Peggy Lipton

Margaret Ann Lipton (August 30, 1946 – May 11, 2019) was an American actress, model, and singer.

Well known through her role as flower child Julie Barnes in the counterculture television series The Mod Squad (1968–1973) for which she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in 1970. Her fifty-year career in television, film, and stage included many roles, including Norma Jennings in David Lynch's Twin Peaks. Lipton was formerly married to the musician and producer Quincy Jones and was mother to their two daughters, Rashida Jones and Kidada Jones.

Early life

Born in New York City on August 30, 1946, Lipton was raised in a comfortably upper-middle-class Jewish family. Lipton's parents were Harold Lipton (1911–1999), a corporate lawyer, and Rita Benson (1912–1986), an artist. Her paternal grandparents were Russian Jews, and her mother was born in Dublin, Ireland, to Jewish parents who had emigrated from Eastern Europe.

Lipton was raised on Long Island with her brothers, Robert, who became an actor, and Kenneth. She attended Lawrence Junior High School and the Professional Children's School. Sexually abused by an uncle, Lipton was a nervous, withdrawn child. She had a stutter that at times prevented her from saying her own name. In 1964, the family moved to Los Angeles; there Lipton became what she described as a "Topanga Canyon hippie", exploring meditation and yoga, and subsisting on rice cakes and cottage cheese.

Modeling and acting

Lipton's father arranged her first modeling jobs in New York while her mother encouraged her to take acting lessons.  At 15, Lipton became a Ford Agency model and enjoyed a successful early career. After she and her family moved to Los Angeles in 1964, Lipton signed a contract with Universal Pictures. She made her television debut at age 19 in the NBCsitcom The John Forsythe Show (1965). Between 1965 and 1968, she appeared in episodes of Bewitched, The Virginian, The Invaders, The Road West, The F.B.I., Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color ("Willie and the Yank"), The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and Mr. Novak.

Lipton starred in The Mod Squad as one of a trio of Los Angeles undercover "hippie cops". Appearing waiflike and vulnerable, as David Hutchings wrote, her performance as "canary with a broken wing" Julie Barnes earned her four Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations during her tenure. In 1971, she won a Golden Globe Award for Best TV Actress in a Drama. Thin with long, straight, ash blonde hair, clad in mini-skirts, bell bottoms, and love beads, Lipton's Julie Barnes became a fashion icon and the hip "it" girl of her time.

Singing

As a singer, three of Lipton's singles landed on the Billboard charts: "Stoney End" (No. 121 Bubbling Under Hot 100, 1968, later a hit for Barbra Streisand in 1970) and "Lu" (1970), both written by Laura Nyro. Her "Wear Your Love Like Heaven" (1970) was written by Donovan. "Stoney End" is included in her 1968 album Peggy Lipton (Ode Records), which was released on CD on July 29, 2014 by RealGone Music, along with other singles and previously unreleased material (nineteen tracks in all). Lipton is listed as one of several co-writers of the Frank Sinatra 1984 hit, "L.A. Is My Lady".

Return to acting

In 1988, Lipton returned to acting. She gained attention for her performance as Norma Jennings in the TV series Twin Peaks (1990–1991) and subsequently appeared in many TV shows, including recurring roles in Crash and Popular. In 2017 she reprised her character of Norma Jennings in the revival of Twin Peaks. Also in 2017 she appeared in an episode of Angie Tribeca, as Peggy Tribeca, the mother of the title character played by her daughter Rashida Jones.

Personal life and death

Lipton was briefly linked with Paul McCartney. During the late 1960s and the early 1970s, Lipton also had relationships with a series of alcoholic, abusive, or married men. During this time, she used drugs. Lipton covered some of this period in her memoir Breathing Out (2005), co-written by David and Coco Dalton.

Marriage and family

After Lipton married musician and producer Quincy Jones, in 1974, she took a hiatus from acting in order to concentrate on her family (with the exception of appearing in the made-for-TV movie The Return of the Mod Squad in 1979). The couple had two daughters, Rashida and Kidada Jones, who became actresses. Lipton separated from Jones in 1986, and they divorced in 1990.[

Death

Lipton revealed that she had been diagnosed with colon cancer in 2004 and was treated for it. On May 11, 2019, Lipton died of the disease in Los Angeles.

Discography

• 1968 Peggy Lipton (Ode Records)
• 2013 Peggy Lipton: The Complete Ode Recordings (Vivid Sound)

Singles:

• 1968 "Wear Your Love Like Heaven" b/w "Honey Won't Let Me" (45 rpm) (Record World AC#40)
• 1968 "Stoney End" b/w "San Francisco Glide" (45 rpm) (Billboard #121)
• 1969 "Red Clay County Line" b/w "Just A Little Lovin' (Early In The Morning)" (45 rpm)
• 1970 "Lu" / "Let Me Pass By" (45 rpm) (#45 Canada, February 1970)
• 1970 "Let Me Pass By" b/w "Hands Off the Man (Flim Flam Man)" (45 rpm)

Filmography

Lipton appeared in the following films and television shows: