Susan Anton is an American actress and singer with a career spanning over 35 years in various entertainment fields, including television, film, theater, and concert venues. Her debut film, "Golden Girl," earned her a Golden Globe nomination, leading to a contract with NBC for her variety show, "Presenting Susan Anton." Later, ABC signed her for the drama series "Cliffhangers."
Anton's Broadway credits include roles in Tommy Tune's "The Will Rogers Follies" and David Rabe's "Hurlyburly," directed by Mike Nichols. She played Velma Von Tussle in the Las Vegas production of "Hairspray," directed by Jack O’Brien and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, and reprised this role at the Hollywood Bowl. Anton also co-starred in the national tour of "All Shook Up" and appeared for seven years in "The Great Radio City Music Hall Spectacular" with the Rockettes, directed by Joe Layton.
Her other stage work includes the Neil Simon/Marvin Hamlisch production "They’re Playing Our Song" and a national tour of "A Couple of White Chicks Sitting Around Talking" alongside Elizabeth Ashley. Anton has performed with notable entertainers like Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., and Tom Jones. She toured with Kenny Rogers and had a top 10 country hit with "Killing Time." Internationally, she achieved success with the Gold record "Foxy."
Based in Las Vegas for over 20 years with her husband, director Jeff Lester, they founded Big Picture Studios in 1997. Through their company, Anton has executive produced projects like "The Last Real Cowboys" with Billy Bob Thornton and the documentary "Speed of Life" featuring Amy Purdy.
Anton attended Yucaipa High School in Yucaipa, California, and graduated in 1968. After high school, Anton attended San Bernardino Valley College. She first experienced fame by winning the nearby Miss Redlands and later the Miss California beauty contests in 1969[1][2] and tied as second runner-up in the 1969 Miss America Scholarship Pageant held September 6 that year.[3]
Starting in 1976, Anton developed a following for her Muriel Cigar commercials[4][5] where she sang, "Let Muriel turn you on / That is my desire / Muriel lights a flame in me / Where there's Muriel smoke, there's fire". Later in the 1970s, Anton appeared approximately 30 times on Merv Griffin's TV show.[6] She was frequently seen and heard in television, print and radio ads for the Perfect Sleeper mattress by Serta. In these ads, she announced her name and sang the company's jingle.
In 1978, ABC gave her and country singer Mel Tillis a summertime variety series, Mel and Susan Together, produced by the Osmond Brothers. The pairing of Anton and Tillis was an unlikely one: he was popular in country music circles but hardly a national household name while Susan was barely known at all. The show disappeared after four weeks;[7] nevertheless, she was later chosen as one of Time Magazine's "Most Promising Faces of 1979".[citation needed]
She later starred in her own variety show, Presenting Susan Anton, in Stop Susan Williams (one of three serials in the Cliffhangers series), and in the films Goldengirl,[8] Spring Fever,[9] and Cannonball Run II. She also recorded music, her biggest hit being "Killin' Time" in 1980, a duet with country singer Fred Knoblock. The record made Top 10 on the country charts and hit #28 on Billboard's Hot 100. In 1990, Anton appeared on the TV comedy series Night Court in an episode called "The Talk Show" where she played talk show producer Margo Hunter.
Anton is on the cover of the mass trade paperback edition of Goldengirl, written by Peter Lovesey (using the pen name Peter Lear). She had appeared as the title character in the film version which starred James Coburn[10] and was directed by Joseph Sargent.
Anton was the host of the successful "Great Radio City Music Hall Spectacular" show at the Flamingo Hilton in Las Vegas for over 5,000 performances until July 31, 2000. She also appeared in the Las Vegas company of the musical Hairspray and on Broadway in The Will Rogers Follies, Hurlyburly, and All Shook Up.[11][12]
She had a recurring role on the TV series Baywatch from 1992 to 1994 and has appeared as herself on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (2006), The Larry Sanders Show (1993) and It's Garry Shandling's Show (1987), as well as in several films. Most recently, she appeared in the movie Sharknado: The 4th Awakens in 2016.
Anton appeared in an episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit which aired on March 31, 2010.[13]
In 2020, Anton starred in the feature psychological thriller film Painter as the character Carree Tole.[14]
Then in 1976 she got her shot, replacing Edie Adams as the Muriel cigar girl.
