Frances and her brother, Erving, grew up in tiny Dauphin, Manitoba, where their parents, immigrants from czarist Russia, ran a clothing store. Frances’ grade school teacher encouraged her to pursue an acting career, and her first appearances were in school plays, often playing a princess.
Bitten by the acting bug, Bay pursued her acting studies at college in Winnipeg, appearing in radio and stage plays, and was honoured with a Best Actress award in the Dominion Drama Festival. World War II brought a new challenge when she became known as “The Girlfriend to the Canadian Forces” on the CBC Radio show Everybody’s Program. Troops credited Bay for being the voice that kept their spirits up.
After the war, Bay took a long hiatus to raise a family with her childhood sweetheart, Chuck Bay, whose job with Cartier took them to New York, Boston and finally, Los Angeles. In New York in the 40s, Frances continued her love affair with acting by studying with stage legend Uta Hagen.
Frances began acting again at 60, with a small role in Foul Play. She went on to appear in many popular shows including Shelley Duvall’s Faerie Tale Theatre, David Lynch’s Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart and Twin Peaks. Bay also appeared in off-Broadway stage productions and regional theatre, including Finnegan’s Wake, Grease, Genius, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, and The Pleasure of His Company. She won two Frama-Logue Awards (for Others and Right of Way) and was nominated for the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for her performance in The Man Who Came to Dinner.
Bay was also one of the most versatile and familiar faces in film and episodic television. She appeared in more than 50 films, including The Wedding Planner, Inspector Gadget and Twins. Television viewers have enjoyed her work on Hannah Montana, Newhart, Matlock, The X Files, Murder She Wrote, The Golden Girls, Touched by an Angel, L.A. Law and many more shows. Bay holds the unique distinction of appearing in the final episodes of three popular television sitcoms: Seinfeld, Who’s the Boss? and Happy Days.
