Merry Anders (born Mary Helen Anderson; May 22, 1934 – October 28, 2012) was an American actress who appeared in a number of television programs and films from the 1950s until her retirement from the screen in 1972.
Early life Anders was born in Chicago in 1934, the only child of Charles, a contractor, and Helen Anderson. Anders was of German, Irish and Swedish descent. In 1949, Anders and her mother visited Los Angeles for two weeks. They decided to remain in Los Angeles permanently while Charles Anderson remained in Chicago. While she was a student at John Burroughs Middle School, Anders met former actress Rita Leroy who encouraged her to begin a modeling career. While working as a junior model, Anders began studying acting at the Ben Bard Playhouse. It was there that a talent scout from 20th Century Fox spotted her and signed her to a film contract in 1951.
Career Anders made her film debut in the 1951 musical Golden Girl. For the next two years, she appeared in small and supporting roles in several 20th Century Fox films. In 1954, Fox dropped her. Later that year, Anders joined the cast of The Stu Erwin Show. She remained with the series until its cancellation in 1955. Anders was then cast in the CBS sitcom It's Always Jan, starring Janis Paige. That series was canceled after one season.
Shortly after the birth of her daughter in 1956, Anders took over the role of "Rita Marlowe" (popularized by Jayne Mansfield) in the West Coast touring production of the Broadway hit Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?. In 1957, Anders had a much-publicized leading role in Paramount Pictures film Hear Me Good, opposite Hal March. She starred in four low-budget films that same year, The Dalton Girls, Calypso Heat Wave, The Night Runner and Escape from San Quentin.
Also in 1957, Anders landed the role of Mike McCall in the NTA Film Network and syndicated sitcom How to Marry a Millionaire. The series was based on the hit 1953 film of the same name (in which Anders appeared in a bit role) starring Betty Grable, Marilyn Monroe, and Lauren Bacall. Anders co-starred in the series with Barbara Eden and Lori Nelson. The first season of How to Marry a Millionaire was fairly successful and it was renewed for a second, abbreviated season. It was cancelled in 1959.
During the early to mid 1960s, Anders continued her career with mainly supporting film roles and guest spots on television. In 1960, she appeared in the horror film The Hypnotic Eye followed by a role in the Western Young Jesse James. Anders went on to land guest roles on Surfside 6, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Hawaiian Eye, Death Valley Days, 77 Sunset Strip, and Perry Mason. In 1962 Anders appeared as Ruth Graham/Fay Pierce on Cheyenne in the episode titled "The Long Rope." She also appeared on The Addams Family as a cosmetics salesperson ("Fester's Punctured Romance").
In 1962, Anders was cast in the first English-language live action film adaptation of the 18th-century French fairy tale Beauty and the Beast. She was one of the scientists who travelled through time in The Time Travelers, a 1964 American science fiction film directed by Ib Melchior.
In 1965, she appeared opposite Elvis Presley in the musical comedy Tickle Me. The following year, she appeared in the recurring role of "Alice" in the teen soap opera Never Too Young. Later that year, Anders had a supporting role in the B movie Women of the Prehistoric Planet.
From 1967 to 1968, she appeared in seven episodes of Jack Webb's Dragnet series on NBC, in which she played policewoman Dorothy Miller. She appeared in a recurring role on Lassie.
By the late 1960s, Anders' acting career had begun to wane. In 1968, she appeared as uncredited "glorified extra" in the film Airport (1970). To supplement her income between acting jobs, Anders took a job as a receptionist at Litton Industries. Her final acting role was a guest spot in the two-part Gunsmoke episode "Waste", which aired late September and early October 1971.
Anders retired from acting in 1972 in order to "live a normal life." She eventually became a customer relations coordinator at Litton Industries, where she remained until her retirement in 1994.
Personal life On March 25, 1955, Anders married producer John Stephens. They separated on July 12, 1955. Two weeks later, she discovered she was pregnant with the couple's first child. Their daughter, Tina Beth Paige Anders, was born in March 1956. Anders and Stephens were divorced in June 1956. In 1986, Anders married engineer Richard Benedict; the couple remained married until his death in 1999.
On October 28, 2012, Anders died in Encino, California, aged 78, from undisclosed causes.
Filmography + Film Year Title Role Notes 1951 Golden Girl Chorine Uncredited 1952 Belles on Their Toes Student / Graduate Uncredited 1952 Wait till the Sun Shines, Nellie Adeline Halper / Adeline Burdge Uncredited 1952 Les Misérables Cicely Uncredited 1953 Titanic College Girl Uncredited 1953 The Farmer Takes a Wife Hannah 1953 How to Marry a Millionaire Model Uncredited 1954 Three Coins in the Fountain Girl Uncredited 1954 Princess of the Nile Handmaiden 1954 Phffft! Marsha Uncredited 1955 All That Heaven Allows Mary Ann 1957 The Night Runner Amy Hansen 1957 Desk Set Cathy 1957 Calypso Heat Wave Marti Collins 1957 No Time to Be Young Gloria Stuben 1957 Escape from San Quentin Robbie 1957 Death in Small Doses Amy "Miss Diesel of 1958" Phillips 1957 Hear Me Good Ruth Collins 1957 The Dalton Girls Holly Dalton 1958 Violent Road Carrie, The Girl in the Convertible 1960 The Hypnotic Eye Dodie Wilson 1960 Five Bold Women Missouri Lady Ellen Downs 1960 Young Jesse James Belle Starr 1960 The Walking Target Susan Mallory 1960 Spring Affair Dorothy 1961 The Police Dog Story Terry Dayton 1961 The Gambler Wore a Gun Sharon Donovan 1961 When the Clock Strikes Ellie 1961 20,000 Eyes Karen Walker 1961 Secret of Deep Harbor Janey Fowler 1962 Patty Mary Alternative titles: The Shame of Patty SmithDoctor Please Help MeGang Rape 1962 Beauty and the Beast Sybil 1962 Air Patrol Mona Whitney 1963 FBI Code 98 Grace McLean 1963 House of the Damned Nancy Campbell 1963 Police Nurse Joan Olson 1964 A Tiger Walks Betty Collins 1964 The Quick Gun Helen Reed 1964 The Time Travelers Carol White 1964 Young Fury Alice 1964 Raiders from Beneath the Sea Dottie Harper 1965 Tickle Me Estelle Penfield 1966 Women of the Prehistoric Planet Lieutenant Karen Lamont 1970 Airport Mrs. Burt Ball, Passenger Uncredited 1971 Will to Die Laura Dean Alternative titles: Legacy of BloodBlood Legacy