido Jeans and
the U.S. Air Force.
22 InMaricopa.com | Vol. 5 Issue 3