Ayn Ruymen (born July 18, 1947)[2][3] is an American former actress and theater director. She began her career as a stage actress, starring in a Broadway production of Neil Simon's The Gingerbread Lady (1970–1971), for which she won a Theatre World Award.
Ayn Ruymen | |
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![]() Ruymen in The McLean Stevenson Show (1977) | |
Born | (1947-07-18) July 18, 1947 (age 75) New York City, New York, U.S. |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1970–1993 |
Spouse | Robert Ross (m. 2009) |
After relocating to Los Angeles, Ruymen made her feature film debut in Paul Bartel's horror film Private Parts (1972) and appeared in several television films during the 1970s. She had a lead role on the sitcom The McLean Stevenson Show from 1976 to 1977. She made her last screen appearance in the television film Firestorm: 72 Hours in Oakland (1993). Since then, Ruymen has worked primarily as a theater director of productions for the Mendocino Theatre Company.
Ruymen was born July 18, 1947 in Brooklyn, New York City, one of six children, and was raised in Long Island.[2] Her father, George Ruymen, worked as a building inspector for the City of New York.[4] She began working as an actress while still a teenager, performing in theater productions in New Jersey.[2] In 1969, Ruymen appeared as a model at the Miami International Boat Show to promote Sungard sunscreen, covering half her face in it before spending time in the sun, demonstrating the product's efficacy at preventing sunburns.[5]
In 1970, she was cast as Polly Meara in a Broadway production of Neil Simon's The Gingerbread Lady opposite Maureen Stapleton, which ran between December 1970 and 1971.[6] Critic George Oppenheimer praised Ruymen for "showing great promise" in the "difficult" role.[7] For her performance, she won the Theatre World Award in 1971.[8] During her stage career, she became a member of Actors' Equity.[2]
Ruymen subsequently relocated to Los Angeles in late 1971 to pursue a film career.[2] She commented that she initially disliked California: "I found the Sunset Strip disgusting. I was trying to get work and nothing happened for six months. It makes you want to pull your hair out."[2] In early 1972, she was cast in an episode of the medical drama series Medical Center.[2] She was subsequently cast in the lead role of Paul Bartel's horror film Private Parts (1972), playing a young woman who uncovers dark secrets in a Los Angeles hotel operated by her aunt. The following year, she appeared in the television film Go Ask Alice.[9] She later had a minor uncredited role as a nurse in Steven Spielberg's Jaws (1975).[9]
Between 1976 and 1977, Ruymen had a lead role on the sitcom The McLean Stevenson Show, playing the daughter of a hardware store proprietor.[10]
Ruymen's last film appearance was the 1993 television film Firestorm: 72 Hours in Oakland. In September 2009, she married Robert Ross, a visual artist and instructor at the Mendocino Arts Center and Oregon School of Arts & Crafts.[1][11]
Ruymen has directed numerous plays for the Mendocino Theatre Company (MTC) as early as 1993, when she directed a production of Love Letters, which featured a nightly rotating cast.[12] In August 2009, she directed an MTC stage production of W. Somerset Maugham's The Circle.[13]
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1972 | Private Parts | Cheryl Stratton | ||
1973 | Go Ask Alice | Jan | [3] | |
1974 | Tell Me Where It Hurts | Lynn | Television film | [3] |
1974 | Hurricane | Suzanne | Television film | |
1975 | Jaws | Nurse | ||
1976 | Three Times Daley | Jenny | Television film | |
1976 | Our Family Business | Annie | Television film | [3] |
1993 | Firestorm: 72 Hours in Oakland | Mavis | Television film | [3] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1972 | Medical Center | Sharon Jennings | Episode: "Betrayed" | |
1972 | Bonanza | Evie Parker | Episode: "The Hidden Enemy" | |
1973 | The F.B.I. | Lorrie | Episode: "Night of the Long Knives" | |
1973 | Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law | Rita | Episode: "A Lesson in Loving" | |
1973 | The Streets of San Francisco | Liza Cullen | Episode: "Shield of Honor" | |
1976–1977 | The McLean Stevenson Show | Janet Ferguson | Main role | [10] |
1990 | Midnight Caller | Mary Jessick | Episode: "Home to Roost" | |
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1970–1971 | The Gingerbread Lady | Polly Meare | Plymouth Theatre | [8] |
In September, [Robert Ross] married Ayn Ruymen, star of the 1972 cinematic cult classic Private Parts.