Alexis Smith was an actress but in her later years she concentrated mainly on stage and television appearances. In 1972 she won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role in Follies, and was nominated for an Emmy Award for a guest appearance in the sitcom Cheers in 1990. She was married to the actor Craig Stevens from 1944 until her death in Los Angeles, California from brain cancer after her final film The Age of Innocence (1993).