NEW YORK: Anne Jeffreys, the actress and opera singer who likely had her greatest impact on TV audiences as Marion Kerby “the ghostess with the mostess” in the 1950s TV series “Topper,” has died. She was 94.
Jeffreys, whose husband, actor Robert Sterling, died in 2006, died peacefully in her sleep at her Los Angeles home on Wednesday evening, her manager Don Gibble said Thursday.
More recently, she spent two decades playing Amanda Barrington on “General Hospital” She was featured in the role of the wealthy on more than 350 episodes of the soap opera from 1984 until 2004.
In “Topper,” she and Sterling starred as fun-loving husband and wife George and Marion Kerby who, after dying in a Swiss avalanche, return as ghosts to their mansion and comically haunt its new occupant, actor Leo G. Carroll as staid banker Cosmo Topper.
Each week they were introduced to viewers as George, “that most sporting spirit,” and Marion, “the ghostess with the mostess.”
They were among many varied roles in a long career in films, television, opera and on Broadway for Jeffreys, who continued to work well into her 70s. Her final on-screen appearance was on the HBO series “Getting On.”
Early in her career, she appeared opposite John Wayne in “Flying Tigers.” In later years, she appeared on such TV shows as “L.A. Law” and “Murder, She Wrote” and played David Hasselhoff’s mother on “Baywatch.”
The blonde beauty with the lilting soprano voice began her performing career in 1940 with the New York City Opera, the Ford Symphony and the Los Angeles Opera Company, singing Mimi in “La Boheme” and Cho Cho San in “Madame Butterfly.”
She had made her film debut at MGM in 1942 in “I Married an Angel,” which marked the final costarring of Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy.
During a contract with Republic, she appeared with Wayne in “Flying Tigers” and made B westerns. Hughes signed her to a contract at RKO and cast her in “Step Lively,” which starred Frank Sinatra.
In a 1993 interview, Jeffreys recalled Sinatra as “smart-alecky, little, skinny, wide-eyed,” adding that although she was never attracted to him the two did become good friends.
“I have found the other side of Frank that a lot of people do not know: his generosity and his caring for people,” she explained.
During her RKO days, Jeffreys appeared in 15 movies, mostly B films. She made two films in the 1940s as Tess Trueheart, girlfriend of sleuth Dick Tracy.
Actress Anne Jeffreys, star of TV’s ‘Topper’ dies at 94
Actress Anne Jeffreys, star of TV’s ‘Topper’ dies at 94
Small dog sole survivor of Peru helicopter crash that killed 15
- Rescue workers found the caramel-colored dog among the twisted wreckage of the Mi-17 helicopter
- Local media reported that the dog appeared OK, but as a precaution was taken to a veterinary clinic
LIMA: The only survivor of a military helicopter crash in southern Peru that killed 15 people was a small dog belonging to a colonel who was among the passengers, an air force source told AFP Tuesday.
Rescue workers found the caramel-colored dog among the twisted wreckage of the Mi-17 helicopter that crashed Sunday. It was lying next to the body of its owner, Col. Javier Nole, 50, who was on board with his wife and two daughters.
“It’s Col. Nole’s pet; it’s the only survivor,” the source, who requested anonymity, told AFP.
Local media reported that the dog appeared OK, but as a precaution was taken to a veterinary clinic.
Seven children were among the 15 fatalities when the Russian-made aircraft crashed in the Arequipa region. The helicopter had been recently deployed in rescue operations for victims of floods there.
It had taken off from the city of Pisco, in the Ica region. Rescuers located the wreckage on Monday just over 300 kilometers (186 miles) away near Chala Viejo, a town close to the Pacific coast in Arequipa.
The air force has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.
