Mary Elizabeth McDonough

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Mary Elizabeth McDonough
McDonough at The Waltons 40th Anniversary in September 2012
Born
Occupation(s)Actress, writer
Years active1963–present
Spouses
Rob Wickstrom
(m. 1988⁠–⁠1996)
Don Couch
(m. 2011)
Children3

Mary Elizabeth McDonough, sometimes credited as Mary Beth McDonough, is an American actress and writer, best known for her role as Erin Walton on The Waltons from 1972 to 1981.

Early life[edit]

McDonough was born in the Van Nuys section of Los Angeles, California, the third of four children to Lawrence and Elizabeth (née Murray) McDonough.[1] Her father was an Irish American ex-marine from Nebraska, while her mother was from La Junta, Colorado.[2] McDonough was raised Catholic, in what she described as a working-class family.[3] She and her siblings were raised in Northridge, and attended Our Lady of Lourdes School in Los Angeles.[4] McDonough was an active theater student, and became interested in acting in elementary school.[5]

Career[edit]

McDonough on set of The Waltons, 1973

McDonough began her career as a child actor, portraying Erin Walton in the series The Waltons beginning in 1972, a role which she would portray until the series' finale in 1981.[6] She made her feature film debut with a minor part in the action film Lovely But Deadly (1981) before co-starring with Melissa Sue Anderson in the television horror film Midnight Offerings (1981).[7] McDonough was subsequently cast in a lead role in the slasher film Mortuary (1983), opposite Lynda Day George and Bill Paxton.[8] She later reprised her role of Erin Walton in the Waltons television reunion films A Wedding on Walton's Mountain, Mother's Day on Walton's Mountain, and A Day for Thanks on Walton's Mountain (all released in 1982). In 1987, she had a lead role in the dark comedy Funland, about an unhinged amusement park operator.

In the 1990s, McDonough appeared as Erin Walton in a further three Waltons films: A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion (1993), A Walton Wedding (1995), and A Walton Easter (1997).[9][10]

In the 2000s, she returned to television acting, guest-starring on Boston Legal and The New Adventures of Old Christine (2006–2009). McDonough was a radio guest and has been on international and syndicated shows such as Get Focused Radio with Kate Hennessy. She can be seen on the internet in the show McDougall M.D. as part of the broadcasts on the TBN network.

In 2018, McDonough's book Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane was adapted into the Hallmark Channel film of the same name starring Alicia Witt and Colin Ferguson.[11] McDonough appeared in the film in a minor supporting role.

Personal life[edit]

McDonough suffers from lupus erythematosus, which, she claimed on her In the Know plastic surgery awareness website, stemmed from leaking silicone from her breast implants.[12]

Filmography[edit]

Film[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
1981 Lovely But Deadly Denise
1982 Mortuary Christie Parson
1984 Snowballing Karen Reed
1985 Impure Thoughts Sister Juliet
Waiting to Act Linda
1987 Funland Kristin Cumming
1989 The Making of Me Wife / Mother of newborn Short film
1991 Mom Alice
1994 Heaven Sent Kathy Chandler
1997 One of Those Nights Andrea Harris
2014 The Costume Shop Jessica's Mom
Monster Hunters USA And Day Care Center Mom Daily Short film
2018 Christmas on Honeysuckle Lane Caroline Reynolds Hallmark television film
Amateur Math Teacher

Television[edit]

Year Title Role Notes
1963 General Hospital Heidi Hopkins TV series
1971 The Homecoming: A Christmas Story Erin Walton TV pilot for The Waltons
1972-1981 The Waltons Main role (213 episodes)
1979 Beat The Clock Herself (contestant) Game show (5 episodes)
1980 The Waltons: A Decade of the Waltons Erin Walton TV film
1981 Midnight Offerings Robin Prentiss Television film
1982 A Wedding on Walton's Mountain Erin Walton
Mother's Day on Walton's Mountain
A Day for Thanks on Walton's Mountain
The Love Boat Laura Barber 1 episode
1983 Abby Foster Episode: "Abby's Maiden Voyage"
1989 Hunter Vera Donovan Episode: "A Girl Named Hunter"
1993 Bodies of Evidence Sarah Gentry Episode: "The Formula"
A Walton Thanksgiving Erin Walton TV film
1995 A Walton Wedding
The Secret World of Alex Mack Betsy Phillips Episode: "Suspect"
1996 Promised Land Claire's Mother Episode: "Christmas"
1997 A Walton Easter Erin Walton TV film
ER Jean Twomey Episode: "Random Acts"
1998 Diagnosis: Murder Colleen Akins Episode: "Baby Boom"
The Pretender Mrs. Falk Episode: "Crash"
1999 Ally McBeal Attorney Gloria Stepp Episode: "Only the Lonely"
Walker, Texas Ranger Jill Allen Episode: "Safe House"
2001 The Division Mrs. Berwin Episode: "Secrets and Lies"
2002 The West Wing Beth Episode: "Game On"
Will & Grace Mom Episodes: "Humongous Growth", "All About Christmas Eve"
2006 Boston Legal Janice Warner Episode: "Smile"
Where There's a Will Dr. Burton TV film
2006-2009 The New Adventures of Old Christine Mrs. Wilhoite Recurring role (8 episodes)
2007 Christmas at Cadillac Jack's Madge TV film
2012 Lake Effects Elizabeth

Other work[edit]

Year Title Notes
1998 Creampuff Associate producer
2000 For the Love of May Director & writer

References[edit]

  1. ^ McDonough 2011, pp. 1–4.
  2. ^ McDonough 2011, pp. 2–3.
  3. ^ McDonough 2011, pp. 2–6.
  4. ^ McDonough 2011, pp. 7–8.
  5. ^ McDonough 2011, p. 8.
  6. ^ McDonough 2011, pp. 100–107.
  7. ^ "Midnight Offerings". Moviefone. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012.
  8. ^ "Mortuary". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Archived from the original on May 8, 2019. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  9. ^ "Mary McDonough Filmography". AllMovie. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  10. ^ Collar, Cammila. "Mary McDonough Biography". AllMovie. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
  11. ^ Ng, Philiana (August 15, 2018). "Hallmark Reveals Casts for Two Christmas Movies (Exclusive)". Entertainment Tonight. Archived from the original on November 22, 2018.
  12. ^ McDonough, Mary (5 September 2003). "Our Stories - Mary McDonough". intheknow.org. Archived from the original on 11 April 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2018.

Sources[edit]

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]