Anna Chappell

Anna Chappell (née Oksanen; September 15, 1925 – July 31, 2005) was a Canadian-American actress. She appeared in two feature films: Mountaintop Motel Massacre (1984) and The Man in the Moon (1991), and was a longtime resident of Shreveport, Louisiana, where she was active in local theater.

Anna Chappell
Born
Anna Oksanen

September 15, 1925 (1925-09-15)
Finland
DiedJuly 31, 2005(2005-07-31) (aged 79)
Appleton, Wisconsin, U.S.
OccupationActress
Spouse(s)
Harry Chappell
​
​
(m. 1946; died 1981)​
Children2[1]

Biography

Chappell was born Anna Oksanen[1] in 1925 to Finnish parents Carl and Aino Oksanen.[1] Though born in Finland, Chappell relocated to Toronto, Canada in her early childhood.[2] Both her parents were actors.[1] Chappell was raised in Toronto, where she became interested in theater at a young age.[2] As a child, she sang with the Canadian Navy entertainment corps.[1]

She met her husband, American musician Harry Chappell, while working as a singer.[3] The couple married in Binghamton, New York in 1946,[4] and relocated to Shreveport, Louisiana in the mid-1950s; there, Chappell became active in local theater.[3] She appeared as Lady Thiang in a production of The King and I, which toured in Corning, New York in 1959.[5] In 1970, Chappell earned critical acclaim[6] for her performance in Mame at the Marjorie Lyons Playhouse in Shreveport.[7] For her performance, she was awarded a Best Actress award from The Shreveport Times.[8]

Chappell's husband, Harry, who ran a music store in Shreveport, died on March 31, 1981.[9] In 1983, she starred as Mme. Danzard in a production of My Sister in this House at the Kennedy Center, directed by Robert Buseick.[2] The same year, she made her feature film debut in the slasher film Mountaintop Motel Massacre, playing an unhinged woman who begins murdering guests in the hotel she operates.[10] Terry Lawson of the Dayton Daily News praised her performance as being handled with "a comic intensity."[10] She later had a supporting role in Robert Mulligan's drama film The Man in the Moon (1991).[11]

Death

In the spring of 2005, Chappell relocated from Shreveport to live with her daughter in Appleton, Wisconsin.[12] She died two months later in Appleton on July 31, 2005.[2] A memorial service for Chappell was arranged in Shreveport.[2]

Filmography
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
1983 Mountaintop Motel Massacre Evelyn [13]
1991 The Man in the Moon Mrs. Taylor [13]

Select stage credits

References
  1. "Anna Chappell". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. August 7, 2005. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. Flowers, Jennifer (August 2, 2005). "Leading lady in local theater Anna Chappell dies at 79". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Leydon, Joe (December 7, 1978). "Local actress holds on by letting go". The Times. p. 46 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Harry Chappell Takes Bride". Press & Sun-Bulletin. Binghamton, New York. October 17, 1946. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Anna Chappell Signed For 'King and I' in N.Y." The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. May 15, 1959. p. 36 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Anna: Actress moves on to next chapter". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. May 30, 2005. p. 26 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "'Mame' Opens Wednesday". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. August 2, 1970. p. 19-F – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Montgomery, Jim (June 13, 1971). "Times Drama Awards". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. p. 18-F – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Harry Howard Chappell". The Times. April 1, 1981. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Lawson, Terry (March 15, 1986). "In 'Mountaintop Motel Massacre,' it's all downhill after the title". Dayton Daily News. Dayton, Ohio – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "The Man in the Moon". TV Guide. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  12. Flowers, Jennifer (May 30, 2005). "So long, Anna". p. 25 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. "Anna Chappell". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
  14. "Ugg-A-Wugg Pow Wow". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. July 17, 1960. p. 7-F – via Newspapers.com.
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