Joyce Bulifant
Joyce Collins Bulifant[1] (born December 16, 1937) is an American television actress, notable for her cheerful, girlish voice with a Southern lilt. In addition to many theater appearances and a recurring role on The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Marie Slaughter, Bulifant was a frequent panelist on the television game shows Chain Reaction, Match Game, and Password Plus.
Joyce Bulifant | |
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![]() Bulifant (rear) with Gavin MacLeod (left) and Michael Higa in a promotional still from The Mary Tyler Moore Show | |
Born | Joyce Collins Bulifant[1] December 16, 1937 Newport News, Virginia, U.S. |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1959–2019 |
Spouse(s) | Glade Bruce Hansen
( m. 2000; div. 2001) |
Children | 4, including John Asher |
Early years
Bulifant was born in Newport News, Virginia.[2] She attended Solebury School in New Hope, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1955 in the same class as her first husband, James MacArthur, son of legendary actress Helen Hayes and author Charles MacArthur.[1]
Television
After appearing on Broadway,[2] Bulifant appeared in numerous television programs.
Regular cast
One of Bulifant's earliest roles on television was as a dancer on Arthur Murray's Dance Party (1950-1960).[4][5] She also played Timmie Barnes in Too Young to Go Steady (1959),[5]:1096 Mary Gentry in Tom, Dick and Mary (1964-1965),[5]:1092 Marie Slaughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977),[5]:662 Peggy Wilson on Love Thy Neighbor (1973),[5]:631 Lois on It's a Man's World (1962-1963),[5]:515 Marsha Patterson on The Bill Cosby Show (1969–71),[5]:106 Marjorie Martin on Big John, Little John (1976-1977),[5]:102 and Alice Wurlitzer on The Bad News Bears (1979-1980)[5]:69. She was heard as the voice of Queen Vanda on the syndicated cartoon series Sport Billy (1982).[5]:1006
Guest appearances
Bulifant guest-starred as Jessica in Tales of Wells Fargo, episode Fraud, aired 3/1961. Bulifant was seen on Channing, Empire, and The Virginian.[6] She played an intended murder victim in a 1961 episode ("An Attractive Family") of Thriller. She played innocent defendant "Nancy Banks" in the Perry Mason 1964 episode "The Case of the Ice-Cold Hands", the second of her two appearances on that show.[6]
In 1963, she appeared in an episode of The Real McCoys. She later had a role as Miriam Willoughby on Flo, appeared in the movie Airplane! and as the mother of David Spade's character on Just Shoot Me! as well as guest roles and as a guest panelist on game shows. From 1994 to 1997, she played Emily Wallace, the mother of her son John Asher's character Gary Wallace, in Weird Science.[6]
The Brady Bunch
Bulifant was the original choice for the role of Carol Brady on ABC's The Brady Bunch, but the part ultimately went to Florence Henderson.[7]
Recognition
Bulifant received a Theatre World Award for 1961-1962 for her performance in Take Her, She's Mine.[8] In 2014, she and her husband Roger Perry were honored with a Golden Palm Star on the Walk of Stars in Palm Springs, California.[9]
Personal life
Bulifant has been married five times.[6] She married James MacArthur (November 2, 1958,[10] until 1967; divorced) and had two children with him – Mary MacArthur and Charles MacArthur.[6] Bulifant next married Days of Our Lives star, Edward Mallory (September 19, 1969 – 1974; divorced) and had one child with him, John Mallory Asher.[6]
She then married William Asher (August 28, 1976 – 1993; divorced) and Asher adopted her son John which gave him the last name of Asher. Bulifant has a grandson, Evan Joseph Asher, from John's marriage to Jenny McCarthy. In 2000, Bulifant briefly married Glade Bruce Hansen; the couple divorced in 2001.[6]
She married Roger Perry in 2002 after he divorced his wife of many years, Jo Anne Worley. The couple remained wed until Perry's death on July 12, 2018.[11] Bulifant has for many years been actively involved with the child abuse prevention non-profit Childhelp, including serving as a Celebrity Ambassador and as a Vice-President on the National Board of Directors.[12][13]
Filmography
Theatre
Year | Title | Character | Notes | ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | Tall Story | Nancy |
|
[2] |
1967 | The Paisley Convertible | Amy Rodgers | Understudies: Richard Hoffman (Charlie Rodgers, Ralph Keppleman), Jen Nelson (Meg Tynan) and Mary Rausch (Amy Rodgers, Sylvia Greer) | [2] |
Film
Year | Title | Character | Notes | ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
1967 | The Happiest Millionaire | Rosemary | Musical film starring Fred MacMurray and based upon the true story of Philadelphia millionaire Anthony J. Drexel Biddle. | [14] |
1980 | Airplane! | Mrs. Davis | Titled as Flying High! in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Japan and the Philippines | [15] |
1999 | Diamonds | June | American comedy film directed by her son, Asher and written by Allan Aaron Katz. | |
2005 | Dirty Love | Mary | Written by and starring Jenny McCarthy and directed by her son, Asher. | |
2015 | Tooken | |||
Television
Year | Title | Character | Notes | ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
1961 | The Play of the Week | Episode: "Therese Raquin" (S 2:Ep 24) | ||
Naked City | Connie Hacker | Episode: "Take and Put" (S 2:Ep 32) | ||
1962 | Thriller | Jinny Willis | Episode: "An Attractive Family" (S 2: Ep15) | |
General Electric Theater | Connie Duncan | Episode: "The First Hundred Years" (S 10:Ep 34) | ||
Alcoa Premiere | Jenny Logan | Episode: "Mr. Lucifer" (S 2:Ep 5) | ||
Gunsmoke | Ellie | Episode: "Uncle Sunday" (S 8:Ep 14) | ||
1963 | My Three Sons | Rebecca Holly | Episode: "Flashback" (S 3:Ep 19) | |
Empire | Betty Wormser | Episode: "The Tiger Inside" (S 1:Ep 20) | ||
Perry Mason | Hollis Wilburn | Episode: "The Case of the Surplus Suitor" (S 6:ep 19) | ||
The Real McCoys | Barbara | Episode: "The Peacemakers" (S 6:Ep 36) | ||
McHale's Navy | Lt. Georgianna Comstock | Episode: "Today I Am a Man!" (S 2:Ep 7) | ||
1964 | The Virginian | Nancy Mayhew | Episode: "Roar from the Mountain" (S 2:Ep 16) | |
Perry Mason | Nancy Banks | Episode: "The Case of the Ice-Cold Hands" (S 7:Ep 16) | ||
Arrest and Trial | Alice | Episode: "A Roll Of The Dice" (S 1:Ep 22) | ||
Destry | Sheba Hannibal | Episode: "Go Away, Little Sheba" (S 1:Ep 7) | ||
Wagon Train | Julie | Episode: "The Michael Malone Story" (S 7:Ep 16) | ||
1964–65 | Tom, Dick and Mary | Mary Gentry | Part of the umbrella title of a short-lived NBC experiment comprising three situation comedies set in a Southern California apartment complex located at the 90 Bristol Court address. | |
1966 | Dr. Kildare | Judy Cannon | Recurring | |
1968 | The Woody Woodbury Show | Herself | Episodes:
|
|
1969 | Lancer | Cassie | Episode: "Angel Day And Her Sunshine Girls" (S 1:Ep 19) | |
1969–71 | The Bill Cosby Show | Mrs. Patterson | Main cast | [16] |
1970 | Bonanza | Bonnie | Episode: "Return Engagement" (S 11:Ep 22) | |
1971–77 | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Marie Slaughter | Recurring | |
1973 | Love Thy Neighbor | Peggy Wilson |
|
|
Love, American Style | Episode: "Love and the Awkward Age" {S 5:Ep 49) | |||
1973–82 | Match Game | Herself | Semi-regular panelist | |
1974 | Tattletales | Herself | Episode: "March 18, 1974" (S 1:Ep 5) | |
The Michele Lee Show | Gladys Gooch | |||
Sierra | Shirley | Episode: "Taking Cody Winslow" (S 1:Ep 3) | ||
Police Woman | Peggy Lakes | Episode: "Warning: All Wives..." (S 1:Ep 3) | ||
1975–77 | Match Game PM | Herself | Semi-Regular Panelist | |
1976 | Police Story | Katie Pardnales | Episode: "Monster Manor" (S 4:Ep 8) | |
1976 | Big John, Little John | Marjorie Martin | Recurring | |
1977 | $20,000 Pyramid | Herself | Episode: "Joyce Bulifant & David Doyle" (S 6:Ep 11) | |
Three's Company | Mrs. Cross | Episode: "Chrissy's Date" (S 2:Ep 5) | ||
1978 | $20,000 Pyramid | Herself | Episode: "Joyce Bulifant & Ron Glass" (S 6:Ep 26) | |
Alice | Connie Raymond | Episode: "Who Ordered the Hot Turkey?" (S 3:Ep 9) | ||
1979 | Turnabout | 9 month's expectant mother | Episode: "We're a Little Late, Folks" (S 1:Ep 3) | |
The Bad News Bears | Alice | Episodes:
|
||
The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo | Guest | Episode: "Disco Fever Comes To Orly" (S 1:Ep 4) | ||
1979–81 | Password Plus | Herself | Recurring | |
1980 | Chain Reaction | Herself | Celebrity guest | |
1980–81 | Flo | Miriam Willoughby | Spin-off of Alice. | [17] |
1982 | Harper Valley PTA | Guest | Episode: "The Return Of Charlie's Chow Palace" (S 2:Ep 16} | |
1980-81 | Sport Billy | Sport Lilly/Queen Vanda | ||
1985 | The Facts of Life | Margaret | Episode: "Teacher, Teacher" (S 7:Ep 4) | |
1987 | American Playhouse | Miss Delahay | Episode: "Charley's Aunt" (S 6:Ep 14) | |
1994–97 | Weird Science | Emily Wallace | Recurring | |
1999 | E! True Hollywood Story | Herself | Episode: "The Brady Bunch" (S 3:Ep 21) | |
2001 | Just Shoot Me! | Fantasia 'Fanny' Olivia Finch | Episode: "Fanny Finch" (S 5:Ep19) | |
References
- "Ancestry Library Edition". search.ancestrylibrary.com.
- "Joyce Bulifant". IBDB. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
- "("Joyce Bulifant" search results)". Playbill Vault. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
- Winchell, Walter (November 8, 1958). "Walter Winchell". Kingsport News. Tennessee, Kingsport. p. 4.
- Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4. P. 59.
- Joyce Bulifant on IMDb
- Schwartz, Sherwood; Schwartz, Lloyd J. (2010). Brady, Brady, Brady: The Complete Story of The Brady Bunch as Told by the Father/Son Team who Really Know. Running Press. pp. 53–56. ISBN 076244164X. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
- "Theatre World Award Recipients". Theatre World Awards. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
- Palm Springs Walk of Stars official website, archive.org; accessed August 15, 2017.
- "Blissful Bride, Groom". Independent. California, Long Beach. Associated Press. November 3, 1958. p. 1. Retrieved January 3, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
- McNary, Dave (July 13, 2018). "Roger Perry, 'Star Trek' and 'Harrigan and Son' Actor, Dies at 85". Variety. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
- "Celebrity Ambassadors". Childhelp. Archived from the original on 2008-05-10.
- "Childhelp, Inc". JustGive.org. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
- Holliss, Richard; Brian Sibley (1988). The Disney Studio Story. London: Octopus Books Limited. p. 202. ISBN 0-517-57078-5.
- "Life of Brian named best comedy". BBC News. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
- Lambert, David. "The Bill Cosby Show - Budget-Priced 2-DVD Set with 'The Best of Season 1'". tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
- Lambert, David. "Flo - Warner Archive Kisses Your Grits; Schedules Complete Series for Tuesday!". tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved November 4, 2015.