Deborah Lynn Watson is a retired American movie and television

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 ...

. She was born on January 17, 1949, in

Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most ...

, California.

Career

Watson began her acting in community theater, appearing in productions at Long Beach Community Theater, Tustin Community Theater, and Melodyland Theater.

Television

Watson got her start on television as a hopeful on '' Ted Mack and the Original Amateur Hour'' in 1963. She went on to star as the boy-struck teenage girl Karen Scott in the 1964

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 ...

television series ''

Karen Karen may refer to: * Karen (name), a given name and surname * Karen (slang), a term and meme for a demanding woman displaying certain behaviors People * Karen people, an ethnic group in Myanmar and Thailand ** Karen languages or Karenic l ...

'', the only portion of the largely unsuccessful ''

90 Bristol Court ''90 Bristol Court'' is the umbrella title of an NBC series consisting of three situation comedies set in a Southern California apartment complex located at the title address. The 90-minute block aired Monday nights from October 5, 1964, throug ...

'' (which also included '' Harris Against the World'' and ''

Tom, Dick and Mary ''Tom, Dick and Mary'', also known as ''90 Bristol Court: Tom, Dick and Mary'', is an American situation comedy that aired on NBC from October 5, 1964 until January 4, 1965. It was one of three separate comedies set in the same Los Angeles, Calif ...

'') to last the entirety of the 1964-1965 season. She then appeared as Tammy Tarleton in the 1965 rural-themed sitcom TV series '' Tammy'', with co-stars

Denver Pyle Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling Jr. in se ...

and Frank McGrath.

Film

Watson's film appearances include the character of Marilyn Munster in ''

Munster, Go Home! ''Munster, Go Home!'' is a 1966 American comedy film based on the 1960s family sitcom ''The Munsters''. It was directed by Earl Bellamy, who also directed a number of episodes in the series. The film was produced immediately after the television ...

'' in 1966. The actress was a

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

starlet at the time, and the studio used Watson to replace Pat Priest, who had played Marilyn through most of ''

The Munsters ''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom depicting the home life of a family of benign monsters. The series starred Fred Gwynne as Frankenstein's monsterEpisodes referring to the fact that Herman is Frankenstein's monster include #55, "Just Anoth ...

'' TV sitcom series. In 1967, Watson co-starred with

Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...

in ''

The Cool Ones ''The Cool Ones'' (aka ''Cool, Baby Cool'') is a 1967 film starring Roddy McDowall and directed by Gene Nelson. The 1960s novelty singer known as Mrs. Miller performs in a cameo role, and the film features performances by the bands the Leaves and ...

'', followed by ''Tammy and the Millionaire'', which comprised four episodes of '' Tammy'' re-edited into a feature-length film.

Later career

When Watson was 17 years old she married record producer-engineer Richard Sanford Orshoff, who was then 22.Debbie Watson All For Teen Marriages - https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=DS19670102.2.30&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 In August 1967, they had a child, Darren. Watson and Orshoff divorced in 1971. She made her final TV appearance on ''

Love, American Style ''Love, American Style'' is an anthology comedy television series that aired on ABC from 1969 to 1974. The series was produced by Paramount Television. During the 1971–72 and 1972–73 seasons, it was a part of ABC's Friday primetime lineup ...

'' in 1971 before retiring from acting. In 1973 she married Ronald L Taylor (now a retired Superior Court Judge), and they had a son, Dylan. Watson lives in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

and on the

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

coast. In 2003, she appeared in A&E's ''Biography'' episode of ''The Munsters''.

Television series

*''

'' (1964–65) *'' Tammy'' (1965–66) *'' The Virginian'' (1967 and 1969) *''

'' (1970 and 1971)

Filmography

*''

'' (1966) *'' Tammy and the Millionaire'' (1967), four episodes of ''Tammy'' re-edited into a feature film *''

'' (1967)

References

External links

* Living people 20th-century American actresses American child actresses American film actresses American television actresses Actresses from California 21st-century American women 1949 births {{US-screen-actor-1940s-stub