Betty Ann Carr (1942-1995) was an American

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

, musician, composer and film editor best remembered for her television work.

Early life

Carr was born to William Raymond and Helen Marie Brown as one-half Cherokee and one-half French and was the oldest of six children. She was raised on a small farm in Asbury, Missouri, outside

Joplin, Missouri Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...

and according to the actress, grew up in a poor family, saying: "We were poor, but so was everybody else, so I didn't think about that. Despite interests in music as a child, Carr studied Drama at the

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

."Betty Ann Carr In 'County'", ''

Pittsburgh Press ''The Pittsburgh Press'' (formerly ''The Pittsburg Press'' and originally ''The Evening Penny Press'') was a major afternoon daily newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1884 to 1992. At one time, the ''Press'' was the second larg ...

'', January 18, 1972, p. 25 Her siblings are Perry, James, Susan, Benny, Kay Brown.

Career

Carr started her career by appearing as a dancer in ''

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (often simply referred to as ''Laugh-In'') is an American sketch comedy television program that ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Da ...

''. Her first prominent role came in 1971, replacing actress Sandra Ego as Betty Ann Sundown in the western series ''

Cade's County ''Cade's County'' is a modern-day Western/crime drama which aired Sundays at 9:30 pm (EST) on CBS during the 1971–1972 television season. There were 24 episodes. Synopsis ''Cade's County'' starred well-known Hollywood actor Glenn Ford as S ...

'' until 1972. Besides appearing in the series, she taught to Indian actors at

Jay Silverheels Jay Silverheels (born Harold Jay Smith; May 26, 1912 – March 5, 1980) was an Indigenous Canadian actor and athlete. He was well known for his role as Tonto, the Native American companion of the Lone Ranger in the American Western television ...

's drama school in

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...

. On this work, she commented in a 1973 interview: :"Indians never were schooled in drama. If we want good actors we must begin by training the young; so I teach kids, 18 and under. For a while we had a busload of students from 12 to 16 coming in weekly from the

Sherman Institute Sherman Indian High School (SIHS) is an off-reservation boarding high school for Native Americans. Originally opened in 1892 as the Perris Indian School, in Perris, California, the school was relocated to Riverside, California in 1903, under the n ...

, but that stopped when the Institute ran out of money to pay the driver." Carr, however, did not consider herself as an 'Indian actress' until casting directors rejected her at auditions because she looked "too ethnic" or "too dark" for non-Indian parts."Indian Talent Finds Outlet In Theater Arts", ''

Reading Eagle The ''Reading Eagle'' is the major daily newspaper in Reading, Pennsylvania. A family-owned newspaper until the spring of 2019, its reported circulation is 37,000 (daily) and 50,000 (Sundays). It serves the Reading and Berks County region of Pe ...

'', October 11, 1973, p. 54 Carr is probably best remembered for appearing as Monica Bell in the daytime soap opera ''

Return to Peyton Place ''Return to Peyton Place'' is a 1959 novel by Grace Metalious, a sequel to her best-selling 1956 novel '' Peyton Place''. Plot summary After the phenomenal success of her first novel, Metalious hastily penned a sequel centering on the life and ...

'', for which she flew from San Diego to Los Angeles. Carr achieved some fame with the role, which she first played in May 1973, and was featured in several daytime-oriented magazines. She also composed songs for musicians by the time, and edited an Indian film. Following the show's cancellation, Carr went on to guest star in several TV series and she was active as an actress until 1985.

Personal life

Carr was married to engineer Tom Carr.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Betty Ann 1947 births American soap opera actresses American television actresses Living people Actresses from Montana Musicians from Montana San Diego State University alumni American people who self-identify as being of Cherokee descent People from Liberty County, Montana People from Joplin, Missouri 21st-century American women