Maggie Smith’s “Between the Sheets”

Known by most today for her roles as Violet Crawley in ”Downton Abbey” [2010-15] or Minerva McGonagall in the ”Harry Potter” franchise, one forgets that Maggie Smith had a distinguished, even illustrious career before being typecast as elderly dowager or schoolmarm, raking in two Academy Awards and three Golden Globes along the way.

”The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” (1969) established her as a serious actress and a number of comedies such as ”Murder by Death ” (1976) and ”California Suite” (1978) as well as star-vehicles à la Agatha Christie’s [”Death on the Nile” (1978) and ”Evil Under the Sun” (1982) kept her in the public eye, but her best work seemed to go mostly unnoticed: ”Travels With My Aunt” (1972), ”A Room With a View” (1985). ”Gosford Park” (2001), ”Ladies in Lavender”(2004) and more.

The Between the Sheets Cocktail, the drink Maggie Smith offers Peter Ustinov (a.k.a. Hercule Poirot) in ”Evil Under the Sun” (1982) dates back to 1930s Paris, either a Harry MacElhone(Harry’s New York Bar) creation or the apéritif du jour for working girls in French brothels; either way …