Mary Eilene Janssen (born May 25, 1938) is an American retired film and television actress.

Early life

Eilene Janssen was born in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on May 25, 1938, to Henry Janssen and Mary Ellen Thompson.

Film career

Janssen began her film career as a child actress in the early 1940s. With her father being a longtime worker for Universal Studios, Eilene Janssen made her first screen appearance in the 1940 film ''

Sandy Gets Her Man ''Sandy Gets Her Man'' is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Otis Garrett and Paul Gerard Smith and written by Sy Bartlett and Jane Storm. The film stars Baby Sandy, Stuart Erwin, Una Merkel, Edgar Kennedy, William Frawley, Edward Brophy, ...

''. She continued to have bit parts in several movies such as ''

Two Girls and a Sailor ''Two Girls and a Sailor'' is a 1944 American musical film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Van Johnson, June Allyson and Gloria DeHaven. Set on the American homefront during World War II, it's about two singing sisters who create a lavi ...

'' and '' It Happened Tomorrow''. In 1944, she was awarded the title "Little Miss America". As Janssen grew older, she gained more prominent roles such as Elise in '' Song of Love'' and Peggy in ''

The Boy with Green Hair ''The Boy with Green Hair'' is a 1948 American fantasy-drama film in Technicolor directed by Joseph Losey in his feature film directorial debut. It stars Dean Stockwell as Peter, a young war orphan who is subject to ridicule after his hair my ...

''. She and

Michael Chapin Michael Chapin (born July 25, 1936) is an American former child actor in film and television. Born in Los Angeles, California, he began his screen career in 1944 when he appeared in '' The Fighting Sullivans''. He continued with films such as ...

were the juvenile leads in four Westerns between 1951 and 1952, all of which were directed by Philip Ford. She played Judy Dawson. As a young adult she was the female lead in the 1957

Western film The Western is a film genre defined by the American Film Institute as films which are "set in the American West that mbodythe spirit, the struggle, and the demise of the new frontier." Generally set in the American frontier between the Calif ...

Escape from Red Rock ''Escape from Red Rock'' is a 1957 American Western film written and directed by Edward Bernds. The film starred Brian Donlevy, Eilene Janssen, Gary Murray, Jay C. Flippen, William Edward Phipps and Myron Healey. The film was released in Decemb ...

''. Apart from films, Janssen also acted in television series including ''

The Gene Autry Show ''The Gene Autry Show'' is an American western/cowboy television series which aired for 91 episodes on CBS from July 23, 1950 until August 7, 1956, originally sponsored by Wrigley's Doublemint chewing gum. Overview Series star Gene Autry h ...

'',''

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' is an American television sitcom that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 3, 1952, to April 23, 1966, and starred the real-life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was b ...

'', ''

Father Knows Best ''Father Knows Best'' is an American sitcom starring Robert Young (actor), Robert Young, Jane Wyatt, Elinor Donahue, Billy Gray (actor), Billy Gray and Lauren Chapin. The series, which began on radio in 1949, aired as a television show for six ...

'', ''

Mister Ed ''Mister Ed'' is an American television sitcom produced by Filmways that aired in syndication from January 5 to July 2, 1961, and then on CBS from October 1, 1961, to February 6, 1966. The show's title character is a talking horse which orig ...

'', ''

The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', sometimes called ''The Burns and Allen Show'', is a half-hour television sitcom broadcast from 1950 to 1958 on CBS. It starred George Burns and Gracie Allen, one of the most enduring acts in entertainm ...

'', ''

Tales of Wells Fargo ''Tales of Wells Fargo'' is an American Westerns on television, Western television series starring Dale Robertson in 201 episodes that aired from 1957 to 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until i ...

'', ''

Make Room for Daddy ''The Danny Thomas Show'' (titled ''Make Room for Daddy'' for its first three seasons) is an American sitcom that ran from 1953 to 1957 on ABC and from 1957 to 1964 on CBS. Starring Danny Thomas as a successful night club entertainer, the sho ...

'', ''

The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis ''The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis'' (also known as simply ''Dobie Gillis'' or ''Max Shulmans Dobie Gillis'' in later seasons and in syndication) is an American sitcom starring Dwayne Hickman that aired on CBS from September 29, 1959, to June 5, 1 ...

'', ''

The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor backwoods family ...

'' and ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and four short stories, all of which involve a ...

''. Janssen retired from acting in 1968. As of 2004, she was living in

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...

, California.

Personal life

Janssen married Harry Ronald Rothschild on November 29, 1957. They had two children together before they divorced in 1962. She then married Thomas Alexander Orchard, in 1963. They had one child together before their 1966 divorce. Janssen married George Ellis Moore in 1968. They had two children, Moore died in 2000.

Filmography

References

Bibliography

External links

* 1938 births Living people American child actresses American film actresses American television actresses 21st-century American women {{US-film-actor-1930s-stub