Barbara Feldon

Barbara Feldon Headshot

Actress

Birth Name: Barbara Anne Hall

Birth Date: March 12, 1933

Age: 91 years old

Birth Place: Bethel Park, Pennsylvania

With her innate talent and drive, it was not too difficult to decode actress Barbara Feldon's formula for success. The former fashion model shot to fame as the statuesque Agent 99 on the classic spy sitcom "Get Smart" (NBC, 1965-69; CBS, 1969-1970), which paired her with Don Adams as the blundering, shrill-voiced Maxwell Smart. Playing the highly competent secret agent whose looks often came in very handy during covert operations punctuated Feldon's career.

Feldon continued to act, taking on supporting roles on various drama series and sitcoms, as well as earning recognition as a brilliant voiceover artist. Yet, it was Feldon's role as the slick and sexy Agent 99 that was forever etched in most viewers' memories, making her one of television's most unforgettable characters.

Barbara Hall was born on March 12, 1933 in Pittsburgh, PA, where she enjoyed an average middle-class upbringing. By the time she was in first grade, the already ambitious Feldon decided she was going to be an actress. Her passion for the craft continued to flourish, and in 1955, she graduated from Carnegie Mellon University's (then Carnegie Institute of Technology) drama department and moved to New York City shortly after.

In between acting gigs, Feldon worked as a dancer in a Ziegfeld Follies revival. She also became a contestant on the quiz show "The $64,000 Question" (CBS, 1955-58), where she won the title prize for correctly answering all the questions in her particular area of expertise, Shakespeare.

In the mid-1960s, the seductive, deep-voiced actress purred and growled her way to recognition after she appeared in a television commercial, sprawled on a tiger skin rug, staring deep into the camera and touting the praises of Top Brass cologne.

In 1964, Feldon landed a guest-starring role on the drama series "East Side/West Side" (CBS, 1963-64) and quickly caught Hollywood's attention. After a few more guest spots on television, Feldon finally won the role that would provide her with pop culture immortality - the lead role of the striking and intelligent Agent 99 on the wacky spy sitcom "Get Smart" (NBC, 1965-69; CBS, 1969-1970).

Starring opposite Don Adams as the bumbling secret agent Maxwell Smart, Feldon's Agent 99, though much younger, was decidedly more competent than her older counterpart who, in spite of his clumsiness, still managed to fend off their enemies and fight the forces of K.A.O.S.

Feldon's character was frequently seen leaning, sitting, or slouching in the show's ongoing effort to conceal that she was slightly taller than her male co-star. After "Get Smart" wrapped production after a successful run, Feldon found it hard to shake off her Agent 99 character for years to come.

Undaunted, she continued to make TV appearances, guest starring on a number of drama series as well as taking on supporting roles in numerous made-for-TV movies, most notably the 1975 satire "Smile" (CBS) where she portrayed a prudish yet obsessive beauty contest organizer. She was a regular player on the short-lived "The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine" (ABC, 1972) and, with Jackie Cooper, co-hosted "Dean Martin's Comedy World" (NBC, 1974).

Feldon also found constant work as a voiceover artist for commercials such as Nice Cough Drops and Campbell Soup, and was a regular panelist on classic game shows such as "The Hollywood Squares" (syndicated, 1965-1982) and "The $20,000 Pyramid" (syndicated, 1973-1992).

In 1993, she made a rare TV appearance on the NBC comedy series "Mad About You" (1992-99), where she played a former star of a '60s spy series called "Spy Girl." Feldon reprised Agent 99 alongside Adams as Smart in the ABC reunion TV movie "Get Smart, Again!" (1989), in several episodes of the short-lived series revival "Get Smart" (Fox, 1995), and in the documentary special "Inside TV Land: Get Smart" (TV Land, 2001).

She also indulged a lifelong passion for writing by penning the 2003 book Living Alone and Loving It, which chronicled the path she took to become content and comfortable while living single.

By Candy Cuenco

Credits

Daily Blast Live

Guest
Show
2017

The Last Request

Actor
Mom
Movie
2006

Chicago Sons

Guest Star
Show
1997

Something So Right

Guest Star
Show
1996

Get Smart

Actor
Show
1995

Mad About YouStream

Guest Star
Diane Caldwell
Series
1992

Get Smart, Again!

Actor
Agent 99
Movie
1989

CheersStream

Guest Star
Lauren Hudson
Series
1982
87%

Children of Divorce

Actor
Irene Hoffman
Movie
1980

Before and After

Actor
Penny
Movie
1979

A Vacation in Hell

Actor
Evelyn
Movie
1979

America 2-Night

Guest Star
Series
1978

A Guide for the Married Woman

Actor
Maggie
Movie
1978

Sooner or Later

Actor
Lois Walters
Movie
1978

Tôt ou tard

Actor
Movie
1978

No Deposit, No Return

Actor
Carolyn
Movie
1976

Smile

Actor
Brenda
Movie
1975

Let's Switch

Actor
Kate Fleming
Movie
1975

The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas

Voice
Patti Bear
Show
1973

ThrillerStream

Actor
Jenny Frifth
Series
1973

The Death Policy

Actor
Jenny Frifth
Movie
1973

What Are Best Friends For?

Actor
Valerie Norton
Movie
1973

Playmates

Actor
Lois Barnett
Movie
1972

Getting Away From It All

Actor
Helen Clark
Movie
1972

Lady Killer

Actor
Jenny Frifth
Movie
1972

McMillan & Wife

Guest Star
Margaret 'Maggie' Miller
Series
1971

The Name of the Game

Guest Star
Series
1968

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-InStream

Guest Star
Variety Show
1968

The Carol Burnett ShowStream

Guest
Variety Show
1967

FitzwillyStream

Actor
Juliet Nowell
Movie
1967

Get SmartStream

Actor
Agent 99
Series
1965

The Man from U.N.C.L.E.Stream

Guest Star
Series
1964
100%

FlipperStream

Guest Star
Series
1964

12 O'Clock High

Guest Star
Series
1964

East Side West Side

Guest Star
Series
1963

The Red Skelton ShowStream

Guest Star
Variety Show
1951

What's My Line?Stream

Guest
Game Show
1950