Zara Cully (January 26, 1892 - February 28, 1978)

This small framed character actressed didn't appear on screen for the first time until she was 78 years old. Between 1970 and 1975 she appeared in five films and in 1973 she appeared in the TV movie "A Dream for Christmas" in which played a character named Beth Rogers. In 1971 she had a recurring role on the daytime soap opera "Days of Our Lives" as Mrs. Davis. Her television credits are small with appearances on only "The Mod Squad", "Night Gallery", "Cowboy in Africa" and Run for Your Life." In 1974, she appeared in an episode of "All in the Family" as Olivia Jefferson, George and Henry Jefferson's mother and that was all it took. When "The Jeffersons" moved on up in January 1975 she moved on up with them. As Mother Jefferson she was the sharp tongue closeted alcoholic mother-in-law from Hell. She saw her share of the spotlight though as seen in such episodes as "Mother Jefferson's Fall", "Mother Jefferson's Boyfriend", "Mother Jefferson's Birthday", and "Lunch with Mama." Sadly the actress was stricken with cancer during the run of the show and was absent for 1/3 of the 1976-1977 television season. Leading up to her departure she would often be featured only briefly and then say she had to go lay down to "calm her nerves." In the fall of 1977 she was present in the two-part season opener but her health was not good. She was very frail and thin and unable to walk steadily. Her final appearance was in the episode "The Last Leaf" which originally aired on November 12, 1977. She is mentioned and shown in flashbacks in the episode "Louise and George in a Bind" which originally aired on February 25, 1978. The actress passed away from cancer three days later. She was 86 years old. At the beginning of season five in 1978 it is mentioned that Mother Jefferson had passed away. In 2004 & 2005 she was remembered with posthumous award nominations for her work on "The Jeffersons" at the TV Land Awards. Although she appeared in only three and a half seasons, she is a large part of the reason why "The Jeffersons" became the classic that it is.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Remembering the Cast of "Make Room for Daddy" / "The Danny Thomas Show" (583)

It was one of the longest running family sitcoms in television history.  Right there along side "I Love Lucy", "The Honeymooners", "Father Knows Best" and "My Little Margie" it was one of the most beloved programs of the day.  It began on ABC as "Make Room for Daddy" on September 29, 1953.  After 120 episodes the title changed to "The Danny Thomas Show" and in 1957 the program moved to CBS.  After a healthy eleven year run the show ended on April 27, 1964 after producing 351 episodes total.  In 1970 a majority of the cast returned for the show "Make Room for Granddaddy" which lasted from 1970 to 1971 producing 24 episodes.  The cast was headed up by Danny Thomas who played nightclub entertainer Danny Williams.  Jean Hagen played his wife Margaret, Rusty Hamer played his son Rusty and Sherry Jackson played his daughter Terry.  Jackson played Terry from 1953 to 1958 followed by Penny Parker who played the role from...
Read more

Doris Packer (May 30, 1904 - March 31, 1979)

She began in New York on Broadway and then started appearing on radio. Some of her radio credits include "Henry Aldrich" and "Mr. & Mrs. North." When she became a widow in 1953 she relocated to California where she began appearing on film and on television. Her first film was Meet Me at the Fair. She also appeared in The Perils of Pauline in 1967. She is best remembered as Mrs. Cornelia Rayburn, Beaver's Principal on "Leave it to Beaver." She also had a recurring role on "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis." Her final film appearance was in Shampoo in 1975... Other Television Credits: "The Great Gildersleeve" "Jane Wyman Presents the Fireside Theatre" "The Bob Cummings Show" "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show" "I Love Lucy" "Lux Video Theatre" "The Jack Benny Program" "The Thin Man" "Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse" "Maverick" ...
Read more