Julie Parrish
| Julie Parrish | |
|---|---|
| Born | Ruby Joyce Wilbar October 21, 1940 Middlesboro, Kentucky, USA |
| Died | October 1, 2003 (aged 62) Los Angeles, California, USA |
Julie Parrish (October 21, 1940, Middlesboro, Kentucky – October 1, 2003, Los Angeles, California) was an American film, stage and television actress.
Born as Ruby Joyce Wilbar in Middlesboro, Kentucky, as the oldest of six children of William Robert Wilbar and Gladys Marie Webb. She spent her early years in Lake City, Tennessee, before moving to Tecumseh, Michigan, at age 11. There she graduated from high school. She then attended a modeling school in Toledo, Ohio. She won a national contest for "Young Model of The Year" at a modelling school chain.
Parrish first appeared as an actress in Jerry Lewis movies (It's Only Money, 1962 and The Nutty Professor, 1963). After some guest appearances on Television series, and roles in lesser known films such as The Doberman Gang, she co-starred with Elvis Presley in Paradise, Hawaiian Style. Furthermore, she appeared in well-known Television series such as Gunsmoke , Star Trek, Bonanza, Capitol and Beverly Hills, 90210. She also had lead roles on several television soap operas and was star of the 1967 CBS sitcom, Good Morning, World.
Parrish's theater credits include Absence of a Cello and Memo. In Los Angeles, she received an L.A. Drama Critics Award for her portrayal of Maggie in Arthur Miller's After the Fall. She was also a writer and contributed essays, articles, and book reviews to many publications.
Parrish began undergraduate studies in her late 40s, earning a degree in Chemical Dependencies Counseling. She worked for nine years as a full-time on-staff counselor at the Haven Hills Shelter for Battered Women.
[edit] Death
She died of complications following an endoscopy for gastric reflux disease, aged 62, and was survived by two sisters and two brothers. She had gallantly fought ovarian cancer in her 50s.
