Phyllis Coates, the first actor to portray Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane on television, died on 11 October in Woodland Hills, California, her daughter Laura Press confirmed to the New York Times. She was 96.
Coates starred as Lois Lane in The Adventures of Superman when the series first aired in 1952, but left after one season. She first played Lois opposite George Reeves as Clark Kent / the Man of Steel in “Superman and the Mole Men”. The 1951 black-and-white superhero film follows Clark and Lois as they arrive in the small town of Silsby, where a race of small, bald humanoids emerge from their subterranean home deep in an oil well.
The Adventures of Superman series debuted the following year, with Reeves and Coates reprising their respective roles as Clark and Lois from Mole Men.
Noel Neill, who had played Lois in two 15-part film serials starring Kirk Alyn – “Superman” (1948) and “Atom Man vs. Superman” (1950) – replaced Coates on “Adventures of Superman” and remained with the series for its final five seasons from 1953 to 1958.
Coates was born Gypsie Ann Stell on 15 January 1927 in Wichita Falls, Texas. After graduating from high school, she moved to Los Angeles, where she got a job as a chorus girl and appeared in sketches in comedian Ken Murray’s vaudeville show. She also appeared on USO tours and in 1948 signed a contract with Warner Bros.
In addition to the “Superman” projects, Coates worked on Republic Pictures serials such as “Jungle Drums of Africa” (1952) and “Panther Girl of the Kingo” (1954), and made guest appearances on TV series such as “Gunsmoke”, “Rawhide”, “Perry Mason” and “Leave It to Beaver”.
Her marriages to TV director Richard L. Bare, musician Robert Nelms, Leave It to Beaver director Norman Tokar and physician Howard Press all ended in divorce.
Coates is survived by daughters Zoe Christopher and Laura, and granddaughter Olivia. She was preceded in death by her son, David Tokar, who died in 2011.
