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Subject: Caro Jones - Casting Director


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Anonymous
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Date Posted: 09/ 8/09 8:35:38pm

Casting director Caro Jones dies
Cast more than 1,000 TV, film projects during career
By Mike Barnes

Sept 8, 2009, 04:51 PM ET


Caro Jones, a casting director for television, film and theater for more
than four decades, died Sept. 3 in Los Angeles following a 14-year battle
with multiple myeloma. She was 86.


Jones cast more than 1,000 TV shows, pilots, movies of the week and
miniseries and worked on films including two from director John Avildsen:
best-picture Oscar winner "Rocky" (1976) and "Save the Tiger" (1973) with
Jack Lemmon in one of his two Academy Award-winning turns.


Jones began her career as an assistant casting director for the Theatre
Guild in New York for its live television production "The United States
Steel Hour." One of her first office assistants was Les Moonves, now
president and CEO of CBS Corp.


On the dramatic anthology series, which ran from 1953-63 on ABC and CBS,
Jones worked with many actors who were just starting their careers -- Johnny
Carson, Carroll O'Connor, Geraldine Page, Rip Torn, George C. Scott, Colleen
Dewhurst, Patty Duke, Telly Savalas, Gene Hackman, Martin Sheen, William
Shatner, Burgess Meredith and Sidney Pollack, to name a few.


Jones then moved to Los Angeles and worked for several years at Paramount
Television, where she cast series including "Love, American Style,"
"Mannix," "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" and the TV version of "Paper Moon."


Jones than served for five years as casting director for Filmways Television
and was in charge of pilots and such shows as "The Debbie Reynolds Show,"
"Green Acres," "Petticoat Junction" and "The Beverly Hillbillies." She also
cast the company's features "What's the Matter With Helen?" (1971) and
"Fuzz" (1972). During this time, she met her second husband, late Filmways
producer Al Simon.


After Filmways, Jones began her own company and worked as casting director
on movies including "The Karate Kid" (1984) and "Back to School" (1986). Her
miniseries credits included 1980's "The Martian Chronicles" starring Rock
Hudson and 1981's "Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy" starring Jaclyn Smith.


Jones was a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, a
member and past governor of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and a
charter member of the Casting Society of America and Women in Film.


She was the recipient of the CSA's Hoyt Bowers Award in 1994 for outstanding
contribution to her profession, and AMPAS' Margaret Herrick Library now
houses the Caro Jones Collection of Scripts and Production Notebooks.


Her niece, Caro Norris, said her aunt was known for taking the unexpected in
stride, always up to the challenge when a need arose for an actor to play a
native of Tibet, a New Zealander with a Swedish accent or a blond Tahitian
who could execute a Spanish dance.


Jones often said that "if you have a good memory, a good filing system and
cooperative friends, even the impossible becomes possible," Norris recalled.


In addition to Norris, Jones is survived by grandchildren Jacqueline and
Chase Eiseman, brother William Jones, niece Penelope Swanson and their
families.


Services will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday at Forest Lawn in Glendale.

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Subject Author Date
IMDbAnonymous09/ 8/09 8:37:08pm
  • photo -- Anonymous, 09/ 8/09 8:38:48pm


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