She Didn’t Tell A Soul
Now, here’s a little secret that was kept for the entirety of the show. Of course, Natalie Schafer played Mrs. Howell. What you didn’t know is that the actress lied to the entire cast, producers and crew the whole time about her actual age. Schafer refused to tell anyone her real age. Eventually, the truth came out. Actress Natalie Schafer was a whole 13 years older than her counterpart on the show, actor Jim Backus. She didn’t want anyone to know that her and her TV husband had such a large age gap.
She Didn’t Tell A Soul
Special Mention In Her Contract
Actually, there’s more to the story than that. Within Natalie Schafer’s contract she had them write in a special clause for her. In that clause, she had them promise there would be no close-up shots of her. This was in order to hide her wrinkles. Schafer did not want fans to see even one wrinkle. Thus, her 13 year age difference with Jim Backus would not be noticed. Hm, interesting.
Special Mention In Her Contract
