Until I had a book published/about to be published, I had only ever Googled my name a handful of times. But once
I knew my name was “out there” on blogs, online retailers, in reviews, and such, I started Googling my name more regularly.
Every time I Googled my name, someone else always popped up in the search results, as well. I spell Vickie with an “e” on the end. An actress, Vicki Fee, whose name is spelled with just an “i”, turns up on Google whenever I type in my name.
I naturally had a certain curiosity about her. Although she shows up in any Google search, there’s actually very little information about her.
She was born Astrid Allwyn Fee in Los Angeles in 1945 and died in Santa Monica when she was just 30 years old. Vicki with an “i” has only two screen credits listed in IMDb (the International Movie Data Base). She appeared in one episode of The Munsters, “Herman’s Sorority Caper” (Season 2, Episode 30), as the “first girl”. And she appeared as “Janet” in a 1966 beach/spy spoof movie titled “Out of Sight”.
My husband and I watched The Munsters episode she is credited in and still weren’t sure who “first girl” was. We also watched the movie “Out of Sight” and could only make a guess as to which girl was Vicki. While her character was given a name, no one ever identifies her by name in the dialogue. In the credits, her name is listed beneath Bob Eubanks, who doesn’t even appear in the movie, just his voice.
There is no photo included in her IMDb listing. The caption with the photo I’ve included here – the only one I could find online purporting to be of her – reads “possibly Astrid “Vicki Fee” Steele, daughter of actress Astrid Allwyn.” This picture appears to be a publicity photo for “Out of Sight”.
Her mother Astrid Allwyn had a distinguished career, appearing in films throughout the 1930s and ‘40s, including
“Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” “Follow the Fleet” and “Love Affair.” She played mostly supporting roles, often as the other woman, but did have lead roles in “Mystery Liner,” “International Crime” and “City of Missing Girls.”
Her IMDb bio says Astrid Allwyn married Charles O. Fee and decided to retire from show business to raise a family, which included Vicki and her sister, Melinda O. Fee, who also became an actress.
I still think about this woman with the name so similar to mine, who died tragically young, every time she pops up in my Internet search results. I wonder how she died and what her acting career might have looked like if she’d lived longer – plenty of actors have had inauspicious early roles. I place this photo of Vicki next to photos of her mom – of which there are an abundance – looking for a family resemblance.
For now, at least, she remains a mystery. As a mystery writer, it bothers me when I come across one I can’t unravel.
ap marked with the various locations used in the film, and at least on the day we visited, a helpful and chatty tourist guide.