From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Lurene Tuttle August 29 1907 Pleasant Lake Indiana May 28 1986 Encino California was a character actress who made transitions from vaudeville to radio to films and television Her most enduring impact was as one of network radios most versatile actresses Often appearing in 15 shows a week comedies dramas thrillers soap operas and crime dramas and she became known as the First Lady of Radio Heaven Only Knows 1947 was her first film She went on to roles in other films such as Orson Welless Macbeth 1948 Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House 1948 and Alfred Hitchcocks Psycho 1960 as the wife of Sheriff Chambers In Dont Bother to Knock 1952 she portrayed a mother who lets a disturbed Marilyn Monroe babysit her daughter The next year she appeared again with Marilyn in Niagara as Mrs Kettering She had a rare starring role in Ma Barkers Killer Brood 1960 She played Grandma Pusser in the original Walking Tall film trilogy and also appeared in horror films such as The Manitou 1978 starring Tony Curtis Her final film role was in the 1983 film Testament Tuttle became a familiar face to millions of television viewers with more than 100 appearances from 1950 to 1986 often in the role of an inquisitive busybody On television and in films Tuttle streamlined herself into a pattern of roles between wise loving wivesmothers or bristling matrons She was familiar to the early television audience as wifemother Lavinia Vinnie Day in Life with Father 19531955 Columnist Hedda Hopper called the selection of Leon Ames as Father and Tuttle as Mother what I consider 22 carat casting with two allAmericans Description above from the Wikipedia article Lurene Tuttle licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia