Biografia

She had been the last surviving regular cast member of Adventures of Superman (1952) until she passed away on October 11, 2023. She had been the last surviving member since July 3, 2016 with the passing of Noel Neill.

The first actress to appear as Lois Lane with George Reeves. Although Noel Neill played Lois Lane before Phyllis, it was not with Reeves but rather Kirk Alyn.

Was accidentally punched during filming of Night of Terror (1952), knocking her unconscious. The actor who punched her apologized profusely, but the punch was left in the episode, as there was no time to re-shoot the scene.

She accepted the role in 1957's The Incredible Petrified World (1959) as a favor to its director, Jerry Warren, who was a former boyfriend. The actress originally cast in the lead couldn't do it and Warren couldn't find anyone else in time. He persuaded Coates to do it by telling her that the film would not be shown in California. However, after it was completed, she found out that Warren did indeed release the film in California, and she was told by at least one studio executive at Columbia that the film was so inferior and shoddy that the studio would not be hiring her again. On top of that, Warren never paid her.

Along with Jack Larson and Jack Kruschen, she is one of only three actors to appear in both Adventures of Superman (1952) and Lois & Clark - Le nuove avventure di Superman (1993).