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Mary Katherine Stearns (née Jones; October 27, 1925 – November 17, 2018) was an American actress best known for portraying the fictional version of herself on the sitcom ''
Mary Kay and Johnny ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' is an American situation comedy starring real-life married couple Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns. It was the first sitcom broadcast on a network television in the United States. ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' initially aired live ...
'' from 1947 until 1950.


Career

Stearns's career began at the age of 2 and a half as an actress and singer at the
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in
Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. She also appeared in several films before going to
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
. In 1947, Stearns, who looked young for her age, was offered a job as a fashion model for an early
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television program. On the advice of her newlywed husband
Johnny Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Varian ...
, who thought the idea to be weak, she refused; Johnny suggested to the broadcaster that she instead host a domestic sitcom with him. On November 18, the
DuMont Television Network The DuMont Television Network (also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont Television, simply DuMont/Du Mont, or (incorrectly) Dumont ) was one of America's pioneer commercial television networks, rivaling NBC and CBS for the distinction of being ...
debuted a new show starring the two entitled ''
Mary Kay and Johnny ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' is an American situation comedy starring real-life married couple Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns. It was the first sitcom broadcast on a network television in the United States. ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' initially aired live ...
''. The series had the Stearnses playing fictional versions of themselves. On the show the pair portrayed a newlywed couple, also named Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns, who were trying to make it in New York. Most of the episodes took place in an apartment complex in
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,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
. Mary Kay's counterpart was an everyday, run-of-the-mill, zany housewife and Johnny's counterpart was a bank employee. The series moved from DuMont to
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 ...
in 1948 then to
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 Entertainm ...
then back to NBC where it finished its run in March 1950. ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' also achieved some firsts during its run. The series was the first sitcom to air on television, contrary to popular belief that ''
I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along with ...
'' which premiered four years later was the first. It was also the first television series to feature a pregnancy, (the Stearnses' real life son Christopher), whose birth and character were written in the show in December 1948. It was also the first to feature a couple sharing a bed. After the show ended, the Stearnses moved to
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
where Johnny pursued a career in production. Stearns did another weekly television series by herself entitled ''Mary Kay's Nightcap'' which aired on NBC during the 1951-52 television season. She also had guest star appearances on ''
Armstrong Circle Theatre ''Armstrong Circle Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, ...
'' and ''
Kraft Television Theatre ''Kraft Television Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series running from 1947 to 1958. It began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. It first promoted MacLaren's Imperial Chees ...
''. She and her husband also had a seven-year stint as the spokespeople for
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. She later stated that she never was particularly fond of television and largely did those shows as a means to earn a paycheck while she tried to make it big on Broadway.


Personal life

Stearns was married to actor and producer Johnny Stearns. They married in 1946 and she was
widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word ...
ed on December 16, 2001 when Johnny died at the age of 85. They had three children together; Christopher, Jonathan and Melinda. Stearns also has one grandson. She died in
Newport Beach, California Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island, Newport ...
on November 17, 2018 at the age of 93, with her death not reported until two months later.Mary Kay Stearns, 93, a Star of One of TV’s Earliest Shows, Dies
/ref>


Filmography

*''Our Hearts Were Growing Up'' (1946) (schoolgirl; uncredited) *''
Mary Kay and Johnny ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' is an American situation comedy starring real-life married couple Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns. It was the first sitcom broadcast on a network television in the United States. ''Mary Kay and Johnny'' initially aired live ...
'' (1947–1950) (Herself; approximately 300 episodes) *''
Armstrong Circle Theatre ''Armstrong Circle Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, ...
'' (1951; one episode) *''
Kraft Television Theatre ''Kraft Television Theatre'' is an American anthology drama television series running from 1947 to 1958. It began May 7, 1947 on NBC, airing at 7:30pm on Wednesday evenings until December of that year. It first promoted MacLaren's Imperial Chees ...
'' (1952; one episode) *''Inside TV Land: Taboo TV'' (2002 television documentary)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stearns, Mary Kay 1925 births 2018 deaths 20th-century American actresses American television actresses Actresses from Glendale, California 21st-century American women