Dorothy I. Adams[1][2] (January 8, 1900 – March 16, 1988)[3][4] was an American character actress of stage, film, and television.

Dorothy Adams
Adams in Lady Gangster (1942)
Born
Dorothy I. Adams

(1900-01-08)January 8, 1900
DiedMarch 16, 1988(1988-03-16) (aged 88)
Resting placeInglewood Park Cemetery
OccupationActress
Years active1931−1975
Spouse
(m. 1926; died 1970)
ChildrenRachel Ames

Early years

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Born in Hannah, North Dakota, Adams was the daughter of Rachel Jamison and hardware salesman W. E. Adams.[1][5] They later moved to Vancouver, British Columbia,[6] where she attended Braemar School and the University of British Columbia.[7][2]

Stage

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In the 1920s, Adams was active with the Moroni Olsen Players.[8]

Films and television

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Adams was perhaps best known for her role as Wilma Cameron's mother in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946).

 
Adams (right) with Carl Betz and Dolores Mann in My Three Angels (1954)

Adams made numerous television appearances in the 1950s. She was seen in Gunsmoke with James Arness,[9] and four episodes of the Western series The Adventures of Kit Carson, starring Bill Williams. She appeared in four episodes of the crime drama series Dragnet, starring Jack Webb. She made two guest appearances in Perry Mason, starring Raymond Burr. She also appeared in comedy series, such as a 1958 episode of Leave It to Beaver, starring Jerry Mathers.[10]

Later years

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In the 1960s, she was a popular acting instructor at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television.[11][12]

Personal life

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Adams was married to character actor Byron Foulger[13] from 1926 until his death in 1970.[14][15][1] She was the mother of soap opera actress Rachel Ames.[14]

Death

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She died in 1988 in Woodland Hills, California.[11] Her ashes lie with those of her husband in niche A142 in the Del Prado Mausoleum of Inglewood Park Cemetery in California.[16]

Partial filmography

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Selected Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1952 The Adventures of Kit Carson Mrs. Williams Episode "Snake River Trapper"
1952 The Adventures of Kit Carson Mrs. Trumbull Episode "Outlaw Paradise"
1952 The Adventures of Kit Carson Mrs. Raymond Episode "Pledge to Danger"
1953 The Adventures of Kit Carson Landlady Episode "Claim Jumpers"
1953 Dragnet Episode "The Big In-Laws" (1953)
1953 Death Valley Days Amelia Griffen Season 2, Episode 1, "The Diamond Babe"
1956 Gunsmoke Mrs. Pitcher Episode "Cow Doctor"
1957 Gunsmoke Mrs. Glick Episode " Born to Hang"
1958 Leave It to Beaver Miss Wakeland Episode "School Play"
1961 The Twilight Zone Mrs. Canfield Season 2, Episode 12, "Dust"

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Utah, County Marriages, 1871-1941", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KSPS-SHL : Thu Sep 19 20:40:47 UTC 2024), Entry for Byron Kay Foulger and A. K. Foulger, 13 Apr 1926.
  2. ^ a b "Sweet Lavender". The Vancouver Sun. March 11, 1921. p. 3 Retrieved October 22, 2024.
  3. ^ John A. Willis (1989). Screen World. Crown Publishers. p. 237. ISBN 978-0-517-57332-7.
  4. ^ Dorothy Adams : Classic Movie Hub (CMH), retrieved October 19, 2017
  5. ^ "Gossip and Notes". Courier Democrat. January 18, 1900. p. 5. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
  6. ^ "Dorothy Adams Takes in Moroni Olsen Play". The Independent-Record. The Independent Record. October 15, 1927. p. 2. Retrieved October 22, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ "BRAEMAR SCHOOL RESULTS ANNOUNCED; Dorothy I. Adams Wins Silver Medal for General Efficiency". Vancouver Daily World. June 24, 1916. p. 2. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
  8. ^ "Benefit Play to Be Given". Morning Register. Morning Register. November 30, 1927. p. 16. Retrieved October 22, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.  
  9. ^ Armstrong, Stephen B. (2011). Andrew V. McLaglen: The Life and Hollywood Career. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. p. 75. ISBN 978-0-7864-4977-4.
  10. ^ "TV CASTINGS". The Hollywood Reporter. October 31, 1958. p. 33. ProQuest 2338270688. Hugo Mauritz, 'Mackenzie's Raiders;' Stanley Fafara, Jeri Weil, Rusty Stevens, Sue Randall, Dorothy Adams, 'Leave It to Beaver;' Isobel Randolph, '77 Sunset Strip.'
  11. ^ a b "Obituaries: Dorothy Adams Foulger". Variety. March 23, 1988. p. 133. ProQuest 1286131681. Dorothy Adams Foulger, 88, screen actress, died March 16 in Woodland Hills, Calif. Born in North Dakota, raised in Vancouver and a graduate of the University of British Columbia, Dorothy Adams met her future husband, actor-director Byron Foulger, as a member of the touring Olsen Players. The couple later joined the Pasadena Playhouse. [...] Adams taught acting for 12 years during the 1950s and '60s at UCLA. Survived by two daughters, a sister, three grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
  12. ^ "7 Members of UCLA Faculty Will Retire". The Los Angeles Times. July 16, 1967. sec. J, p. 7. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
  13. ^ Hunter, James Michael (2013). Mormons and Popular Culture: Cinema, television, theater, music, and fashion. ABC-CLIO. pp. 236–237. ISBN 9780313391675. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  14. ^ a b "Obituaries: Byron Foulger". Variety. April 15, 1970. p. 63. ProQuest 1505791621. Byron Foulger, 70, vet screen and tv actor, died April 4 of a heart condition in Hollywood. [...] Surviving are his wife, actress Dorothy Adams, and daughter Rachel Ames.
  15. ^ "Wedding Bells Will Culminate Stage Romance; Byron Foulger and Dorothy Adams, of Moroni Players, Obtain Marriage License". Salt Lake Telegram. April 13, 1926. sec. II, p. 1. Retrieved October 22, 2024.
  16. ^ Resting Places: The Burial Sites of 14000 Famous Persons by Scott Wilson
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