On of TV’s favorite moms has died. Jane Wyatt, described by many as “the lovely and serene actress” who for six years starred on the popular show “Father Knows Best” died in her sleep on Friday, her son Christopher Ward told reporters yesterday. She was 96.
According to Wyatt’s publicist, the actress died of natural causes at her Bel-Air home. Wyatt’s son added that his mother had experienced health problems since suffering a stroke at 85, but her mind was sharp until her death.
I will always remember Wyatt as Robert Young’s TV wife, Margaret Anderson, on “Father Knows Best,” but devoted Wyatt fans will also remember her successful movie career. Wyatt got her start in films in the mid-’30s, appearing in “One More River,” “Great Expectations,” “We’re Only Human” and “The Luckiest Girl in the World.” Her other notable films include: “Buckskin Frontier” (with Richard Dix), “None But the Lonely Heart” (with Cary Grant), “Boomerang,” “Gentleman’s Agreement” (with Gregory Peck), “Pitfall,” “No Minor Vices,” and perhaps, most notably in 1937’s “Lost Horizon” as Ronald Coleman’s lover.
On the small screen Wyatt appeared in 207 half-hour episodes of “Father Knows Best” from 1954 to 1960 and won three Emmys as best actress in a dramatic series in the years 1958 to 1960. It was a dream come true for the woman who grew up in a conservative, upscale family.
According to Wyatt’s publicist, the legendary actress was born in Campgaw, New Jersey, into a wealthy family in 1910. Her father, an investment banker, came from an old-line New York family, as did her mother, who wrote drama reviews. They gave their daughter a genteel upbringing, with her schooling at the fashionable Miss Chapin’s school and Barnard College. Wyatt left college after two years to apprentice at the Berkshire Playhouse and later appeared on Broadway. But her college experience was not in vain.
During college, Wyatt attended a party given by the sons of Franklin D. Roosevelt. There she met a Harvard student, Edgar Ward whom she would go on to marry in 1953. The actress is survived by sons Christopher and Michael, and their respective families.
Did you know:
“Father Knows Best” began as a radio sitcom in 1949; it moved to television in 1954.
Wyatt played Mr. Spock’s mom in the original “Star Trek” series and the feature “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.”