Elizabeth Louise Harrower (May 28, 1918 – December 10, 2003) was an American actress and television writer.

Early years

Harrower was born during World War I in

Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is primarily located on Alameda (island), Alam ...

, during the great flu epidemic.

Career

Harrower went on to find success in television, including ten appearances on '' Dennis the Menace'' (mostly as Dennis' teacher, Miss Perkins), four 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 cli ...

'' (The Case of the Waylaid Wolf, The Case of the Lurid Letter), and two appearances on ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central character ...

'' as Mrs. O'Roarke, among many other shows up until 1974. She made her film debut in ''

Becky Sharp Rebecca "Becky" Sharp, later describing herself as Rebecca, Lady Crawley, is the main protagonist of William Makepeace Thackeray's 1847–48 novel '' Vanity Fair''. She is presented as a cynical social climber who uses her charms to fascinate a ...

'' (1935). She also appeared in other movies, including 1969's ''

True Grit True Grit may refer to: Fiction * ''True Grit'' (novel), a 1968 novel by Charles Portis ** ''True Grit'' (1969 film), a film adaptation by Henry Hathaway, starring John Wayne ** ''True Grit'' (2010 film), a film adaptation by the Coen Brothers, ...

'' and ''

The Sterile Cuckoo ''The Sterile Cuckoo'' (released in the UK as ''Pookie'') is a 1969 American comedy-drama film by producer-director Alan J. Pakula that tells the story of an eccentric young couple whose relationship deepens despite their differences and inadequa ...

''. In the late 1970s, she served as

head writer A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits. In fictional comedy o ...

for the daytime soap opera ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. The soap, which aired on the American television net ...

'', where her daughter Susan was a cast member. She also wrote for ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, Wi ...

'' in the 1980s and early 1990s. Her last writing stint was on the short-lived soap ''Generations'' in 1991. In 2003, Harrower received rave reviews for her performance as a drunken

con artist A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibility, and greed. Researchers have def ...

on ''The Young and the Restless''.

Personal life

In 1942, Harrower married Harry Seabold, an

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

cadet she had met in fifth grade. Their daughter, actress

Susan Seaforth Hayes Susan Seaforth Hayes (born Susan Seabold; July 11, 1943) is an American dramatic actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Julie Williams on the NBC drama '' Days of Our Lives'', and her intermittent portrayal of Joanna Manning on the CB ...

, was born in 1943. The marriage ended in divorce. For many years, she and her daughter lived in the

Alvarado Terrace Historic District Alvarado Terrace Historic District is a designated historic district in the Pico-Union district of Los Angeles, California. It is located southwest of Downtown Los Angeles, along Alvarado Terrace between Pico Boulevard and Alvarado Street. Six ...

of Los Angeles, where she was active with the

Pico-Union Pico-Union is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. The name "Pico-Union" refers to the neighborhood that surrounds the intersection of Pico Boulevard and Union Avenue. Located immediately west of Downtown Los Angeles, it is home to ...

community redevelopment project advisory committee. In 2003 in

Studio City, California Studio City is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, in the southeast San Fernando Valley, just west of the Cahuenga Pass. It is named after the studio lot that was established in the area by film producer Mack Sennett in 1927, ...

, Harrower died of cancer at age 85. She was interred in the

Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries is an American corporation that owns and operates a chain of cemeteries and mortuaries in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside counties in Southern California. History The company was founded by a group of ...

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

Selected filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrower, Elizabeth American soap opera writers 1918 births 2003 deaths American film actresses Actresses from the San Francisco Bay Area Deaths from cancer in California Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) 20th-century American actresses American television actresses People from Alameda, California Women soap opera writers American adoptees 20th-century American screenwriters 21st-century American women