This Covington native won a Tony Award in 1956 for performance in Broadway's "The Ponder Heart" and received an Oscar nomination, 1962, for "Summer and Smoke." With her 66 motion pictures, Merkel (1903-1986) represented successful transition from silent films to "the talkies." She played opposite film legends W. C. Fields and Marlene Dietrich. Buried Highland Cem., Kenton Co.