On Friday, May 1, Grace Lee Whitney died of natural causes in her home in Coursegold, California, according to her son, Jonathan Dweck. She was 85 years old.
Born Mary Ann Chase in 1930, Whitney was adopted and renamed Grace Elaine Whitney. She began her entertainment career in 1944 as a singer for Detroit’s WJR radio station. She continued her singing career in Chicago as an opening act for Billie Holiday and Buddy Rich, before she toured with Spike Jones and Fred Waring.
As Grace Lee Whitney, she broke into films with small roles in House of Wax, Top Banana, and The Naked and the Dead. Whitney had a prominent supporting turn in the Billy Wilder classic comedy, Some Like It Hot before going on to appear in A Public Affair, The Man from Galveston and Irma la Douce.
However, Whitney was best known for playing Janice Rand on the original Star Trek series in eight of the first thirteen episodes. Whitney was fired from the series in the first season, and she later accused a Desilu executive of sexually assaulting her during her time on the show within the pages of her autobiography, The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy.
Whitney cited her Star Trek co-stars Leonard Nimoy and DeForest with supporting her and paving the way for her return to the franchise in four of the first six Star Trek feature films. Whitney also became a regular at Star Trek conventions and reprised her role as Rand in Star Trek: Voyager..
In her later years, Whitney was an advocate for people with substance abuse problems. She also guest starred on Diagnosis: Murder opposite her fellow Star Trek performers. Whitney also appeared in two Star Trek fan films.
CraveOnline extends its condolences to Whitney’s family, friends and fans all over the world.
