Frances Rafferty

American actress (1922-2004)

Frances Rafferty

Rafferty in the 1940s

Born|

Frances Anne Rafferty

(1922-06-16)June 16, 1922

Sioux City, Iowa, U.S.

Died| April 18, 2004(2004-04-18) (aged 81)

Paso Robles, California, U.S.

Occupation(s)| Actress, dancer
Years active| 1942–1977
Spouses|

John Horton

(m. 1944; div. 1947)​

Thomas R. Baker

(m. 1948)​

Children| 2[1]
Relatives| Max Rafferty (brother)

Frances Anne Rafferty (June 16, 1922 – April 18, 2004) was an American actress, dancer, World War II pin-up girl and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player.

## Early life

[edit]

Frances Anne Rafferty was born in Sioux City, Iowa, the daughter of Maxwell Lewis Rafferty and DeEtta Frances (née Cox) Rafferty. She was the younger sister of California educator and Republican politician Max Rafferty, whose wife was Frances (nee Longman) Rafferty.[2]

At the age of nine she moved with her family to Los Angeles. At a young age, she studied dancing, and her physical attributes and dancing skills led to work in the film industry.[citation needed]

Rafferty attended Miss Bryant's Day School and Bryant School while the family lived in Iowa. After moving to California, she graduated from University High School in Los Angeles.[3]

## Career

[edit]

Pin-up photo of Rafferty for Yank, the Army Weekly in 1945

Signed by MGM Studios, Rafferty made her film debut in 1942.[citation needed] She appeared in minor and secondary roles, and although she had a part in the 1944 film Dragon Seed with Katharine Hepburn and Walter Huston, her significant parts were limited almost exclusively to "B" movies. She played the female lead in "The Hidden Eyes"(1945). For instance, in 1948, she starred with Hugh Beaumont in the film noir Money Madness, directed by Sam Newfield. Her only role in a major film was in Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood (1945).

During World War II, she was a volunteer pin-up girl for YANK magazine, a publication for the soldiers of the United States military.[citation needed]

In 1949, Rafferty was a performer on the anthology series Oboler Comedy Theater on ABC television.[4]

From 1954 to 1959, she appeared as Ruth Ruskin Henshaw in all 156 episodes of the Desilu Studios sitcom December Bride on CBS. When fellow cast member Harry Morgan and actress Cara Williams starred in the 1960-62 December Bride spin off sitcom, Pete and Gladys, Rafferty was subsequently cast in seven episodes in the role of "Nancy".

Rafferty appeared in a number of different television programs throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Among them were two guest appearances on Perry Mason. She portrayed Heather Marlow in "Never Look Back", the Season 4, Episode 18, installment of My Three Sons in 1964.

After her retirement from acting in 1965, she made a final appearance in a 1977 episode of the crime drama The Streets of San Francisco.

## Personal life

[edit]

She was married to her first husband from 1944 until their divorce in 1947. (Rafferty's biography on The Des Moines Register's DataCentral site gives Rafferty's first husband's name as "Maj. John Horton".[3] An Associated Press news story dated February 18, 1947, reported "Movie Actress Frances Rafferty obtained a divorce today from John E. Horton, former army major.")[5]

## Death

[edit]

Rafferty died in 2004 in Paso Robles, California.[6]

## Filmography

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1942 | Fingers at the Window | Clinic Switchboard Operator | Uncredited
The War Against Mrs. Hadley | Sally |
Seven Sweethearts | George Van Maaster |
1943 | Slightly Dangerous | Girl Getting Off Bus | Uncredited
Presenting Lily Mars | Showgirl | Uncredited
Dr. Gillespie's Criminal Case | Irene |
Hitler's Madman | Annaliese Cermak | Uncredited
Pilot No. 5 | Carhop | Uncredited
Young Ideas | Co-Ed |
Swing Shift Maisie | Office Worker | Uncredited
Thousands Cheer | Marie Corbino |
Girl Crazy | Marjorie Tait |
1944 | Broadway Rhythm | Autograph Seeker | Uncredited
Dragon Seed | Orchid Tan - Lao Ta's Wife |
Barbary Coast Gent | Portia Adair |
Mrs. Parkington | Jane Stilham |
1945 | The Hidden Eye | Jean Hampton |
Abbott and Costello in Hollywood | Claire Warren |
1946 | Bad Bascomb | Dora McCabe |
1947 | Lost Honeymoon | Lois Evans |
The Adventures of Don Coyote | Maggie Riley |
Curley | Mildred Johnson |
The Hal Roach Comedy Carnival | Schoolteacher Mildred Johnson, in 'Curly' |
1948 | Money Madness | Julie Saunders |
Lady at Midnight | Ellen McPhail Wiggins |
1949 | An Old-Fashioned Girl | Frances Shaw |
1952 | Rodeo | Dixie Benson |
1953 | Your Jeweler's Showcase | Julie Elson | Episode: "Christmas Is Magic"
1954 | The Shanghai Story | Mrs. Warren |
1956 | G.E. Summer Originals |  | Episode: "The Unwilling Witness"
1961 | Wings of Chance | Arlene Baker |

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Frances Rafferty - The Private Life and Times of Frances Rafferty. Frances Rafferty Pictures". www.glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com.
2. ^ Source Citation: US Federal Census Year: 1930; Census Place: Sioux City, Woodbury, Iowa; Roll 690; Page: 3B; Enumeration District: 55; Image: 429.0.
3. ^ a b "Frances Rafferty". DataCentral. Des Moines Register. Archived from the original on April 2, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
4. ^ Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. pp. 777–778. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
5. ^ "Frances Rafferty Granted Divorce". Eau Claire Leader. Wisconsin, Eau Claire. Associated Press. February 19, 1947. p. 1. Retrieved April 1, 2017 - via Newspapers.com.
6. ^ "Frances Rafferty". The Independent. May 4, 2004. Retrieved April 20, 2024.

## External links

[edit]

* Biography portal
* Iowa portal
* California portal
* Los Angeles portal
* Film portal
* Television portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Frances Rafferty.

* Frances Rafferty at IMDb
* Frances Rafferty at Find a Grave

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* FAST

National|

* Germany
* United States
* Spain

People|

* DDB

*[m.]: married
*[div.]: divorced