Every great character actor’s journey has a magical moment of pure, unscripted serendipity. Long before becoming a beloved staple of 1970s television, a 19-year-old Susan Damante was turning heads as First Runner-Up in the Miss California pageant. But her real Hollywood story began in 1972 at the Paramount Theatre in Oakland. After dressing up and taking off her glasses for a failed audition, she bumped into director Michael Ritchie the next day in her natural element. Spotting her in her iconic Gloria Steinem-style glasses, Ritchie immediately introduced her to Robert Redford and cast her in the satirical classic The Candidate. That uncredited six-week stint became her ultimate hands-on film school.
From that breakout moment, Damante’s career blossomed into a fascinating, genre-spanning journey across peak 1970s and ’80s cinema and television. She moved effortlessly between cult horror classics like Blood Sabbath and wholesome, sweeping wilderness adventures. As Pat Robinson in The Adventures of the Wilderness Family trilogy, she captured the hearts of audiences seeking escape in the Rocky Mountain wilderness. Meanwhile, her sharp screen presence made her a go-to guest star on TV’s premier shows, from dodging danger in Columbo: Troubled Waters to sharing scenes with James Garner on The Rockford Files and appearing in the primetime giant Dallas.
Beyond her own extensive IMDb page, Damante fostered a true artistic dynasty as the matriarch of a talented Hollywood family. Her daughters, Vinessa and Natalie Shaw, followed right in her acting footsteps. Fans of 1990s comedy will fondly remember Susan and Vinessa sharing the screen in the 1992 Rodney Dangerfield cult favorite Ladybugs, right before Vinessa captured a generation’s heart as Allison in Disney’s Halloween staple Hocus Pocus. Passing down that creative spark, Damante proved that true passion for storytelling is a trait that can be beautifully inherited.
What makes Damante’s multi-decade trajectory so inspiring, however, is her relentless drive to evolve as an artist and human being. Beyond the camera, she conquered the stage with her autobiographical one-woman show, Life… Death… And Entertainment, and stepped behind the camera to write, direct, and produce her 2018 short film Repercussions. Grounded by a 40-year devotion to Nichiren Buddhism and her personal triumph over Crohn’s Disease, she approaches life and craft with deep resilience and genuine gratitude.
Spotted recently out in Los Angeles looking effortlessly stylish in a navy blue ensemble, she remains a testament to the quiet power of true artistic longevity. Actors like Susan Damante are the very heart of cinema—the familiar faces that give classic television its texture and warmth. Who is your absolute favorite 1970s character actor or go-to TV guest star whose appearance instantly brightens up a classic episode? Let’s celebrate our favorite unsung screen legends in the comments below!
