Biography
Ann Prentiss (November 27, 1939 – January 12, 2010) was an American actress born Ann Elizabeth Ragusa in San Antonio, Texas, to Paulene (née Gardner) and Thomas J. Ragusa. Her father was of Sicilian heritage. Her older sister, Paula Prentiss, is also an actress. Throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, Prentiss appeared in numerous supporting roles in films and television shows, including episodes such as "The Little Black Book" on Get Smart, "The Missing Klink" on Hogan's Heroes (1969), and "Half a Million Dollar Baby" on Baretta. She voiced an alien character in the comedy film My Stepmother Is an Alien (1988), starring alongside Kim Basinger and Dan Aykroyd. Her film credits also feature Any Wednesday (1966), If He Hollers, Let Him Go! (1968), The Out-of-Towners (1970), and California Split (1974), where she acted opposite George Segal and Elliott Gould. In 1996, Prentiss was convicted in California for assaulting her father and subsequently threatening family members. The district attorney alleged that while imprisoned for the assault, she tried to hire another inmate to murder three individuals, including her father and actor/director Richard Benjamin, her sister's husband. On July 23, 1997, she was sentenced to 19 years in prison. Prentiss passed away on January 12, 2010, during her incarceration.
