Cynthia Chenault (born January 5, 1937) is an American television actress and producer/writer active from the mid-1950s to the present. She used the screen name Cindy Robbins in her acting credits.

Early years

Robbins was born in

Hammond, Louisiana Hammond is the largest city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States, located east of Baton Rouge and northwest of New Orleans. Its population was 20,019 in the 2010 U.S. census, and 21,359 at the 2020 population estimates program. Ham ...

. Her mother operated a dancing school in

Pascagoula, Mississippi Pascagoula ( ) is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula Combined Statistical Area. The population was 22 ...

, and Robbins began dancing at age five. When she was eight years old, her family moved to California. When she was a student at Glendale High School, her career plans changed from dancing to acting. In 1952, she was the school's representative at an annual drama festival. She has four sisters.

Career

Stage

Robbins's entertainment debut came in Ken Murray's ''Blackouts'' when she was 11 years old. On Broadway, she portrayed Molly Belmont in '' By the Beautiful Sea'' (1954), and Janice Dawson in '' Happy Town'' (1959). She also had a lead role in ''The Vacant Lot'' at the

La Jolla Playhouse La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. History La Jolla Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, and Mel Ferrer. In 1983, it was revived under ...

Television

Her first acting role on television was in 1955, in the episode ''Moonfire'' of the television western series ''

Brave Eagle ''Brave Eagle'' is a 26-episode half-hour western television series which aired on CBS from September 28, 1955, to March 14, 1956, with rebroadcasts continuing until June 6. Keith Larsen, who was of Norwegian descent, starred as Brave Eagle, a peac ...

''. In 1960, Robbins appeared as a ballerina in the "Bullets and Ballet" episode of ''

Tightrope! ''Tightrope!'' is an American crime drama series that aired on CBS from September 1959 to September 1960, under the alternating sponsorship of the J.B. Williams Company (Aqua Velva, Lectric Shave, etc.), and American Tobacco ( Pall Mall). Produc ...

''. Her last acting role in television was on the television comedy series ''

McHale's Navy ''McHale's Navy'' is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from October 11, 1962, to April 12, 1966, on the ABC television network. The series was filmed in black and white and originate ...

'' in 1964. Her best-known role was that of Carol Porter, one of the daughters in the one-season

situation comedy A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

The Tom Ewell Show ''The Tom Ewell Show'', also known as ''The Trouble With Tom'', is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS during the 1960-61 television season. It depicts the challenges a husband and father faces as he resides in a household otherwise c ...

'' (1960–61). She also made two guest appearances on ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...

'', including the role of Teddi Hart in the 1960 episode "The Case of the Treacherous Toupee" and the role of Mabel Richmond in the 1962 episode "The Case of Melancholy Marksman". Her other television work consisted of appearances in comedy shows (''

Ensign O'Toole ''Ensign O'Toole'' is an American situation comedy that stars Dean Jones in the title role as an officer aboard the United States Navy destroyer USS ''Appleby'' in the early 1960s. It aired from 1962 to 1963. Synopsis Ensign O'Toole is a junio ...

'', ''

Father Knows Best ''Father Knows Best'' is an American sitcom starring Robert Young, Jane Wyatt, Elinor Donahue, Billy Gray and Lauren Chapin. The series, which began on radio in 1949, aired as a television show for six seasons and 203 episodes. Created by E ...

'', ''

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from October 3, 1952, to April 23, 1966, and starred the real-life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television, where it ...

'', '' Leave It To Beaver''), ''

'' & military/action shows ('' Steve Canyon'', ''

Whirlybirds ''Whirlybirds'' (sometimes called ''The Whirlybirds'' or ''Copter Patrol'') is a syndicated American drama/adventure television series, which aired for 111 episodes — broadcast from February 4, 1957, through January 18, 1960. It was pro ...

'', ''

Harbor Command ''Harbor Command'' is an American police series that was syndicated from October 11, 1957, to July 4, 1958. The series stars Wendell Corey as Captain Ralph Baxter, an officer of the Harbor Police of a large coastal city (the city is unnamed, b ...

''), westerns (''

Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings. It ...

'', '' The Tall Man''), and dramas (''

Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse ''Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse'' is an American television anthology series produced by Desilu Productions. The show ran on the Columbia Broadcasting System between 1958 and 1960. Three of its 48 episodes served as pilots for the 1950s television ...

'', ''

Tightrope Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

'', '' Dragnet'').

Film

She appeared in several films from 1957 to 1959: * ''

I Was a Teenage Werewolf ''I Was a Teenage Werewolf'' is a 1957 horror film starring Michael Landon as a troubled teenager, Yvonne Lime and Whit Bissell. It was co-written and produced by cult film producer Herman Cohen and was one of the most successful films release ...

'' (1957) playing Pearl, Vic's Girl * '' Dino'' (1957), a

Sal Mineo Salvatore Mineo Jr. (January 10, 1939 – February 12, 1976) was an American actor, singer, and director. He is best known for his role as John "Plato" Crawford in the drama film ''Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955), which earned him a nomination f ...

drama, playing Sylvia * ''

Rockabilly Baby ''Rockabilly Baby'' is a 1957 American musical film directed by William F. Claxton and written by William Driskill and William George. The film stars Virginia Field, Douglas Kennedy, Les Brown, Irene Ryan, Ellen Corby, Marlene Willis and Judy ...

'' (1957), a film about family secrets and small-town life (featuring Les Brown and His Band of Renown), playing Vougette #1 * ''

Gunsight Ridge ''Gunsight Ridge'' is a 1957 American Western film directed by Francis D. Lyon and written by Talbot Jennings and Elisabeth Jennings. The film stars Joel McCrea, Mark Stevens, Joan Weldon, Addison Richards, Darlene Fields and Carolyn Craig. ...

'' (1957), a

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he beca ...

Western, playing the Bride * '' This Earth Is Mine'' (1959), a

Rock Hudson Rock Hudson (born Roy Harold Scherer Jr.; November 17, 1925 – October 2, 1985) was an American actor. One of the most popular movie stars of his time, he had a screen career spanning more than three decades. A prominent heartthrob in the Golde ...

drama about California wine country, playing Buz Dietrick

Producing/writing

In the mid-1980s, she produced/wrote several ''

ABC Weekend Specials ''ABC Weekend Special'' is a weekly 30-minute American television anthology series for children that aired Saturday mornings on ABC from 1977 to 1997, which featured a wide variety of stories that were both live-action and animated. Similar to b ...

'' (notably, ''

Pippi Longstocking Pippi Longstocking ( sv, Pippi Långstrump) is the fictional main character in an eponymous series of children's books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. Pippi was named by Lindgren's daughter Karin, who asked her mother for a get-well story wh ...

'') and a ''

CBS Schoolbreak Special ''CBS Schoolbreak Special'' is an American anthology series for teenagers that aired on CBS from December 1978 to January 1996. The series began under the title ''CBS Afternoon Playhouse'', and was changed during the 1984–85 season. The concept ...

''. She was also a writer in 1984 for the TV cartoon series '' Heathcliff & the Catillac Cats''. In 1986, she shared in the nomination for a Daytime Emmy in the category Outstanding Writing in a Children's Special, for the ABC Weekend Special ''The Adventures of Con Sawyer and Hucklemary Finn''.

Personal life

She had one child, actress

Kimberly Beck Kimberly Beck (born January 9, 1956) is a former American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Trish Jarvis in Joseph Zito's '' Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter'' (1984). Her other film roles include Alfred Hitchcock's ''Marni ...

, born in Glendale, California, in January 1956. Cynthia, then still known as Cindy Robbins, married New Jersey singer-songwriter

Tommy Leonetti Tommy Leonetti (September 10, 1929September 15, 1979) was an American pop singer-songwriter and actor of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. In Australia his most famous song was "My City of Sydney" (written by Leonetti & Bobby Troup) and was used by ...

on November 27, 1965, in Beverly Hills, California. The two of them, plus her young daughter, moved to Sydney, Australia, and lived there for the remainder of the 1960s and for most of the 1970s, before returning to America in the late 70's. Her husband Tommy died in 1979. She then married writer Robert Parks Chenault in 1983, and began around that time using her married name for her writing credits, rather than her screen name.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robbins, Cindy 1937 births Living people American television actresses 20th-century American actresses American film actresses People from Hammond, Louisiana Actresses from Louisiana American television writers American women television writers Screenwriters from Louisiana American stage actresses 21st-century American women