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Sarah Hope Summers (June 7, 1902 – June 22, 1979) was an American
character actress A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...
known for her work on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
's ''
The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American sitcom, situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in colo ...
'' and '' Mayberry RFD'', portraying
Clara Edwards Clara Edwards (originally Bertha Edwards, Bertha Johnson and then Clara Johnson) is a fictional character on the American television sitcom ''The Andy Griffith Show'' (1960 – 1968). Clara was portrayed by actress Hope Summers. Summers ap ...
.


Early life

Hope Summers was born in
Mattoon, Illinois Mattoon ( ) is a city in Coles County, Illinois, United States. The population was 16,870 as of the 2020 census. The city is home to Lake Land College and has close ties with its neighbor, Charleston. Both are principal cities of the Charleston ...
, the daughter of the town doctor, and future U.S. Representative, John W. Summers and Jennie (née Burks). She was reared in Illinois and later in
Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla is a city in Walla Walla County, Washington, Walla Walla County, Washington (state), Washington, where it is the largest city and county seat. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, estimated to ...
, where her father was elected to the House. Summers attended
Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Chart ...
in
Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...
, graduating in 1923 from its Northwestern School of Speech. She stayed in Evanston, teaching speech and diction, then moved to
Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria Metropolitan Area in Centr ...
in 1926 when she became the head of the Speech Department at
Bradley University Bradley University is a private university in Peoria, Illinois. Founded in 1897, Bradley University enrolls 5,400 students who are pursuing degrees in more than 100 undergraduate programs and more than 30 graduate programs in five colleges. The ...
. While in Peoria, Summers started giving private acting lessons and became involved as a volunteer, and soon a director, in local theatre.


Acting career

A regional actress who often performed in one-woman shows starting in the 1930s, In radio she had parts in the anthology ''
Destination Freedom ''Destination Freedom'' was a weekly radio program produced by WMAQ in Chicago from 1948 to 1950 that presented biographical histories of prominent African-Americans such as George Washington Carver, Satchel Paige, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tu ...
'', a series written by
Richard Durham Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...
, dedicated to the retelling the lives of notable Negros in the Americas. Summers did not break into network television until her mid 50s, when she made her debut in 1951 on the soap opera '' Hawkins Falls'', broadcast from Chicago. While she had a few uncredited background roles in
short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
s, she did not make her first
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...
feature film until 1957, with a small credited role in ''
Zero Hour! ''Zero Hour!'' is a 1957 drama film directed by Hall Bartlett from a screenplay by Bartlett, Arthur Hailey, and John Champion. It stars Dana Andrews, Linda Darnell, and Sterling Hayden and features Peggy King, Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch, Geof ...
''. She continued in films as a character player. Summers first attracted attention in 1958 in the semi-regular role as Hattie Denton on the western series ''
The Rifleman ''The Rifleman'' is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the fictional town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show ...
'', starring Chuck Connors. She guest starred on dozens of series including '' Maverick'', ''
Wagon Train ''Wagon Train'' is an American western (genre), Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on American Broadcasting Company, ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, ...
'', ''
State Trooper State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdiction o ...
'', ''
Rescue 8 ''Rescue 8'' is a syndicated American action adventure crime drama series about Los Angeles County Fire Department Rescue Squad 8. It premiered in 1958 and originally ran for two seasons with syndicated reruns continuing for almost a decade th ...
'', ''
Peter Gunn ''Peter Gunn'' is an American private eye television series, starring Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn with Lola Albright as his girlfriend, Edie Hart. The series aired on NBC from September 22, 1958, to 1960 and on ABC in 1960–1961. The serie ...
'', '' Dennis the Menace'', '' It's a Man's World'', ''
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington ''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' is a 1939 American political comedy-drama film directed by Frank Capra, starring Jean Arthur and James Stewart, and featuring Claude Rains and Edward Arnold. The film is about a newly appointed United States Sen ...
'', ''
Hazel The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999) ...
'', ''
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 chara ...
'', ''
The Danny Thomas Show ''The Danny Thomas Show'' (titled ''Make Room for Daddy'' for its first three seasons) is an American sitcom that ran from 1953 to 1957 on ABC and from 1957 to 1964 on CBS. Starring Danny Thomas as a successful night club entertainer, the show f ...
'',
M*A*S*H (TV series) ''M*A*S*H'' (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American war comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from September 17, 1972 to February 28, 1983. It was developed by Larry Gelbart as the first original spin-off serie ...
, ''
My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chroni ...
'', ''
Petticoat Junction ''Petticoat Junction'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 1963 to April 1970. The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley; her three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, and B ...
'', ''
Love on a Rooftop ''Love on a Rooftop'' is an American sitcom about a newlywed couple, Dave and Julie Willis, and their humorous struggles to survive in San Francisco on Dave's apprentice architect's salary of $85.37 a week. Matters were complicated by the fact ...
'', ''
The Pruitts of Southampton ''The Pruitts of Southampton'' is an American situation comedy that aired during the 1966-67 season on the ABC network. The show was based on the novel ''House Party'' (1954) by Patrick Dennis. It was ABC's attempt to turn female stand-up comi ...
'', '' The Second Hundred Years'', ''
Adam-12 ''Adam-12'' is an American television police procedural crime drama television series created by Robert A. Cinader and Jack Webb. The series follows Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Pete Malloy and Jim Reed as they patrol the st ...
'' and ''
The Paul Lynde Show ''The Paul Lynde Show'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC. The series starred comedian Paul Lynde and aired for one season, with original episodes airing from September 13, 1972, to March 14, 1973. Setting The series starred L ...
'', and was a regular in the cast of the short-lived 1978
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 ...
'' Another Day''. She made thirty-six appearances on the '' Andy Griffith Show'', playing
Aunt Bee Aunt Bee is a fictional character from the 1960 American television sitcom ''The Andy Griffith Show''. Played by Frances Bavier, the character migrated to the spinoff '' Mayberry R.F.D.'' (1968–1971) when ''The Andy Griffith Show'' ended its ru ...
's best friend, during the 1960s, and made five appearances on the post-Griffith spinoff, '' Mayberry R.F.D.''. While her film work usually was in quite small parts, often unbilled, but she had a credited part as Mrs. Gilmore, one of the kindlier members of the witches' coven at the heart of
Roman Polanski Raymond Roman Thierry Polański , group=lower-alpha, name=note_a ( né Liebling; 18 August 1933) is a French-Polish film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, tw ...
's 1968 film classic, '' Rosemary's Baby''. For nearly 20 years, from 1961 until her death, Summers was the voice of Mrs. Butterworth in the Mrs. Butterworth's syrup commercials.


Personal life

Summers met local businessman Claude James Witherell in 1926, the year she moved to Peoria to teach; the couple married in 1927 and had two children together.


Filmography


References


Further reading

*


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Summers, Sarah Hope 1902 births 1979 deaths American film actresses American television actresses People from Mattoon, Illinois People from Walla Walla, Washington Actresses from Illinois Actresses from Washington (state) 20th-century American actresses