Basic Information
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Name | Connie Nickerson |
| Other names | Constance Nickerson, Constance Bracken |
| Birth year | 1914 or 1915 (sources vary) |
| Death | August 19 or August 20, 2002 |
| Spouse | Eddie Bracken |
| Marriage | 1939 (reported specific date September 25, 1939 in some records) |
| Children | Five — Judy, Carolyn, Michael, Susan, David |
| Notable early credit | Appeared in As You Like It on Broadway, 1937 |
| Known for | Stage performer, long partnership with actor Eddie Bracken, family matriarch |
Early Life and Stage Beginnings
Like the first chord of a drama, Connie Nickerson enters the album, partially present yet mostly hidden. Her first public appearances are theatrical, and she was born in the middle of the 1910s. By 1937, she is listed as Constance or Connie in the Broadway cast list for As You Like It. A new actress enters a universe of time, movement, and diction with those three words on a playbill. The 1930s theater scene was a tightrope walk: road shows, touring companies, and short seasons in New York all required perseverance and dedication. Connie picked up the phone.
Rather than being motivated by celebrity, her early career seems to have been solid and theatrical. She shared the same wooden floorboards and torn backstage curtains that shaped many actresses of that time, toured with companies, and studied roles. The stage served as a kind of family forge where relationships were formed and lives were subsequently cast, in addition to being a place of employment.
Meeting Eddie Bracken and Marriage
On a tour of What a Life, two actors found each other in the wings and in the glow of footlights. Connie Nickerson and Eddie Bracken met while performing in the same road company. They married in 1939 and began a partnership that lasted more than six decades. Their union was that rare thing in show business: a private, stable life built alongside the public rhythms of theater and film.
Marriage for Connie did not erase her stage identity. Instead it braided her path to Eddie’s, producing a shared career arc that included touring productions and occasional later returns to the stage. Their marriage date is often given as 1939, with one precise record pointing to September 25, 1939, and their life together continued even as the spotlight sometimes favored Eddie.
Family Life and Children
Family occupied center stage for decades. Connie and Eddie raised five children, balancing parenting with itinerant work. The household produced five distinct lives: Judy, Carolyn, Michael, Susan, and David. Family numbers recorded at the time of later obituaries include nine grandchildren and two great grandchildren, a small constellation that grew from that original pair.
| Child | Notes |
|---|---|
| Judy | Eldest daughter, sometimes referenced by married name; involved publicly in family notices. |
| Carolyn | Daughter, listed among the five children; limited public biographical detail. |
| Michael | Son, appears in genealogical and entertainment listings. |
| Susan | Daughter, listed in family records and obituaries. |
| David (Dave) | Son, sometimes referenced in family summaries. |
Connie’s role as mother was deliberate and foregrounded. She stepped back from a continuous professional presence to raise her children during the 1940s and 1950s. The decision reads like a stage direction: retreat to the wings, then reemerge when the plot allows. Later decades brought occasional returns to the boards and shared tours with Eddie, underlining a resilient partnership in both family and profession.
Career Highlights and Later Years
The stage is the focal point of Connie’s measurable accomplishments. The most obvious recorded credit is for her role in 1937’s As You Like It. In addition, she is known to have performed occasionally later in life, sometimes with her husband, and to have toured with theater performances. This career map is characterized by consistent theater employment, family commitment, and sporadic public appearances that reflect a life spent in the profession rather than by large solo awards or movie star roles.
As the matriarch of a big family and Eddie Bracken’s longstanding companion, Connie was mostly acknowledged in public comments and honors in later years. Days before the start of a season that would also claim Eddie in November of the same year, she passed away in August 2002.
Public Image and Net Worth
Connie’s public image is restrained and respectful. She was not a tabloid figure; gossip and scandal do not accompany her name in the mainstream record. Her life reads like a quiet ledger of roles, family, and steady presence. No credible public estimate of personal net worth is available, and her identity in public memory is anchored to the theater and to her family rather than to finance or notoriety.
Like a steady footlight, her reputation casts warm illumination rather than harsh glare. Those who remember her do so for commitment rather than headlines.
Extended Timeline
| Year or period | Event |
|---|---|
| 1914 or 1915 | Birth of Connie Nickerson (exact year varies between records) |
| 1937 | Credited in Broadway production As You Like It |
| Late 1930s | Performs in touring company of What a Life; meets Eddie Bracken |
| 1939 | Marries Eddie Bracken; some records list September 25, 1939 |
| 1940s and 1950s | Steps back from continuous performing to raise five children |
| Later decades | Returns sporadically to the stage and tours with Eddie |
| August 19 or August 20, 2002 | Death of Connie Nickerson |
| November 14, 2002 | Death of Eddie Bracken, a few months after Connie |
Dates sometimes arrive with a small fog of disagreement. Birth year may appear as 1914 or 1915 in different listings, and the exact day of Connie’s passing shows a one day variance in public notes. These small uncertainties are spokes in the wheel of an otherwise clear family narrative.
Recent Mentions and Legacy
Connie does not feature in contemporary headlines. Mentions in modern social spaces tend to be retrospective, honoring Eddie Bracken and listing her as his spouse and the mother of their five children. Her legacy is domestic and theatrical: a life threaded through the mid century American stage, a family grown large, a partnership that endured for decades. Memory of her persists like faded but treasured playbills preserved in a drawer.
FAQ
Who was Connie Nickerson?
Connie Nickerson was a stage actress and the longtime wife of actor Eddie Bracken, known for her early Broadway work and for raising five children.
When was Connie Nickerson born and when did she die?
She was born in either 1914 or 1915, and she died on August 19 or August 20, 2002; sources record slight variations in both years and exact dates.
Who was her spouse?
Her spouse was Eddie Bracken, a well known actor; they married in 1939 and remained married until her death.
How many children did she have?
Connie had five children: Judy, Carolyn, Michael, Susan, and David.
What was her career like?
Her career was primarily on stage, with a documented Broadway appearance in 1937 and intermittent touring and performances later in life.
