Phyllis Avery (November 14, 1922-May 19, 2011) was an American actress.

Early life

Phyllis Avery was born to screenwriter Stephen Morehouse Avery and his wife Evelyn Martine Avery.''Prolific TV Actress Phyllis Avery Dies at 88''
Nachruf in: ''The Hollywood Reporter'' vom 23. Mai 2011 She grew up in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

.''PASSINGS: Phyllis Avery''
Nachruf in ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' vom 25. Mai 2011

Career

Avery completed her training at the

American Academy of Dramatic Arts The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA) is a private performing arts conservatory with two locations, one in Manhattan and one in Los Angeles. The academy offers an associate degree in occupational studies and teaches drama and related art ...

in New York. She had previously made her

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debut in May 1937, with the role of Goldie in the

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwo ...

Orchids Preferred. In 1940/1941 she appeared on Broadway in the successful comedy '' Charley's Aunt''. She played alongside José Ferrer the role of Amy Spettigue, one of the young naive girls. From November 1943 to May 1944, she played the role of Dorothy Ross on Broadway in the musical play ''Winged Victory'' by Moss Hart, a production of the

US Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

, in over 200 performances. One of her partners was actor Don Taylor, whom Avery later married. Avery made her film debut in 1951 with the role of the young girl Marjorie in the film comedy ''Queen for a Day''. In 1952, she played the role of Tracy McAuliffe, the wife of the movie character ''Boake Tackman'' embodied by

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923April 5, 2008) was an American actor and political activist. As a Hollywood star, he appeared in almost 100 films over the course of 60 years. He played Moses in the epic film ''The Ten ...

, in the MGM film drama ''

Ruby Gentry ''Ruby Gentry'' is a 1952 film directed by King Vidor, and starring Jennifer Jones, Charlton Heston, and Karl Malden. In February 2020, the film was shown at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival, as part of a retrospective dedicated to K ...

''. In 1956, along with

Gordon MacRae Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer and radio/television host who appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals '' Oklahoma!'' (1955) and ''Carousel'' (1956) and who p ...

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...

and Dan Dailey, she was part of the cast for the musical '' The Best Things in Life Are Free'', a film biography of three composers. She embodied Margaret Henderson, the wife of the music teacher and composer

Ray Henderson Ray Henderson (born Raymond Brost; December 1, 1896 – December 31, 1970) was an American songwriter. Early life Born in Buffalo, New York, United States, Henderson moved to New York City and became a popular composer in Tin Pan Alley. He was o ...

. Despite a few more film roles, Avery has worked primarily as a television actress since the 1950s. She has appeared in continuous series roles, episode roles and guest roles in a total of over 40 television series. From 1953 to 1955, she embodied Peggy McNutley's wife as

Ray Milland Ray Milland (born Alfred Reginald Jones; 3 January 1907 – 10 March 1986) was a Welsh-American actor and film director. His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985. He is remembered for his Academy Award and Cannes Film Festival Award-winning ...

's wife in the US sitcom ''Meet Mr. McNutley''. From 1960 to 1962 she took on the role of Anne Shelby in

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio drama ...

''The Clear Horizon''; in it she played the wife of a US astronaut stationed in Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, who was attracted to another man. She had appearances in the television series '' Richard Diamond, Private Detective'' (1957-1959),'' Trackdown'' (1957), '' Perry Mason'' (1958; 1961), ''

The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The sho ...

'' (1959), '' Rawhide'' (1959), ''

Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series aired on NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and on ABC in 1960–1961. The seri ...

'' (1960), '' Have Gun Will Travel'' (1962), '' Laramie'' (1960; 1963), '' The Virginian'' (1963), '' Dr. Kildare'' (1963), ''

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyond the we ...

'' (1967), ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series ''Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'' (1973), ''Maude'' (1976), ''

Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, producing five seasons and 115 episodes. The series was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts and was produced by ...

'' (1977) and '' Baretta'' (1978). In the late 1970s, Avery ended her career as an actress. She returned to the camera for some sporadic film and television roles in the 1990s, including the comedy film '' Made in America'', the comedy series ''

Coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

'', and the 1999 film '' The Secret Life of Girls''. Avery had been working in and around Los Angeles as a

real estate broker A real estate agent or real estate broker is a person who represents sellers or buyers of real estate or real property. While a broker may work independently, an agent usually works under a licensed broker to represent clients. Brokers and ag ...

since the 1960s.

Personal life and death

Avery married actor Don Taylor in 1944, in whom she had met in the Broadway production "Winged Victory"; they divorced in 1955. The marriage resulted in two daughters. Avery died on May 19, 2011, at the age of 88 in her home in Los Angeles of heart failure.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Avery, Phyllis 1922 births 2011 deaths Actresses from New York City American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American expatriates in France