Elizabeth Rogers (born Betty Jayne Rogers, May 18, 1934 – November 6, 2004) was an American actress.

Life and career

Born in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

, she played minor characters in thirty-seven episodes of a dozen different prime-time network series, including ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books is a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adolescence in the Midwestern United States, American M ...

'', ''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...

'', ''

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 ...

'' (1966-"The Well"-S12E9), ''

The Waltons ''The Waltons'' is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural Virginia during the Great Depression and World War II. It was created by Earl Hamner Jr., based on his 1961 book ''Spencer's Mountain'' and the 1963 film ...

'', ''

Marcus Welby, M.D. Marcus, Markus, Márkus or Mărcuș may refer to: * Marcus (name), a masculine given name * Marcus (praenomen), a Roman personal name Places * Marcus, a main belt asteroid, also known as (369088) Marcus 2008 GG44 * Mărcuş, a village in Dobârl ...

'', '' Dragnet 1966'', ''

Mannix ''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private inves ...

'', ''

Dragnet 1967 ''Dragnet'' is an American television series. It ran for four seasons, from January 12, 1967, to April 16, 1970. To differentiate it from the earlier 1950s '' Dragnet'' television series, the year in which each season ended was made part of the ...

'', ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 13, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running western, the second-longest-running western series on U ...

'', ''

The Time Tunnel ''The Time Tunnel'' is an American color science fiction TV series written around a theme of time travel adventure starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science-fiction television series and ...

'', ''

Land of the Giants ''Land of the Giants'' is a one-hour American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for two seasons, beginning on September 22, 1968 and ending on March 22, 1970. The show was created and produced by Irwin Allen. ''Land of the Gia ...

'', ''

Dr. Kildare Dr. James Kildare is a fictional American medical doctor, originally created in the 1930s by the author Frederick Schiller Faust under the pen name Max Brand. Shortly after the character's first appearance in a magazine story, Paramount Pictur ...

'', ''Gunsmoke'' and ''

Slattery's People ''Slattery's People'' is a 1964–65 American television series about local politics starring Richard Crenna as title character James Slattery, a state legislator, co-starring Ed Asner and Tol Avery, and featuring Carroll O'Connor and Warren Oat ...

''. In the original ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'' television series, she portrayed Lt. Palmer, a substitute communications officer, in two episodes: " The Doomsday Machine" (1967) and "

The Way to Eden "The Way to Eden" is the twentieth episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series '' Star Trek''. The episode was written by Arthur Heinemann, based on a story by Heinemann and D. C. Fontana (using the pen name "M ...

" (1969). (Another actress,

Barbara Baldavin Barbara Baldavin (born October 18, 1938) is an American television and movie actress. Career Baldavin mainly performed in dramatic roles. In the 1960s she played a small recurring part in ''Star Trek'' as Angela Martine, most prominently feature ...

, also served as a substitute communications officer, Lt. Lisa, in the final episode of the series, "

Turnabout Intruder "Turnabout Intruder" is the twenty-fourth and final episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by Arthur H. Singer (based on a story by Gene Roddenberry) and directed by Herb Wallerstein ...

". This episode was not aired by

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

until June 1969, as a late season 3 episode, after the network had confirmed that the series was not returning for a season 4, the 1969–70 season.) For ''Doomsday Machine'', Rogers was brought in at the last minute after

Nichelle Nichols Nichelle Nichols (, born Grace Dell Nichols; December 28, 1932 – July 30, 2022) was an American actress, singer, and dancer best known for her portrayal of Nyota Uhura in ''Star Trek'' and its film sequels. Nichols' portrayal of Uhura was gr ...

(the series regular as communications officer Lt. Uhura) informed the producers that she was flying to New York for a concert performance. As Nichols had no standard contract she was legally free to do so, but Rogers' appearance was intended to convince her to keep herself available for ''Star Trek''. Rogers said in a later interview, "I got the part when Uhura icholshad a singing engagement. I was used as an instant 'threat' replacement."Marc Cushman, with Susan Osborn, ''These Are the Voyages, TOS, Season Two'', Jacobs/Brown Press, Los Angeles, 2014, p 149 During the 1970s, she also appeared in a string of

Irwin Allen Irwin Allen (born Irwin O. Cohen, June 12, 1916 – November 2, 1991) was an American film and television producer and director, known for his work in science fiction, then later as the "Master of Disaster" for his work in the disaster film gen ...

produced films including '' The Poseidon Adventure'' (1972) and ''

The Towering Inferno ''The Towering Inferno'' is a 1974 American disaster film directed by John Guillermin and produced by Irwin Allen, featuring an ensemble cast led by Paul Newman and Steve McQueen. It was adapted by Stirling Silliphant from the novels '' The Towe ...

'' (1974). She was a personal friend of Allen and his wife,

Sheila Matthews Allen Sheila Mathews Allen (born Sheila Marie Mathews, February 2, 1929 – November 15, 2013) was an American actress and producer. Life and career Allen was born in New York City to Christopher Joseph and Elizabeth (née McCloskey) Mathews, both imm ...

, and was married to actor Erik Nelson (also a regular in Irwin Allen films) in the backyard of Allen's home. Her other film appearances included ''

Bittersweet Love ''Bittersweet Love'' is a 1976 American DeLuxe Color romantic drama film directed by David Miller, written by Adrian Morrall and D.A. Kellogg, starring Lana Turner, Robert Lansing, Celeste Holm, Robert Alda, Scott Hylands, and Meredith Baxter-B ...

'' (1976), '' The Van'' (1977), ''

Grand Theft Auto ''Grand Theft Auto'' (''GTA'') is a series of action-adventure games created by David Jones (video game developer), David Jones and Mike Dailly (game designer), Mike Dailly. Later titles were developed under the oversight of brothers Dan Hous ...

'' (1977), and ''

An Officer and a Gentleman Conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman (or conduct unbecoming for short) is an offense that is subject to court martial in the armed forces of some nations. Use in the United Kingdom The phrase was used as a charge in courts martial of t ...

'' (1982) as

David Keith David Keith may refer to: * David Keith (novelist) (1906–1994), pen name of American scholar Francis Steegmuller *David Keith (actor) (born 1954), American film and TV performer and director *David Keith (physicist), Canadian-born Harvard Profess ...

's mother.

Death

She died from multiple

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

s and

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

on November 6, 2004, in

Tarzana, California Tarzana is a suburban neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Tarzana is on the site of a former ranch owned by author Edgar Rice Burroughs. It is named after Burroughs' fictional jungle hero, Tarzan. History ...

at the age of 70.

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Elizabeth 1934 births 2004 deaths American film actresses American television actresses Deaths from lung cancer in California Actresses from Austin, Texas 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American women