Melody Patterson (Wrangler Jane) 1949-2015 - Page 2 - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Will Dockery · 09-28-2015, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by opus

Yeah, I went and looked him up. 92.

Wow, good going, Mr. Storch.

um · 06-30-2016, 08:40 PM

Sad about Melody. As of the date of this post, it has been essentially a year ago that she died. I had not heard about it until now.

It is a sad fact that those of us who grew up in the 60s and 70s who watched TV shows such as F Troop, Gilligan's Island, and so many other shows are coming to a point in which we are hearing about the deaths of cast members of those shows and it is such that we have not heard about certain cast members since they last played in those popular TV shows of the 60s and 70s because they either quit show business after the show went off the air or they could not find other roles after being typecast and becoming well known for playing one character etc.
There are some TV shows in which there was only child cast member (such as The Munsters and Courtship of Eddie's Father) and of course the only surviving cast member is the youngest one (I think that Butch Patrick is the only living member of The Munsters) , but in certain cases, the younger cast members , or some of them , died first.
It is then that , with the internet, a lot of us who were alive in the 60s and 70s look up information online that would be much harder to find without the internet, and we find out that some cast members of certain shows are still alive and aging and may be retired and living in an old folks home or are living in near poverty since they starred in a long-ago TV show (Dawn Wells and Tina Louise are the only surviving cast members of Gilligan's Island. Lisa Loring and John Astin are the only surviving cast members of The Addams Family, and Johnny Whittaker and Cathy Garver are the only surviving members of Family Affair), or maybe some aging , or mostly-forgotten TV stars have just gone on to do something like join a religious community and live a mostly-secluded life and don't do anything in the public eye or within the performing arts anymore. Ann B Davis (Alice in the Brady Bunch) did so.

Quitting show business to seek religion seems to be relatively common.
She was not a sitcom star but the woman who gave Elvis Presley his first on-screen kiss, Delores Hart, gave up show business to become a nun. In like manner, singer/songwriter of the 70s Cat Stevens gave up music to join the Muslim religion.

Some former TV actors like Cathy Garver (Cissy of Family Affair) have seen what happens to child stars and she went on to write about the the oftentimes-difficult lives of child stars.

I read that Melody Patterson was in a nursing home at the age of 66 and died of multiple organ failure.
The odd thing is that there are many performers who are in their mid 60s and older and still performing. I think Bruce Springsteen and Dolly Parton must be very near their 70s now and are still performing: Willie Nelson must be much older and is still performing (as far as I know). Davey Jones was still performing up until his death at age 66. The surviving Monkees are still performing, at least sporadically, and they are likewise entering their 7th decade of life.
David Cassidy turned 66 earlier this year.

It might be considered morbid, but that makes me wonder about how someday there will likely be one surviving cast member of shows such as The Brady Bunch , and other shows in which there were young cast members. A younger cast member dying before older ones can happen, and has happened, but a majority of the Brady Bunch cast were children during the 1960s and 1970s when the show first started airing. The youngest are in their mid 50s yet (perhaps not counting Robby Rist who played cousin Oliver).
Suzanne Crough(Tracy of the Partridge Family) died quite recently. Brian Forester is the youngest living cast member or The Partridge Family (if you don't count Ricky Seagull), and Brian is approximately in his mid 50s and had become a race-car driver. Danny Bonaduce reportedly almost committed suicide on live TV.

biffbronson · 06-30-2016, 11:55 PM

You mentioned The Munsters as possibly having only Butch Patrick surviving -- happily both Pat Priest (b. 1936) and Beverley Owen (b. 1937) are still with us.

um · 07-01-2016, 06:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by biffbronson

You mentioned The Munsters as possibly having only Butch Patrick surviving -- happily both Pat Priest (b. 1936) and Beverley Owen (b. 1937) are still with us.

It took me a while for me to realize that Marilyn Munster was played by two different actresses.

caladon · 07-01-2016, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by um

It took me a while for me to realize that Marilyn Munster was played by two different actresses.

Three if you count Debbie Watson who played Marilyn in the 1966 movie "Munster Go Home."

Also, in an odd coincidence both Melody Patterson and Davy Jones both passed away at the relatively young age of 66; and she also had appeared in an episode of the Monkees.
.

SitcomsHeydayfan · 11-29-2018, 04:06 AM

I just heard about Melody Patterson's death. I'm shocked as well! I think most all boys/men who watched F Troop kind of had a crush on her. Another shocking thing is she was ONLY 15 when she started F Troop and lied about her age to get the job!

Imagine if she told the truth? She would've been lost to history because another lady would've gotten the job!

But I was shocked to hear she died of MULTIPLE organ failure at 66! How on earth did she die of multiple organ failure?? Something pretty drastic and devastating must have happened!

Road Dog · 12-07-2021, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SitcomsHeydayfan

But I was shocked to hear she died of MULTIPLE organ failure at 66! How on earth did she die of multiple organ failure?? Something pretty drastic and devastating must have happened!

My understanding is that she suffered a fractured spinal cord as the result from being thrown from a horse and never fully recovered. She ended up in a nursing home. She probably developed sepsis which is not uncommon in nursing home residents. And sepsis is a common cause of multiple organ failure.

SitcomsHeydayfan · 12-08-2021, 03:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Road Dog

My understanding is that she suffered a fractured spinal cord as the result from being thrown from a horse and never fully recovered. She ended up in a nursing home. She probably developed sepsis which is not uncommon in nursing home residents. And sepsis is a common cause of multiple organ failure.

Thanks for the update.

06-30-2016, 11:55 PM	#18
biffbronson Sentimental Fool Forum Star Join Date: Aug 22, 2009 Location: Near Notre Dame Posts: 10,336	You mentioned The Munsters as possibly having only Butch Patrick surviving -- happily both Pat Priest (b. 1936) and Beverley Owen (b. 1937) are still with us.
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06-30-2016, 08:40 PM	#17
um Member Forum Regular Join Date: Oct 26, 2015 Posts: 906	Sad about Melody. As of the date of this post, it has been essentially a year ago that she died. I had not heard about it until now. It is a sad fact that those of us who grew up in the 60s and 70s who watched TV shows such as F Troop, Gilligan's Island, and so many other shows are coming to a point in which we are hearing about the deaths of cast members of those shows and it is such that we have not heard about certain cast members since they last played in those popular TV shows of the 60s and 70s because they either quit show business after the show went off the air or they could not find other roles after being typecast and becoming well known for playing one character etc. There are some TV shows in which there was only child cast member (such as The Munsters and Courtship of Eddie's Father) and of course the only surviving cast member is the youngest one (I think that Butch Patrick is the only living member of The Munsters) , but in certain cases, the younger cast members , or some of them , died first. It is then that , with the internet, a lot of us who were alive in the 60s and 70s look up information online that would be much harder to find without the internet, and we find out that some cast members of certain shows are still alive and aging and may be retired and living in an old folks home or are living in near poverty since they starred in a long-ago TV show (Dawn Wells and Tina Louise are the only surviving cast members of Gilligan's Island. Lisa Loring and John Astin are the only surviving cast members of The Addams Family, and Johnny Whittaker and Cathy Garver are the only surviving members of Family Affair), or maybe some aging , or mostly-forgotten TV stars have just gone on to do something like join a religious community and live a mostly-secluded life and don't do anything in the public eye or within the performing arts anymore. Ann B Davis (Alice in the Brady Bunch) did so. Quitting show business to seek religion seems to be relatively common. She was not a sitcom star but the woman who gave Elvis Presley his first on-screen kiss, Delores Hart, gave up show business to become a nun. In like manner, singer/songwriter of the 70s Cat Stevens gave up music to join the Muslim religion. Some former TV actors like Cathy Garver (Cissy of Family Affair) have seen what happens to child stars and she went on to write about the the oftentimes-difficult lives of child stars. I read that Melody Patterson was in a nursing home at the age of 66 and died of multiple organ failure. The odd thing is that there are many performers who are in their mid 60s and older and still performing. I think Bruce Springsteen and Dolly Parton must be very near their 70s now and are still performing: Willie Nelson must be much older and is still performing (as far as I know). Davey Jones was still performing up until his death at age 66. The surviving Monkees are still performing, at least sporadically, and they are likewise entering their 7th decade of life. David Cassidy turned 66 earlier this year. It might be considered morbid, but that makes me wonder about how someday there will likely be one surviving cast member of shows such as The Brady Bunch , and other shows in which there were young cast members. A younger cast member dying before older ones can happen, and has happened, but a majority of the Brady Bunch cast were children during the 1960s and 1970s when the show first started airing. The youngest are in their mid 50s yet (perhaps not counting Robby Rist who played cousin Oliver). Suzanne Crough(Tracy of the Partridge Family) died quite recently. Brian Forester is the youngest living cast member or The Partridge Family (if you don't count Ricky Seagull), and Brian is approximately in his mid 50s and had become a race-car driver. Danny Bonaduce reportedly almost committed suicide on live TV.

11-29-2018, 04:06 AM	#21
SitcomsHeydayfan Member Senior Member Join Date: Apr 19, 2018 Location: The Show Me state Posts: 2,966	I just heard about Melody Patterson's death. I'm shocked as well! I think most all boys/men who watched F Troop kind of had a crush on her. Another shocking thing is she was ONLY 15 when she started F Troop and lied about her age to get the job! Imagine if she told the truth? She would've been lost to history because another lady would've gotten the job! But I was shocked to hear she died of MULTIPLE organ failure at 66! How on earth did she die of multiple organ failure?? Something pretty drastic and devastating must have happened!