Meredith MacRae
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Meredith MacRae (born May 30, 1944 in Houston, Texas, died July 14, 2000 in Manhattan Beach, California) was an American actress.
MacRae was best known for her television roles as Billie Jo on Petticoat Junction and as Sally Ann in My Three Sons. She took over the role of Animal from Valora Noland in the Beach Party movie series.
She also made guest appearances on such shows as: The FBI, The Rockford Files, Fantasy Island, Webster, CHiPS, Love American Style, and Magnum, P.I..
Her game show appearances were also numerous and included, Match Game, What's My Line?, I've Got A Secret, Tattletales, Hollywood Squares, To Tell The Truth, Mantrap, and Family Feud.
Other movie roles included Norwood, co-starring with Glen Campbell and Joe Namath, and The Census Taker with her 2nd husband, Greg Mullavey.
In the 1980s, she hosted Mid-Morning Los Angeles and was awarded a local Emmy for her interviewing skills. Later, she created and hosted Born Famous - a PBS series in which she interviewed children of famous celebrities.
In summer stock, in her teens, she appeared with Dan Daily in “Take Me Along”, with Andy Williams in “Bye Bye Birdie”, and in “Annie Get Your Gun”.
Her charity work was endless. At one time or another, she worked to raise funds for such causes as: The Children's Burn Foundation, The American Cancer Society and United Cerebral Palsy. She was also the honorary chairperson for the National Council on Alcoholism and spoke to groups all across the country.
After getting the part of Sally Ann in My Three Sons, she eventually obtained a BA in English from UCLA. She said, "While mom and dad were a little disappointed I didn’t finish college, they didn’t object. But I feel different. I’m not going to give up the idea of college. Next spring, when we take a production break from the series ( My Three Sons ), I’m going right back and pick up where I left off. I know now what a big mistake it would have been to be a high school drop-out. I’ve learned so much that will help me in my career and in life generally."
She was the daughter of show business parents Gordon and Sheila MacRae, and the sister of Heather MacRae. Her only child is her daughter Allison Mullavey by her second marriage to actor Greg Mullavey. Her first marriage was to MGM executive Richard Berger. Her third and final marriage was to Fortune 500 CEO Philip Neal.
She credited her parents with instilling a proper work ethic in her and for keeping her feet on the ground. She said, “We lived in a modest home in the San Fernando Valley instead of the fashionable Beverly Hills which the family could have afforded. Mom and Dad didn’t want us to feel superior to the other kids. I had to earn the things I wanted all the way from dolls to party gowns by doing chores around the house and taking care of my younger sister and brothers.
“Lots of kids in my circle automatically got a car when they were 16. Not me. Dad said he would get me a car when I got straight A’s two years in a row in school. I slaved away and finally made it. I got the car with the warning that if I didn’t continue with straight A’s, it would be taken away.”
In the late 90's, she experienced vertigo and headaches, and was eventually diagnosed with a brain tumor. She endured surgery and chemotherapy, even volunteering to test a new cancer drug, but to no avail. In 2000, on July 14, she died from complications of brain cancer at age 56.
