Whitney Blake

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Whitney Blake February 20 1926 September 28 2002 was an American film and television actress director and producer Blake was born as Nancy Ann Whitney in 1926 in Eagle Rock Los Angeles California the first child of Martha Mae Wilkensen and Harry Whitney Her childhood was spent traveling across the country with her family attending 16 different schools Attending Pasadena City College Blake worked in smalltheater groups in the Los Angeles area and in the summer worked at her mothers ice cream stand in MacMinneville Oregon After her appearance in an amateur Hollywood production of The Women caught the attention of talent scouts she appeared on a number of television programs including the syndicated Johnny Midnight Sheriff of Cochise and twice on Rod Camerons State Trooper In addition she gueststarred on Mike Connorss Tightrope detective series in the 1960 episode High Bridge of the NBC western series Overland Trail starring William Bendix and Doug McClure She also appeared in the first episode of the syndicated western series Pony Express in the episode The Good Samaritan Her guest appearance in the shortlived series The DAs Man garnered an Emmy nomination in 1959 Blake is best remembered for having portrayed Dorothy Baxter an interior designer and the wife of George Baxter Don DeFore a lawyer on the NBC sitcom Hazel 1961 starring Shirley Booth in the title role as a bossy maid In the last season on CBS DeFore and Blake left the series and were replaced by Ray Fulmer and Lynn Borden respectively in the roles of Steve and Barbara Baxter the younger brother and sisterinlaw of George Baxter After Hazel ended she gueststarred in an episode of ABCs western series The Legend of Jesse James starring Christopher Jones in the title role In 1967 she played attorney Lee Drake on The Andy Griffith Show As demand for her in network television and films dwindled Blake became a hostess of a Los Angeles television talk show After that Blake again reinvented herself and became a film and television director producer and writer Blake guest starred as Angie in Incident of the Curious Street in Series 1 Episode 13 of Rawhide and played leading lady to James Garner in The Day They Hanged Bret Maverick the 1958 second season opener for Maverick She appeared on the first episode of the long running television program Perry Mason as the defendant Evelyn Bagby and at least one later episode and appeared in the first film version of a Mike Hammer novel when she starred in My Gun Is Quick in the 1950s Description above from the Wikipedia article Whitney Blake licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia