Jeanne Baird obit

Actress Jeanne Baird Has died

 She was not on the list.

Jeanne Doris Baird passed away in Los Angeles, California on August 31, 2020, aged 93. She was born in Meadville, Pennsylvania on March 28, 1927, and raised in Santa Barbara, California. Jeanne had an illustrious career as an actress in both television and film from 1951 to 1995, and also worked as a television film consultant. She was married to William J. Meyerink in 1957 in Reno, Nevada. The two later divorced in 1962. Together they had a daughter together, Victoria, who survives. William died in 1999.

Baird gained early television experience as the "bat girl" on Batter Up! on KTTV in Los Angeles. The program was a quiz show that used a baseball format with scores based on correct answers to questions by members of two teams. She also worked at KEYT-TV in Santa Barbara in the early 1950s. Her activities there included hosting Jeanne Baird Presents, a daily afternoon program. In 1955 she went to Hollywood with plans to become an actress. She considered changing her name but decided not do so after she consulted numerologists and nomenclaturologists.

Initially Baird found herself in "character ingenue" roles, but she wondered, "How many parts are there for a character ingenue?" Eventually she moved into tragic roles, which did not suit her happier personality. Moving to New York and work on television provided opportunities for her to do "light, fun roles" and to appear on panel shows, giving people the chance to know her apart from characters that she portrayed.

While Baird was living in California, a 3000-mile trip to New York for a planned one-day filming of a commercial led to more work than she anticipated. When she finished making the commercial, she was hired to be the "Girl of the Week" for the Today show, a stint that was intended to be for one week but lasted four months. Her role on Today, in turn, led to her being selected for the cast of the NBC soap opera Ben Jerrod, playing Agnes Abbott. Other TV shows on which she appeared included Ironside, Rescue 8,  Pantomime Quiz, Ben Casey, Bonanza, Four Star Playhouse, and Perry Mason.

Films in which Baird appeared included Get Outta Town, The Gay Deceivers, Black Spurs, and Andy Hardy Comes Home. She also acted in TV commercials for "everything from dog food to lavender hair rinse", and for two years she was a commentator on the NBC-TV broadcast of the Tournament of Roses Parade.

Actress

Prima Donnas (1995)

Prima Donnas

4.8

Socialite

1995

 

Nightforce (1987)

Nightforce

3.9

Video

Mrs. Joanna Hansen

1987

 

The Great Skycopter Rescue (1980)

The Great Skycopter Rescue

4.7

Sara Lieberman

1980

 

"The Smith Family" Janet Blair, Henry Fonda, Darleen Carr, Ron Howard, Michael-James Wixted

The Smith Family

6.7

TV Series

Mrs. Grimm

1971

1 episode

 

Zig Zag (1970)

Zig Zag

6.1

Party guest (uncredited)

1970

 

Lawrence P. Casey, Kevin Coughlin, and Jack Starrett in The Gay Deceivers (1969)

The Gay Deceivers

5.9

Mrs. Conway

1969

 

Raymond Burr and Barbara Sigel in Ironside (1967)

Ironside

6.9

TV Series

Joan Waring

1967

1 episode

 

Lon Chaney Jr., Linda Darnell, Rory Calhoun, Richard Arlen, and Terry Moore in Black Spurs (1965)

Black Spurs

5.8

Greta Nemo

1965

 

The Littlest Hobo (1963)

The Littlest Hobo

7.7

TV Series

Edna Dixon

1965

1 episode

 

Ben Casey (1961)

Ben Casey

7.1

TV Series

Professor Margot Hart

1964

1 episode

 

The Joey Bishop Show (1961)

The Joey Bishop Show

6.5

TV Series

Susan

1964

1 episode

 

Bonanza (1959)

Bonanza

7.3

TV Series

Jeanie

1963

1 episode

 

Ben Jerrod

8.6

TV Series

Agnes Abbott

1963

3 episodes

 

Robert Harland and Stephen McNally in Target: The Corruptors (1961)

Target: The Corruptors

7.6

TV Series

Helen McCloud

1961–1962

2 episodes

 

Raymond Burr in Perry Mason (1957)

Perry Mason

8.3

TV Series

Marge Fuller

1960

1 episode

 

Hennesey

7.9

TV Series

Sandy Hall

1960

1 episode

 

Robert Conrad, Anthony Eisley, Poncie Ponce, and Connie Stevens in Hawaiian Eye (1959)

Hawaiian Eye

7.7

TV Series

Nora Hamilton

1960

1 episode

 

Jeanne Baird, Marilyn O'Connor, and Doug Wilson in Get Outta Town (1960)

Get Outta Town

6.1

Jill

1960

 

Frank Jenks and Alan Mowbray in Colonel Humphrey Flack (1953)

Colonel Humphrey Flack

7.9

TV Series

Susan

1959

1 episode

 

Tristram Coffin in 26 Men (1957)

26 Men

7.3

TV Series

Martha Lacy

1959

1 episode

 

The Lineup (1954)

The Lineup

8.0

TV Series

1959

1 episode

 

Mickey Rooney and Teddy Rooney in Andy Hardy Comes Home (1958)

Andy Hardy Comes Home

5.9

Sally Anderson

1958

 

Behind Closed Doors (1958)

Behind Closed Doors

7.7

TV Series

Nina

1958

1 episode

 

Northwest Passage (1958)

Northwest Passage

6.8

TV Series

Martha Ramsey

1958

1 episode

 

Lang Jeffries in Rescue 8 (1958)

Rescue 8

8.0

TV Series

Helen Hickey

1958

2 episodes

 

José Ferrer and Gena Rowlands in The High Cost of Loving (1958)

The High Cost of Loving

6.4

Jean (uncredited)

1958

 

Lee Marvin in M Squad (1957)

M Squad

8.1

TV Series

Mary Allison

1958

1 episode

 

The D.I. (1957)

The D.I.

7.3

Mother at Woman's Store

1957

 

John Bromfield in The Sheriff of Cochise (1956)

The Sheriff of Cochise

7.8

TV Series

Kay Adams

1957

1 episode

 

Ten Thousand Bedrooms (1957)

Ten Thousand Bedrooms

5.6

Chicago Operator (uncredited)

1957

 

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp (1955)

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp

7.6

TV Series

Daughter

1957

1 episode

 

Highway Patrol (1955)

Highway Patrol

7.7

TV Series

Laura Spaeth

1956

1 episode

 

I Led 3 Lives (1953)

I Led 3 Lives

8.1

TV Series

Ellen Kulaki

1955

1 episode

 

TV Reader's Digest (1955)

TV Reader's Digest

7.1

TV Series

Ruth Barrett

1955

1 episode

 

Hal Baylor, Hans Conried, and Chuck Hicks in Schlitz Playhouse (1951)

Schlitz Playhouse

7.6

TV Series

Miss Jenkins

1955

1 episode

 

Four Star Playhouse (1952)

Four Star Playhouse

7.6

TV Series

Nan

1955

1 episode

 

Frank McHugh and Marvin Miller in The Millionaire (1955)

The Millionaire

7.8

TV Series

Danny Rawlins

1955

1 episode

 

Dragnet (1951)

Dragnet

7.5

TV Series

Dixie

1953–1955

4 episodes

 

Richard Boone in Medic (1954)

Medic

8.1

TV Series

Bonnie

1955

1 episode

 

Jim Backus and Joan Davis in I Married Joan (1952)

I Married Joan

7.7

TV Series

Diane

1955

1 episode

 

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in The Abbott and Costello Show (1952)

The Abbott and Costello Show

8.1

TV Series

Helen (as Geane Baird)

1953

1 episode

 

Hollywood Opening Night

5.6

TV Series

1953

1 episode

 

Racket Squad (1950)

Racket Squad

7.6

TV Series

Maid

1952

1 episode

 

The Living Christ Series (1951)

The Living Christ Series

6.3

TV Mini Series

Martha

1951

3 episodes