Peggy Stewart (born Peggy O'Rourke; June 5, 1923 – May 29, 2019) was an American actress known for her roles in

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s and television series.

Early life

Stewart was born in

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...

, where she was raised, the daughter of John Francis O'Rourke and Frances Velma (McCampbell) Splane, who were from

Bessemer, Alabama Bessemer is a southwestern suburb of Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. The population was 26,019 at the 2020 census. It is within the Birmingham- Hoover, AL Metropolitan Statistical Area, of which Jefferson County is the ...

. She distinguished herself as a swimming champion in high school; in the 1930s, her family moved to California, where she met character actor Henry O'Neill. He recommended her to

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

executives who were looking for a new actress for the part of

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he beca ...

's teenage daughter in ''

Wells Fargo Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with corporate headquarters in San Francisco, California; operational headquarters in Manhattan; and managerial offices throughout the United States and intern ...

'' (1937). Her work in the film led to numerous other film roles.

Career

In April 1944, Stewart signed a contract with

Republic Pictures Republic Pictures Corporation (currently held under Melange Pictures, LLC) was an American motion picture production-distribution corporation in operation from 1935 to 1967, that was based in Los Angeles. It had studio facilities in Studio City an ...

and began starring in

s opposite such actors as

Allan Lane Allan "Rocky" Lane (born Harry Leonard Albershardt; September 22, 1909 – October 27, 1973) was an American studio leading man and the star of many cowboy B-movies in the 1940s and 1950s. He appeared in more than 125 films and TV shows in ...

Sunset Carson Sunset Carson (born Winifred Maurice Harrison or Michael Harrison; November 12, 1920 – May 1, 1990) was an American B-western star of the 1940s. Early life, acting Carson was born on November 12, 1920, at Gracemont, Oklahoma, as either ...

, and

Wild Bill Elliott Wild Bill Elliott (born Gordon Nance, October 16, 1904 – November 26, 1965) was an American film actor. He specialized in playing the rugged heroes of B Westerns, particularly the Red Ryder series of films. Early life Elliott was born Gor ...

. During that time she played in several episodes of ''

Adventures of Red Ryder ''The Adventures of Red Ryder'' is a 1940 12-chapter Republic movie serial directed by William Witney and John English and starring Don "Red" Barry and Noah Beery, Sr., based on the Western comic strip '' Red Ryder''. This serial is t ...

''. She usually played the part of the tough

hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ...

ine, rather than a passive girl needing to be saved. From 1944 to 1951 she starred in 35 films, most of which were Westerns and film serials. She also starred with

Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, musician, rodeo performer, and baseball owner who gained fame largely by singing in a crooning s ...

several times during that period. as well as appearing on several episodes of ''

The Cisco Kid The Cisco Kid is a fictional character found in numerous film, radio, television and comic book series based on the fictional Western character created by O. Henry in his 1907 short story "The Caballero's Way", published in ''Everybody's Magaz ...

'', including "Oil Land", which first aired on October 10, 1950. In 1949, she played alongside

Jim Bannon James Shorttel Bannon (April 9, 1911 – July 28, 1984) was an American actor and radio announcer known for his work on the '' I Love a Mystery'' and ''Red Ryder'' series during the 1940s and 1950s. Early life Born in 1911 in Kansas City, Mis ...

in ''Ride, Ryder, Ride''. She again played the part of heroine to Bannon in 1949, starring in ''

The Fighting Redhead '' The Fighting Redhead '' is a 1949 American Western film directed by Lewis D. Collins and starring Jim Bannon as Red Ryder in the final film of the series. The film was shot at the Iverson Movie Ranch. Plot Red Ryder, Buckskin, the Duche ...

''. In 1952 she starred with Bill Elliott in ''Kansas Territory''. In 1957, she had a minor role on CBS's ''

Have Gun – Will Travel ''Have Gun – Will Travel'' is an American Western series that was produced and originally broadcast by CBS on both television and radio from 1957 through 1963. The television version of the series starring Richard Boone was rated number t ...

'' episode "The Outlaw". In 1958, she was cast as Etta Jackson, the romantic interest of the painter Hurley Abbott, played by Brad Johnson, in the episode "The Underdog" of the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

Desilu Desilu Productions () was an American television production company founded and co-owned by husband and wife Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. The company is best known for shows such as ''I Love Lucy'', ''The Lucy Show'', ''Mannix'', ''The Untouchabl ...

western series, ''

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp ''The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp'' is the first Western television series written for adults, premiering four days before ''Gunsmoke'' on September 6, 1955. Two weeks later came the Clint Walker western ''Cheyenne''. The series is loosely base ...

'', with

Hugh O'Brian Hugh O'Brian (born Hugh Charles Krampe; April 19, 1925 – September 5, 2016) was an American actor and humanitarian, best known for his starring roles in the ABC Western television series ''The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp'' (1955–196 ...

in the title role.

Later years

Her career slowed in the 1960s, and by the 1970s she was residing 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, ...

. Stewart won the

Golden Boot Awards The Golden Boot Awards were an American acknowledgement of achievement honoring actors, actresses, and crew members who made significant contributions to the genre of Westerns in television and film. The award was sponsored and presented by the ...

in 1984. Semi-retired, Stewart still continued to act on occasion. She played a minor part in a 1993 episode of ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld ( ...

'' titled "The Implant", in which she portrayed the aunt of

George Costanza George Louis Costanza is a fictional character in the American television sitcom ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998), played by Jason Alexander. He is a short, stocky, balding man who struggles with numerous insecurities, often dooming his romantic rela ...

's girlfriend. Stewart played

Pam Beesly Pamela Morgan Halpert (née Beesly) is a fictional character on the U.S. TV series, television sitcom ''The Office (American TV series), The Office'', played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of ''The Office (British TV ...

's grandmother, Mee-Maw, in a 2009 episode of ''

The Office ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original series of ...

'' and reprised the role in a 2010 episode. In 2012, she played Grandma Delores in

Adam Sandler Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1990 to 1995, before going on to star in numerous Hollywood films, those of wh ...

's comedy film, '' That's My Boy''.

Personal life

In her latter decades, Stewart appeared regularly as a guest speaker at Western film festivals. From 1993 till her death, Stewart appeared as a special guest at the annual Lone Pine Film Festival. Stewart was married twice. In 1940 she married actor

Don "Red" Barry Donald Barry de Acosta (January 11, 1912 – July 17, 1980), also known as Red Barry and Milton Poimboeuf, was an American film and television actor. He was nicknamed "Red" after appearing as the first Red Ryder in the highly successful 19 ...

; the marriage ended in divorce in 1944. She was married to actor

Buck Young John Otto "Buck" Young (April 12, 1920 – February 9, 2000) was an American actor who played the role as Sergeant Whipple on the ''Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' TV series, and Deputy Joe Watson on ''The Andy Griffith Show''. In 1944, during World Wa ...

from 1953 until his death on February 9, 2000. Her sister, Patricia Ann O'Rourke, was married to the actor

Wayne Morris Wayne Morris (born Bert DeWayne Morris Jr. February 17, 1914 – September 14, 1959) was an American film and television actor, as well as a decorated World War II fighter ace. He appeared in many films, including ''Paths of Glory'' (1957), '' ...

. She died in May 2019 at the age of 95.

Filmography

Film

Partial Television Credits

References

External links

* *
B-western ladies, Peggy Stewart
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, Peggy 1923 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Florida American film actresses American television actresses People from Studio City, Los Angeles People from West Palm Beach, Florida Western (genre) film actresses