Claire Bradley Griswold

Born in Honolulu,^[1] Oahu, Hawaii, she was the daughter of General Francis H. Griswold and Jeff Bradley Southerland Griswold, and she had a sister Mary.^[2] She spent her childhood living in various locations including Japan, Germany, and Washington, D.C.^[3] When the family was in London she studied ballet at the Sadlers Wells school.^[1]

Griswold eventually moved to New York City, where she pursued acting and studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre.^[3] Before she began those studies she was a model, with her pictures appearing on the covers of Ladies' Home Journal and other magazines.^[1]

Griswold began her acting career in the late 1950s, appearing in a number of prominent American television series of the era. Her credits include:

• Studio One (1948–1958)^{[citation needed]}
• The Twilight Zone (1963)^{[citation needed]}
• 77 Sunset Strip (1958)^{[citation needed]}
• Lawman (1958)^{[citation needed]}
• The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (1962)^{[citation needed]}
• The Investigators (1961)^{[citation needed]}

Her work on The Alfred Hitchcock Hour led to a personal contract with director Alfred Hitchcock.^[3]

At the end of 1963, Griswold retired from acting to focus on raising her children and supporting her husband's career.^{[citation needed]} She had been credited with approximately 20 television appearances during her years as an actress.^{[citation needed]}

While studying acting, Griswold was a student of Sydney Pollack, who was then working as an acting teacher.^[4] The two married in 1958, and they had a son.^[5] Pollack would go on to become one of Hollywood's most celebrated directors, winning two Academy Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards over his four-decade career.^{[citation needed]}

Pollack died on May 26, 2008, of stomach cancer, after nearly 50 years of marriage.^[3]

Following her husband's death, Claire Griswold died on March 28, 2011, in West Hollywood, California, at the age of 74, after suffering from Parkinson's disease.^{[citation needed]}

Though her acting career was brief, Griswold was recognised by contemporaries as a talented and committed performer. Her connection to the Hitchcock circle and her long marriage to Sydney Pollack place her within the broader cultural history of Hollywood's golden age of cinema and television. Architect Frank Gehry, who was acquainted with the couple, recalled meeting her through mutual friends and described her as an exceptionally striking personality.^[6]