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Beverly Lunsford (January 5, 1945 – May 22, 2019) was an American actress best known for playing Shirley Fletcher on the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver.[1]
Beverly Lunsford | |
|---|---|
 Photo of Art Carney and Beverly Lunsford from the Broadway play The Rope Dancers | |
| Born | Beverly Jane Lunsford January 5, 1945 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | (aged 74) Canton, Georgia, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1954–1969 |
| Notable work | The Intruder Leave It to Beaver |
Early life
editCareer
editLunsford starred in a CBS-TV production of The Sleeping Beauty on November 25, 1955.[3] Her early career encompassed several stage performances as well as television and movies. She first appeared at the age of 12 in the 1957 Broadway production of The Rope Dancers, starring Siobhán McKenna and Art Carney.[4] Lunsford's big-screen work started soon after. She appeared in several anthology dramas, then progressed to guest-starring roles on television series such as National Velvet, My Three Sons, and Leave It to Beaver. She temporarily played the part of Amy Ames Britton Kincaid on the CBS soap opera The Secret Storm, during which she filled in for the main star, Jada Rowland.[5] She had previously appeared on The Edge of Night.
Lunsford's starring role came in 1961 when she played in Roger Corman's topical drama The Intruder.[6] The film dealt with race relations in the American South in the wake of the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling in 1954.[citation needed]
In 1963, Lunsford was cast in Herbert L. Strock's horror film The Crawling Hand.[7] Lunsford made her last screen appearance in 1969, although she still attended various public celebrity-oriented events until her death in 2019.[citation needed]
In the mid-1970s Lunsford began working as productions operations manager at WAGA-TV in Atlanta.[8]
Personal life
editLunsford married Joe Jones, a self-employed trucking agent, in 1972.[8]
She died on May 22, 2019 of kidney cancer. She was buried at Sunrise Memorial Gardens in Jasper, Georgia.
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1957 | That Night! | Betsy Bowden |
| 1962 | The Intruder | Ella McDaniel |
| 1963 | The Crawling Hand | Patsy Townsen |
| 1968 | Jennie: Wife/Child | Jennie Pekingpraw |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Robert Montgomery Presents | Mark Pendel |
| 1955–1958 | United States Steel Hour | Sylvia/Allison |
| 1960–1961 | National Velvet | Marilyn Winters in "The Riding Mistress" (with Roger Mobley) |
| 1962 | Leave It to Beaver | Shirley Fletcher |
| 1969 | My Three Sons | Betty Crawford |
References
edit- ↑ "Obituary for Beverly Jane Lunsford at Cagle Funeral Home".
- ↑ Lunsford, Beverly (2014). "Lunsford's early career". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- 1 2 "Atlanta's Beverly Lunsford Stars in 'Sleeping Beauty'". The Atlanta Journal and Constitution. November 25, 1954. p. 140. Retrieved April 5, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Lunsford, Beverly. "Lunsford stars in The Rope Dancers". PlayBill Vault. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- ↑ Lunsford, Beverly. "Lunsford in The Secret Storm". AngelFire. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- ↑ Lunsford, Beverly (September 25, 2007). "Lunsford stars in The Intruder". Amazon. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- ↑ Lunsford, Beverly. "Lunsford stars in The Crawling Hand". B Movie Central. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
- 1 2 Greppi, Michele (March 18, 1983). "Beverly gets set - here's Beaver again!". The Atlanta Constitution. p. 9 C. Retrieved April 5, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.