Helen Kleeb
Kleeb in Kansas City Confidential (1952)
Born(1907-01-06)January 6, 1907
DiedDecember 28, 2003(2003-12-28) (aged 96)
Los Angeles, California[2]
Resting placeHoly Cross Cemetery, Culver City, California
OccupationActress
Years active19521997
Spouse(s)
John Gerald Prendergast
(m. 19371950)
(his death)
Elmer Garrison
(m. 19592003)
(her death)
Children1

Helen Kleeb (January 6, 1907 December 28, 2003)[3] was an American film and television actress. In a career covering nearly 50 years, she may be best known for her role from 1972 to 1981 as Miss Mamie Baldwin on the family drama The Waltons.[4][5][6]

Early life and career

Kleeb began acting on stage in Portland, Oregon, late in the 1920s, where she attended the Ellison-White Conservatory of Music.[7] She also gained her first radio experience in Portland.[3]

From 1949 to 1951, she performed voices for the radio program Candy Matson. In 1956–1957, Kleeb guest-starred on Hey, Jeannie!, starring Jeannie Carson. In the 1960–1961 television season, Kleeb appeared as Miss Claridge, a legal secretary, on the sitcom Harrigan and Son.

She appeared in episodes of Dennis the Menace, I Love Lucy, Pete and Gladys, Hennesey, Death Valley Days, Get Smart, The Andy Griffith Show, Green Acres, Bewitched, Gunsmoke, Little House: A New Beginning, Highway to Heaven, Room 222, and The Golden Girls as well as in small film roles in The Manchurian Candidate, and Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte. She also appeared in a number of episodes of The Waltons, as well as Dragnet, starring Jack Webb, during the 1950s. Kleeb also appeared on many radio drama shows, some now playing on XM Satellite Radio.

Personal life

Kleeb's first marriage and the birth of a son, Tom Pendergast, caused a hiatus in her career. After her first husband's death in 1950, she taught drama at a college before she returned to acting.[8] She is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City.[9]

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1952Kansas City ConfidentialMrs. CraneUncredited
195399 River StreetMiss HendersonUncredited
Half a HeroDesk NurseUncredited
1954Witness to MurderNurse in Mental WardUncredited
Magnificent ObsessionMrs. Eden
1955There's Always TomorrowMiss Walker
The Desperate HoursMiss WellsUncredited
1956A Day of FuryMrs. McLean
Friendly PersuasionOld LadyUncredited
1957Hot Summer NightScrub WomanUncredited
The Invisible BoyMiss VandergriftUncredited
1958High School ConfidentialMiss DodgeUncredited
Summer LoveBit RoleUncredited
I Want to Live!Prison MatronUncredited
1959Curse of the UndeadDora
The GazeboMiss SpenceUncredited
1960Cage of EvilMrs. Melton, Cherry's Motel
1961The Young SavagesMrs. PattonUncredited
AdaMrs. SmithUncredited
1962The Manchurian CandidateMrs. Henry Whittaker - ChairladyUncredited
40 Pounds of TroubleChild Welfare WorkerUncredited
1963Toys in the AtticWarkins' SecretaryUncredited
1964Seven Days in MayEsther Townsend
Hush… Hush, Sweet CharlotteTown Gossip
Sex and the Single GirlHilda
1965The Hallelujah TrailHenrietta
1965 Get Smart Frieda Season 1, episode 4: Our Man in Toyland
1966Munster, Go Home!EmilyUncredited
The Fortune CookieThe Lawyers' Receptionist
1967Eight on the LamBit RoleUncredited
FitzwillyMrs. Mortimer
1968The PartySecretary
BlueElizabeth Parker
1968The Virginian (TV series)Mrs. Maudersaison 7 episode 13 (Big Tiny)
1969-1971Room 222Mrs. Tandyrecurring character
1970Halls of AngerRita Monahan
1971Star Spangled GirlYWCA Receptionist
1972-1981The WaltonsMamie Baldwinrecurring character
1982The Best Little Whorehouse in TexasDora
1985 Who’s the Boss Mrs. Randolf Season 1, episode 16: Angela’s Ex part 2
1988 The Golden GirlsElizabeth Ann HollingsworthSeason 3, episode 25: Mother's Day
1997A Walton EasterMiss Mamie BaldwinTV movie

References

  1. "LIVES OF NOTE: [2 Edition]". Dominion Post (New Zealand). January 15, 2004. p. B9. ProQuest 337939993. Kleeb's many feature-film appearances included parts in The Manchurian Candidate (alongside Frank Sinatra, 1962) and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (starring Burt Reynolds and Dolly Parton, 1982). -- B South Bend, Washington January 6, 1907; d December 28, 2003
  2. Hayward, Anthony (January 12, 2004). "Obituary: Helen Kleeb ; Eccentric Miss Mamie in `The Waltons': [FOREIGN Edition]". The Independent. p. 18. ProQuest 10641041. Helen Kleeb, actress: born South Bend, Washington 6 January 1907; married first 1937 John Prendergast (died 1950; one son), secondly Elmer Garrison (died 2004); died Los Angeles 28 December 2003.
  3. 1 2 Lentz, Harris M. III (2008). Obituaries in the Performing Arts, 2003: Film, Television, Radio, Theatre, Dance, Music, Cartoons and Pop Culture. McFarland. ISBN 9780786452088. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
  4. "Helen Kleeb". BFI. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012.
  5. "Helen Kleeb movies, photos, movie reviews, filmography, and biography - AllMovie". AllMovie.
  6. "The Waltons: The Baldwin Sisters". the-waltons.com. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  7. Johnson, Jimmy (August 18, 1977). "Two Sisters Have 'The Recipe'". The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. Gannett News Service. p. 27 via Newspapers.com.
  8. Smith, Carol (November 11, 1973). "Actress Helen Kleep Happy Over Success Of 'Waltons'". Longview News-Journal. p. 9E. Retrieved December 15, 2021 via Newspapers.com.
  9. Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.


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