After a number of guest shots on television, Peggy Lipton's first role in a feature film was a bit part in the Terence Stamp western BLUE. Lipton played "Laurie Kramer" in the film, which also saw her brother Robert Lipton in a supporting role. Silvio Narizzano directed the film. Manos Hajidakis' score was released on a Dot Records LP, which was re-issued on CD by Sirius Records in 2001.
The concept was to take three rebellious, disaffected young social outcasts and convince them to work as unarmed undercover detectives as an alternative to being incarcerated themselves. They were “The Mod Squad” ("One black, one white, one blonde"), described by one critic as "the hippest and first young undercover cops on TV". Each of the characters represented mainstream culture's principal fears regarding youth in the era: long-haired rebel “Pete Cochran” (Michael Cole) was evicted from his wealthy parents' Beverly Hills home, then arrested and put on probation after he stole a car; “Lincoln Hayes” (Clarence Williams III), who came from a family of 13 children, was arrested in the Watts riots, one of the longest and most violent actual riots in Los Angeles history; flower child “Julie Barnes” (Peggy Lipton), the "canary with a broken wing," was arrested for vagrancy after running away from her prostitute mother's San Francisco home. “Captain Adam Greer” (Tige Andrews) was a tough but sympathetic mentor and father figure who convinced them to form the squad.
Michael Cole, Clarence Williams III, and Peggy Lipton in “The Mod Squad”
A pilot film was shot in 1968, with a running time of 74 minutes, but it was never aired in its entirety. The film was edited to 50 minutes and aired as the show's first episode. The uncut 74-minute version was never seen until the DVD era, when it appeared on the initial set as the opening episode, "The Teeth of the Barracuda".
“The Mod Squad” premiered on ABC on Tuesday, 24 September 1968, at 8 PM. It was an immediate hit, besting its time slot competition of “Lancer” on CBS and “The Jerry Lewis Show” on NBC, and finishing as the #28 show for the year. Peggy Lipton was nominated for an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Series.” She lost the award to Barbara Bain for “Mission: Impossible”.
In its second season (1969-70), “The Mod Squad” again beat “Lancer” and the NBC comedies “I Dream of Jeannie” and “The Debbie Reynolds Show,” and moved up to the #23 spot for the year. Peggy Lipton was again nominated for an Emmy Award, this time losing to Susan Hampshire” for PBS’ “The Forsyte Saga.” Lipton also received a Golden Globe nomination as “Best TV Actress – Drama”, losing to Linda Cristal for “The High Chaparral.”
“The Mod Squad” saw its highest ratings in its third season (1970-71), as it trounced the fading CBS comedies “The Beverly Hillbillies” and “Green Acres” and NBC’s new “The Don Knotts Show.” “The Mod Squad” was the 11th-highest-rated show on the air that season. Peggy Lipton received her third consecutive Emmy nomination, losing for the second time in a row to Susan Hampshire, this time for PBS’ “The First Churchills.” Lipton did, however, win the Golden Globe award for “Best TV Actress – Drama”, beating out Linda Cristal and Amanda Blake (“Gunsmoke”) among others.
In its fourth season (1971-72), “The Mod Squad” faced some serious competition from NBC’s “Ironside,” then in its fifth season and still potent enough to rank #15 in the ratings for the year. “The Mod Squad” held its own, however, coming in at #21 for the season, and received a renewal. Peggy Lipton received her fourth consecutive Emmy nomination, losing to Glenda Jackson for PBS’ “Elizabeth R”. Lipton also scored her third Golden Globe nomination, losing to Patricia Neal for “The Homecoming: A Christmas Story”.
That Golden Globe loss was a sign of things to come for the show. In its fifth season (1972-73), ABC moved “The Mod Squad” to a new spot on the schedule, Thursdays at 8 PM. There, it went up against a new series on CBS--“The Waltons”—which beat “The Mod Squad” by coming in at #19 for the year. Even worse, the competition on NBC was the popular “Flip Wilson Show,” which ranked #12 for the year. “The Mod Squad” sank to #54 and was cancelled by ABC. Peggy Lipton received her fourth consecutive Golden Globe nomination, losing to Gail Fisher for “Mannix.”
Over the show’s five seasons, Peggy Lipton received eight acting award nominations, and Tige Andrews received two. Lipton’s 1971 Golden Globe was the show's only win.
Following the end of “The Mod Squad,” Peggy Lipton left film acting for 6 years. She married musician and producer Quincy Jones in 1974 and took a hiatus from acting in order to concentrate on her family. The couple had two daughters, Rashida and Kidada Jones, who became actresses.
Lipton was coaxed out of retirement for the television reunion movie THE RETURN OF THE MOD SQUAD. The film finds the group reuniting when several attempts are made on the life of their former commander. George McCowan directed the film, which aired on ABC on 18 May 1979. The film was scored by Shorty Rogers and Mark Snow.
Nearly another decade passed before Peggy Lipton again returned to the screen. Lipton had separated from Quincy Jones in 1986. Picking up her acting career, she played the mother of a young Neil Patrick Harris in the 1988 fantasy PURPLE PEOPLE EATER, based on the novelty song of the same name by Sheb Wooley, which reached the top of the Billboard music charts in the summer of 1958.
Writer-director Linda Shayne adapted the song’s story into a feature-length film with the help of filmmaker Jim Wynorski, who is only credited onscreen as “creative consultant.” The film finds the creature actually appearing to a 12-year-old boy after he plays the song incessantly. Shayne and Wynorski pitched the story to producers Steve Stabler and Brad Krevoy, the chairman of Motion Picture Corporation of America. The men bought the idea immediately and pre-sold the film around the world within a week. Hoping to secure U.S. distribution through a major studio, Krevoy inserted a clause in the global distribution contracts allowing them the option.
Shortly after filming ended, the producers showed an early cut to executives at Walt Disney Company, who were intrigued, but wanted to see the final cut before agreeing to a distribution deal. In the meantime, Jim Wynorski showed the film to his boss, producer Roger Corman, who agreed to distribute it nationwide for release at Christmas 1988. When Corman’s Concorde Pictures was able book the film in the absolute best theaters for Christmas on such short notice, Brad Krevoy quickly agreed to the deal. The company spent $2.5 million on prints and another $2 million on advertising.
Peggy Lipton in PURPLE PEOPLE EATER
PURPLE PEOPLE EATER opened on 150 screens in California and the southern United States on 16 December 1988, with plans to expand a week later to New York City and the northern U.S. However, the film fared poorly at the box office during its opening weekend, with the 20 December 1988 Daily Variety reporting that it was “eaten alive.”
The film’s soundtrack was loaded with pop songs, and Dennis Dreith provided an unreleased score.
I knew of the show growing up but never watched it. She was very beautiful. Kinda heartbroken she was nominated so many times and never won. That had to be hard. RIP.
In KINJITE (FORBIDDEN SUBJECTS), Charles Bronson starred as “Police Lieutenant Crowe,” who is determined to bust up an organization that forces underage girls into prostitution. Peggy Lipton played his wife, “Kathleen,” in the 1989 film.
Bronson’s leading lady had often been his real-life wife, Jill Ireland, and they had starred in fifteen films together. But by the time KINJITE was filmed, Ireland was in the final stages of a long battle with breast cancer, to which she would succumb in May 1990.
Charles Bronson and Peggy Lipton in KINJITE (FORBIDDEN SUBJECTS)
KINJITE was Bronson’s ninth and final film with director J. Lee Thompson. The two had a relationship that spanned 13 years beginning with 1976’s ST. IVES. The film was also Thompson’s final film before he retired. And it was Bronson’s last film for Cannon Films’ producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus. (He would later make DEATH WISH V: THE FACE OF DEATH (1994) with Menahem Golan.)
KINJITE grossed $3.4 million at the U.S box office. Greg DeBelles’ score was released by Silva Screen on a 1989 compilation CD along with the scores to the Bronson films MESSENGER OF DEATH and ASSASSINATION.
From 1989 to 1991, Peggy Lipton co-starred as diner owner, “Norma Jennings” on the David Lynch television series “Twin Peaks”. She appeared in 24 episodes of the show. Angelo Badalamenti's music for season 2 was most recently released by Sacred Bones Records in 2013.
During her tenure on the series, Lipton's divorce from husband Quincy Jones was finalized.
Lipton reprised her "Twin Peaks" character of “Norma Jennings" in David Lynch's 1992 follow-up theatrical film TWIN PEAKS--FIRE WALK WITH ME. Much of the cast credited as starring in the film actually only make brief appearances on screen. Peggy Lipton and Heather Graham each appear for less than 30 seconds in the 134-minute film. Angelo Badalamenti's score was released by Warner Bros.
A nameless drifter (Kevin Costner) dons a mailman’s uniform and a bag of mail as he begins a quest to inspire hope to the survivors living in post-apocalyptic America. He is THE POSTMAN. Peggy Lipton had a supporting in the 1997 film as “Ellen March.”
Costner directed the $80 million production, which was a huge box office bomb, grossing only $17.6 million domestically. James Newton Howard’s score split the Warner Bros. soundtrack release with eight songs.
Kevin Costner, Peggy Lipton, and Roberta Maxwell in THE POSTMAN
I remember watching The Mod Squad when I was a little kid. This show was very "hip" in it's day. The opening theme alone made we want to watch the show. Rest In Peace Peggy
Set 25 years after the events of the original “Twin Peaks” the third season of “Twin Peaks,” also known as “Twin Peaks: The Return”, consisted of 18 episodes and premiered on Showtime on May 21, 2017. Developed and written by David Lynch and Mark Frost over several years, the season was a continuation of the 1989–91 ABC series. An ensemble of returning and new cast members appeared, led by original star Kyle MacLachlan. Peggy Lipton reprised her role of “Norma Jennings” and appeared in five episodes.
Peggy Lipton’s final film appearance was in the 15th episode of the series, which aired on 20 August 2017.
Mädchen Amick and Peggy Lipton in “Twin Peaks: The Return”
Four years into “The Mod Squad”, Peggy Lipton was asked by an interviewer whether she was bored with her character. She replied: "Creatively I'm bored, yes, but I'm certainly not bored with the success of it, not at all. I know what I'm doing isn't 'Medea,' or even necessarily very good TV, but it's exciting to be famous".
Fame might have been exciting, but there was a flipside. After five years of television ("we were always working"), she was burnt out. Uncomfortable with attention from the press, Lipton became more and more withdrawn and insecure. Her subsequent marriage to music legend Quincy Jones (1974-1990) settled her down to raising a family. But except for a “Mod Squad” reunion, it also led to a 15-year hiatus from acting.
Her return to acting led to feature film and television work, including a new series—“Twin Peaks” —that would give her recognition from a new generation. “Julie Barnes” or “Norma Jennings”—Peggy Lipton will live on in our memories.
