Dyan Cannon
Dyan Cannon (born Samille Diane Friesen; January 4, 1937) is an American actress, filmmaker, and editor. Her accolades include a Saturn Award, a Golden Globe Award, three Academy Award nominations, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was named Female Star of the Year by the National Association of Theatre Owners in 1973 and the Hollywood Women's Press Club in 1979.
Dyan Cannon

Harold L. Gefsky Agency · ebay.com, front of photo, back of photo · Public domain
- Full name
- Samile Diane Friesen.
- Born
- 1937. · Tacoma.
- Nationality
- United States.
- Occupation
- film director, actress, screenwriter, film producer, model and film editor.
- Fields
- film and television.
- Education
- University of Washington and West Seattle High School.
- Honours
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- Languages
- English.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Dyan Cannon (born Samille Diane Friesen; January 4, 1937) is an American actress, filmmaker, and editor. Her accolades include a Saturn Award, a Golden Globe Award, three Academy Award nominations, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was named Female Star of the Year by the National Association of Theatre Owners in 1973 and the Hollywood Women's Press Club in 1979.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
No house-authored Note is published until its assertions and sources pass the VALÉORINE evidence contract. The documentary article remains available in full while that enrichment is being consolidated.
Documentary enrichment in progress · no unsupported statement published
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Dyan Cannon. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
not yet certified
- Identity
- resolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
Authority files
wikidata · Q236688 · wikipedia · Dyan Cannon
In this article
Early life
Early life
A former beauty queen who held the title of Miss West Seattle, Cannon made her television debut in 1958. Over the next decade, she became a common sight on episodic shows while appearing occasionally on Broadway and in B-movies. In 1969, she had her breakthrough film role in the sex comedy Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Cannon was nominated in that category again for Heaven Can Wait (1978), for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama for her lead role in Such Good Friends (1971). She also was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film as the producer of Number One (1976). Other films in which Cannon has performed include The Love Machine (1971), Shamus (1973), The Last of Sheila (1973), Child Under a Leaf (1974), Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978), Honeysuckle Rose (1980), Coast to Coast (1980), Deathtrap (1982), Author! (1982), Caddyshack II (1988), 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag (1997), Out to Sea (1997), and Boynton Beach Club (2005). Cannon made her feature directorial debut with 1990's semiautobiographical drama The End of Innocence, which she also wrote and starred in. From 1997 to 2000, she played the recurring role of Judge Jennifer 'Whipper' Cone on the legal series Ally McBeal. Before her career took off, Cannon was married to Cary Grant for three years and gave birth to his only child, daughter Jennifer. Reluctant to discuss the marriage since their 1968 divorce, Cannon initially turned down publishing deals following Grant's death in 1986. Her memoir Dear Cary was published in 2011 and became a New York Times Best Seller. In 2023, the book was adapted into a miniseries called Archie with Cannon executive producing.
Dyan Cannon studied at University of Washington and West Seattle High School. The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is film and television. Work by Dyan Cannon is recorded in the collections of Harvard Film Archive. Distinctions recorded are star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Cannon was born Samille Diane Friesen in Tacoma, Washington, on January 4, 1937, the daughter of housewife Claire (née Portnoy) and life insurance salesman Ben Friesen. She was raised in the Jewish faith of her mother, who was an immigrant from Ukraine; her father was a Mennonite of Dutch-Canadian ancestry. Her younger brother is jazz musician David Friesen. When Cannon was 10, the family moved eastward to Spokane, Washington; they returned to the Pacific coast four years later, settling in Seattle. Cannon attended West Seattle High School and was crowned Miss West Seattle in 1954. She spent two and a half semesters at the University of Washington, majoring in anthropology. In 1956, Cannon dropped out of college and went to live with her aunt Sally in Phoenix, Arizona, where she took a job at Merrill Lynch & Co. Courted by nightclub owner Sonny Orling, then 32, she got engaged and followed him to Beverly Hills, California. They soon parted, but she decided to stay in the area and enroll at UCLA, studying anthropology and writing. A part-time modeling job led to an interview with producer Jerry Wald, who suggested she change her professional last name to Cannon. She signed to MGM, doing promotional work for the film Les Girls (1957), and studied with acting teacher Sanford Meisner.
Beginnings
Beginnings
Cannon made her film debut in 1960 in The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond; she had appeared on television since the late 1950s, including a guest appearance on Bat Masterson as Mary Lowery in the 1959 episode "Lady Luck" and again in a 1961 episode as Diane Jansen in "The Price of Paradise". She appeared in 1959 on CBS's Wanted: Dead or Alive, in episode 52, "Vanishing Act", as Nicole McCready. About this time, she was on the CBS Western Johnny Ringo, starring Don Durant, and on Jack Lord's Western Stoney Burke on ABC. She also appeared on Hawaiian Eye in 1961, opposite Tracey Steele, Robert Conrad, and Connie Stevens. In 1962, Cannon acted on Broadway with Jane Fonda and Bradford Dillman in The Fun Couple. Next came the national touring company of the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, in which she played Rosemary. In 1964 she guest-starred on Gunsmoke, playing Ivy Norton, an abused daughter looking to marry the man she loves in the episode "Aunt Thede". She portrayed Mona Elliott in the episode "The Man Behind the Man" of the 1964 CBS drama series The Reporter and had a regular role on the short-lived daytime soap opera Full Circle. Cannon also made guest appearances on 77 Sunset Strip, The Untouchables, Tombstone Territory, the 1960 episode "Sheriff of the Town" of the first-run syndicated Western series Two Faces West with Walter Coy as Cauter, and the 1962 Ripcord episode "The Helicopter Race" as Ripcord Inc.'s secretary and receptionist Marion Hines. She landed another role in a feature with The Murder Game (1965), then took four years off.
Stardom
Stardom
Cannon's first major film role came in 1969's Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, which earned her Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations. In 1971, she starred in four films: The Love Machine, from the novel by Jacqueline Susann; The Anderson Tapes with Sean Connery and Christopher Walken; The Burglars with Jean-Paul Belmondo and Omar Sharif; and Otto Preminger's Such Good Friends, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress. Her name was used to market a fifth release that year, Doctors' Wives, in which she had top billing despite only making a cameo appearance. Cannon was slated to appear in The Traveling Executioner (1970) and Double Indemnity (1973), but bowed out and was replaced by Marianna Hill and Samantha Eggar, respectively. In 1973, Cannon starred opposite Burt Reynolds in Shamus and played an agent based on Sue Mengers in The Last of Sheila, and was named Actress of the Year by the National Association of Theatre Owners. In 1974, she gave a critically acclaimed performance in Child Under a Leaf and starred in the made-for-TV movie Virginia Hill with Harvey Keitel. Following this, she took a four-year absence from acting in feature films. Among the offers she turned down was Jacqueline Bisset's role in St. Ives (1976). Cannon, who is also a singer/songwriter, starred in her own musical stage act at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and Harrah's Lake Tahoe during the mid-1970s. She then enrolled in the American Film Institute's Directing Workshop for Women. She became the first Oscar-nominated actress to be nominated in the Best Short Film, Live Action category for Number One (1976), a project which Cannon produced, directed, wrote, and edited. It was a story about adolescent sexual curiosity. In 1978, Cannon co-starred in Revenge of the Pink Panther. That same year, she appeared in Heaven Can Wait, for which she received another Oscar nomination and won a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress. Cannon hosted Saturday Night Live during its first season and guest-starred in the fourth season of The Muppet Show. She co-starred with then-boyfriend Armand Assante in the TV movie Lady of the House (1978), a dramatization of the life of Sally Stanford. In 1979, the Hollywood Women's Press Club voted Cannon as Female Star of the Year. Cannon appeared in Honeysuckle Rose (1980) with Willie Nelson, Coast to Coast (1980) with Robert Blake, Author! Author! (1982) with Al Pacino, and Sidney Lumet's Deathtrap (1982) with Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve. She starred in the TV movie Having It All (1982), as well as a miniseries, Master of the Game (1984), then had the title role in Jenny's War (1985). After making Rock 'n' Roll Mom (1988) for Disney, she appeared with an ensemble cast in Caddyshack II (1988). In addition, she co-wrote the title track for Chaka Khan's album, The Woman I Am, with Brenda Russell. For her contributions to the film industry, Cannon was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1983 with a motion picture star located at 6608 Hollywood Boulevard.
Later work
Later work
Cannon wrote, directed, and starred in the semiautobiographical film The End of Innocence (1990). She subsequently appeared opposite Phylicia Rashad in Jailbirds (1991) and Kris Kristofferson and Tony Curtis in Christmas in Connecticut (1992), the latter of which was directed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, before reuniting with Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice director Paul Mazursky for The Pickle (1993), alongside Danny Aiello. Cannon had guest roles on the popular television shows Diagnosis: Murder and The Practice, and was a semiregular on Ally McBeal. In 1997, she could be seen in three major studio film releases: 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag with Joe Pesci; a remake of That Darn Cat; and Out to Sea with Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. Also that year, she worked with Sarah Michelle Gellar in the TV movie Beverly Hills Family Robinson. In 2001 and 2002, she had a regular part in the TV series Three Sisters. Cannon and Christopher Walken were reunited for Kangaroo Jack (2003), but her performance was cut down to a walk on in the final version of the film. In 2005, she appeared in Boynton Beach Club, a movie about aging Floridians who have just lost their spouses; Cannon's real-life ex Michael Nouri played her love interest. Her later roles included A Kiss at Midnight (2008) for Hallmark and the unaired pilot Women Without Men (2010) with Lorraine Bracco and Penny Marshall. She wrote and directed another short, Unleashed (2010). Cannon returned to the stage to star in a 2013 production of Ken Ludwig's The Fox on the Fairway in Overland Park, Kansas. After a hiatus from the screen, she acted in the equestrian-themed family film Hope's Legacy (2021). Forgoing its scheduled opening at Baltimore's Senator Theatre due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the film was instead released to streaming platforms. Cannon published a bestselling memoir, Dear Cary: My Life with Cary Grant, in 2011. She had previously been approached by Swifty Lazar to write about her late ex-husband in 1986, turning down "millions", and declined another publishing offer some years later from Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, stating that healing was still needed. Cannon served as executive producer of a four-part miniseries based on her book, entitled Archie, which premiered on BritBox in 2023 and stars Jason Isaacs as Grant and Laura Aikman as Cannon. In 2025, she began co-hosting the podcast God’s Table alongside Tracey E. Bregman, Kym Douglas, and Christine Avanti-Fischer.
Personal life
Personal life
In 1961, Cannon began dating actor Cary Grant, who was 33 years her senior. They married on July 22, 1965, and had one daughter, Jennifer (b. February 26, 1966). Cannon filed for divorce in September 1967, and it was finalized on March 21, 1968. Cannon married a second time on April 18, 1985, to lawyer-turned-real estate investor Stanley Fimberg. They divorced in 1991. In 2024, Cannon said Fimberg and she are still friendly. Cannon has also been in relationships with comedian Mort Sahl, talent agent Ron Weisner, and sculptor Carl Hartman, as well as producers Murray Shostak and Leonard Rabinowitz, directors Jerry Schatzberg and Hal Ashby, and actors Armand Assante, Hy Chase, Ron Ely and Michael Nouri. She remains friendly with Nouri and accompanied him to a premiere four decades after their breakup. In 2025, Cannon told a reporter for People magazine that she has several friends with benefits. She later clarified that she had misunderstood the term. Shostak and Rabinowitz produced her starring vehicles Child Under a Leaf and The End of Innocence, respectively; Schatzberg directed her in Honeysuckle Rose; Assante and Nouri were her leading men in Lady of the House and Boynton Beach Club, respectively; and she guest-starred on Ely's series Malibu Run. In 1972, Cannon revealed that she engaged in primal therapy. She also dabbled in metaphysics and got kicked out of Esalen. Cannon smoked three packs of cigarettes a day until 1971; she decided to stop after reading the habit would dull her libido. She was a vegetarian for a long time, but quit that too. A longtime fixture at Los Angeles Lakers games, she is considered the team's second-most famous fan behind Jack Nicholson. For 12 years, Cannon hosted God's Party, a biweekly Bible study held at Radford Studio Center. She formerly identified as a born-again Christian, but has since expressed she is spiritual but not religious.
Philanthropy
Philanthropy
Cannon's experience as a divorced mother led to her becoming national spokeswoman for Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, which provides emotional support and companionship for children of one-parent homes. She paid for the tombstone of slain runaway Alyssa Margie 'Raven' Gomez, whom she'd met while making a documentary about homelessness. Cannon has used her celebrity to benefit other charitable organizations, such as Special Olympics, for mentally and physically disabled athletes.

Cropped headshot of Dyan Cannon in a publicity portrait for the CBS soap opera Full Circle
Harold L. Gefsky Agency · This image has been extracted from another file

Dyan Cannon in The Burglars (1971)
eBay
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Rowe, Douglas J. (July 13, 1997). "Dyan Cannon continues to 'unfold' gracefully". New Bedford Standard-Times.
- 2.Oliver, Dana (January 3, 2013). "The Other '70s Blonde Bombshell". The Huffington Post.
- 3.Arnold, Mark. Stars of Walt Disney Productions. BearManor Media. 197. 2022. 9798887710723.
- 4."Births". The Tacoma Daily Ledger. January 16, 1937. p. 3.
- 5.Gordon, Meredith (August 28, 2025). "Ageless 'Heaven Can Wait' Star, 88, Denied Access to White House After Telling White Lie: 'I'd Do It Again . Parade.
- 6.Friesen, Benjamin (November 6, 1956). "No. 50088". Washington, U.S., Petitions for Naturalization, 1860-1991.
- 7."Obituaries and Funeral Notices". The Morning News Tribune. August 28, 1993.
- 8."Dyan Cannon Discusses Her Faith" (transcript). Larry King Live. CNN. April 23, 2001.
- 9.Kilpatrick, Joel (February 28, 2002). "Hollywood Throws God a Party". Charisma.
- 10.Plett, Delbert F. Diane Friesen Cannon, A Bergthaler!. Preservings. 12. 30–33. June 1998.
- 11.Turner, Paul (July 26, 2011). "Calling all classmates of Dyan Cannon". The Spokesman-Review.
- 12.Dyan Cannon: Jazz & Hollywood. April 30, 2021.
- 13.Meyer, Kathie (August 17, 2010). "Actress Dyan Cannon revealed as the 11th annual Port Townsend Film Festival special guest". The Leader.
- 14."Looking Out for 'Number One' Gets Dyan Cannon a New Role and a New Life". People. March 7, 1977.
- 15.Trussell, Robert (August 29, 2013). "Ken Ludwig's ‘The Fox on the Fairway’ feels good to Dyan Cannon". The Kansas City Star.
- 16.Haber, Joyce (April 3, 1970). "She's Trying To Shake An Image". St. Petersburg Times.
- 17.Oppenheimer, Peer J. (January 11, 1970). "Dyan Cannon says: 'Don't Call Me the Ex-Mrs. Grant! . Family Weekly.
- 18."Marriage Licenses". The Arizona Republic. June 21, 1956. p. 48.
- 19."Ex-Tacoma Girl Special Emissary for 'Les Girls . The News Tribune. December 23, 1957. p. 8.
- 20."Dyan Cannon – Broadway Cast & Staff". Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- 21.Scott, Vernon (February 15, 1970). "Dyan's Talk Of A Career More Than Just Acting". The Pittsburgh Press.
- 22.McHarry, Charles (May 3, 1972). "On the Town". New York Daily News. p. 84.
- 23.Peacock, Bruce (September 17, 1973). "Stage and Screen". The Leader-Post.
- 24.Sweeney, Louise (June 11, 1981). "Dyan Cannon; Her Best Is Yet To Be". The Christian Science Monitor.
- 25.Turan, Kenneth (July 17, 1978). "The Upbeat Life of Dyan Cannon". The Washington Post.
- 26.Saunders, Dick (January 7, 1977). "Dyan Cannon Eschews Limits". Los Angeles Times. p. F18.
- 27."Dyan Cannon - Notes". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
- 28.Dawidziak, Mark (November 4, 1985). "Dyan Cannon fights 'Jenny's War' with popgun talent". Akron Beacon Journal.
- 29.Green, Tom (February 4, 1988). "Dyan's desire: To be the next Madonna". USA Today. p. 3D.
- 30.United Press International (June 23, 1983). "Her fame is sealed in cement". The Tampa Tribune. p. 1.
- 31.Sherrill, Martha (February 8, 1991). "Lunch With a Loose Cannon". The Washington Post.
- 32."Hope's Legacy Brings Eventing to the Big Screen". United States Eventing Association. March 10, 2020.
- 33.Frisone, Nick (February 9, 2021). "Q&A: Dyan Cannon". Baltimore Media Blog.
- 34."Celebrities Books - Best Sellers". The New York Times. September 7, 2014.
- 35.Nolasco, Stephanie (November 20, 2019). "Cary Grant's ex-wife Dyan Cannon explains why she turned down Jackie Kennedy's offer to tell all in memoir". Fox News.
- 36.Zemler, Emily (December 7, 2023). "Jason Isaacs didn’t want to become Cary Grant, so he became Archie Leach instead". Los Angeles Times.
- 37."God’s Table: Tracey Bregman Joins New Podcast". Soap Opera News. March 9, 2025.
- 38."In Book, Dyan Cannon Opens Up About Cary Grant". ABC News. September 27, 2011.
- 39.Associated Press (March 22, 1968). "Cary Grant's wife granted divorce". The Windsor Star.
- 40.Demaris, Ovid (October 20, 1985). "How Dyan Cannon conquered her demons; Happy After All". Parade. p. 17.
- 41.Randle, Nancy (May 26, 1991). "Tumultuous times; Life may be a roller coaster, but Cannon stays on top of it". Chicago Tribune.
- 42.Rubin, Steve. Dyan Cannon. September 22, 2024.
- 43.Graham, Sheilah (February 24, 1969). Incredible Future,' Says Dyan". Hollywood Citizen-News. p. A-6.
- 44.Chase, Chris (June 5, 1981). "Dyan Cannon has plenty to laugh about". The New York Times.
- 45.Parkyn, John (August 8, 1999). "Bloodlines let Assante play many ethnic roles". Orlando Sentinel.
- 46."Sidney Movie Premiere HD – Gallery Set 2". Social News XYZ. September 21, 2022.
- 47.Flynn, Rachel; Stern, Abby (April 7, 2025). "Dyan Cannon Has 'Several' Friends with Benefits at 88". People.
- 48.Nolasco, Stephanie (October 5, 2025). "Dyan Cannon clarifies ‘friends with benefits’ comment that left her Christian friends concerned". Fox News.
- 49.Manners, Dorothy (November 8, 1972). "Dyan Cannon Says Primal Therapy Helps". The Bradenton Herald. p. 9-A.
- 50."Guest Messages". Angelus Temple. May 26, 2022.
- 51.Wilson, Earl (June 29, 1971). "Dyan Cannon Now Taking Romance 'More Lightly . St. Joseph Gazette.
- 52.Blinn, Johna (October 10, 1976). "Dyan Cannon Whiz With Snacks". The Pittsburgh Press.
- 53.209. July 23, 1980.
- 54.Meltzer, David. Dyan Cannon, American Actress on Opening Yourself Up to Life's Possibilities. August 23, 2022.
- 55.Pearlman, Jeff (May 11, 2012). "Laker love for actress Cannon goes from basketball court to kitchen". Sports Illustrated.
- 56.Oram, Bill (April 17, 2020). "Dyan Cannon on her Lakers brownies, courtside seats and championship belief". The Athletic.
- 57.Gardner, Chris (April 15, 2016). "Longtime Lakers Fan Dyan Cannon on Kobe Bryant’s Life After Retirement: 'It's Going to Be Hard . The Hollywood Reporter.
- 58.Covell, Karen. History in Hollywood with Dyan Cannon. August 22, 2022.
- 59.Wooding, Dan (May 1, 2001). "Actress Dyan Cannon Ministers at 'God's Party . Christian Headlines.
- 60.Rivenburg, Roy (July 8, 2001). "Heaven Can't Wait". Los Angeles Times.
- 61.Harvey Brownstone Interviews Legendary Actress, Dyan Cannon. June 18, 2025.
- 62.Hanauer, Joan (May 31, 1982). "Big Sister, Dyan". The Franklin Banner. p. 2.
- 63.Pelisek, Christine (June 18, 2008). "Death of Raven, a Hollywood Beauty". LA Weekly.
- 64.Erickson, Hal. Any Resemblance to Actual Persons: The Real People Behind 400 Fictional Movie Characters. McFarland. 286. 2017. 9781476629308.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 1
- Cannon, Dyan. Dear Cary: My Life with Cary Grant. HarperCollins. 2011. 9780062079138.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Film memorabilia
37,298 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Dwight FryePerson
- Dwight HemionPerson
- Dwight HowardPerson
- Dy SavethPerson
- Dyana GayePerson
- Dyanna LaurenPerson
- Dyanne ThornePerson
- Dylan AveryPerson
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Dyan Cannon?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.