Phyllis Avery
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Born November 14, 1922
New York City, New York, U.S.
Died May 19, 2011 (aged 88)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
Occupation Actress
Website:
Avery was born in New York City to Evelyn (née Martine) and author Stephen Morehouse Avery. Her father hailed from Webster Groves, Missouri, near St. Louis. She studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, as well as in California, Maryland, and France.
Avery’s first motion picture role (other than a bit in the film version of Winged Victory) was as Marjorie in the 1951 film Queen for a Day based on the popular radio and television show hosted by Jack Bailey. In 1952, she played Tracy McAuliffe, the wife of the Charlton Heston character in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film Ruby Gentry. She also was in The Best Things in Life Are Free (1956).
From 1953 to 1955, Avery was cast as faculty wife Peggy McNutley in all but five of the seventy-five episodes of the CBS Television situation comedy, Meet Mr. McNutley, with Ray Milland as college professor Ray McNutley and Minerva Urecal as Miss Bradley, the dean. The name “McNutley” was changed in the second season to McNulty.
She appeared on the Charles Bronson ABC series, Man with a Camera as Miss Hollis in the 1958 episode “Turntable”. In 1959, she was Ann Macauley in “Incident in No Man’s Land” of CBS’s western Rawhide. From 1957 to 1959, she appeared in three different roles on the first David Janssen series, Richard Diamond, Private Detective. She played an unnamed schoolteacher in the 1957 episode ” The Teacher” on the ABC western series, Broken Arrow, with John Lupton and Michael Ansara.
In 1956, she appeared as Maggie Henderson in the film The Best Things in Life Are Free, a biography of three songwriters played by Gordon MacRae, Ernest Borgnine, and Dan Dailey. That same year, she and Lew Ayres portrayed Peg and Clint Howard in “The Unrelenting Sky”, the fourth episode of Dick Powell’s Zane Grey Theater.
During the 1960s, Avery continued with guest-starring roles on various television series, including Adventures in Paradise, The Deputy, Peter Gunn, Mr. Novak, Perry Mason, The Red Skelton Show, Have Gun – Will Travel, The Virginian, The Greatest Show on Earth, and Daniel Boone.
During the 1970s, Avery guest starred in episodes of All in the Family, Maude, Charlie’s Angels and Baretta.
Later years
In the 1980s, Avery retired from acting and became a real estate agent in Los Angeles, working in association with William Justice, who had also been an actor in Winged Victory. She returned to acting in the 1990s with an appearances in the feature film, Made in America (1993), and in an episode of the television series Coach, starring Craig T. Nelson.
Personal life
]From 1944 to 1955, Avery was married to actor Don Taylor; the couple had two daughters, Anne Taylor Fleming and Avery Taylor Moore.
Death
Avery died at the age of 88 on May 19, 2011, from heart failure
External links: