70s TV Star Looks Unrecognizable at 77

A former model turned screen star delighted fans of 70s cinema as she stepped out for a rare outing in on Tuesday.

The actress, who became a household name for her role in Rich Man, Poor Man, looked strikingly youthful at 77 as she enjoyed her public appearance.

Starring opposite in the hit series, she went on to win the for Best Actress in a Television Series Drama and earned an nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie.

Dressed casually in a black top and faded jeans, the former cover girl still cut a chic figure, reminiscent of her red carpet days during a run of disaster films in the 1970s.

She appeared in The Towering Inferno alongside Paul Newman and Steve McQueen, cementing her place in Hollywood’s golden era of disaster cinema.

She later starred in The Concorde… Airport ’79, continuing her run in the popular disaster film genre of the era.

If you guessed Susan Blakely, you're spot on!

Back in 2021, Blakely got candid about the surprising way she landed her breakout role in Rich Man, Poor Man.

‘I had done a movie called Report to the Commissioner. Carol Burnett saw the film. She was friends with [producer] Harve Bennett, and she told him he should cast me,’ she told Closer.

‘I never knew until later. Carol is an idol of mine, but she never told me because she’s so humble. She didn’t want to take credit.’

Reflecting on her time with her co-stars Nick Nolte and Peter Strauss, she said, ‘Oh, I love Nick. He is such a consummate actor, but also a nice, fun guy. And Peter was fabulous - we’ve reconnected recently. 

'There were other leading men in that show who were fabulous, too: Bill Bixby, who my character married, Ed Asner and Robert Reed.’

Blakely also shared how she came to appear in the Newman disaster film The Towering Inferno.

‘I probably wouldn’t have said yes to Towering Inferno if I had read the script! But I was on another shoot, and my agent told me who else was doing it. I was just in love with Paul Newman. He was my biggest crush. So when I heard Paul Newman was in it, I said if he was doing it, I was doing it.’

When asked if she spent much time with Newman on set, she said, ‘Yes, but we weren’t in a lot of scenes together. When William Holden said, “Susie, I want you to meet Paul Newman,” I looked at him and my heart started to race! He was the sexiest man, the best actor, and he turned out to be the kindest man, too.’

‘I also got to know Joanne Woodward. They had a bunch of us actors out to Malibu. They were just such down-to-earth people.’

She continued, ‘I had a fabulous time. I got to hang out with William Holden, who was a wonderful man, and Fred Astaire, who was amazing. I was such a novice and so nervous, but he was just so humble and sweet. 

'I also met my husband on that set, but we didn’t hit it off then. I remembered him when we met again later.’

That chance meeting would prove more significant in later years, with Blakely eventually marrying media expert, public relations consultant and filmmaker Jaffe in 1982.

She had previously been married to lawyer Todd Merer, with the couple divorcing in 1981. 

Beyond her breakout TV and disaster film roles, Blakely enjoyed a varied and prolific career in both television and cinema. 

She took on leading roles in made-for-TV movies throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including Will There Really Be a Morning?, portraying Frances Farmer.

She also appeared in Over the Top, My Mom’s a Werewolf and Hate Crime, while guest-starring on hit series such as This Is Us, NCIS, Murder, She Wrote and Cougar Town.