Charlene Frazier Stillfield

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Charlene Olivia Frazier Stillfield is a character in the television series, Designing Women. She is played by Jean Smart.

[edit] Romantic Office Manager

Sensitive and charming, not to mention more than a little bit naive, Charlene is the epitome of the hopeless romantic. She was born in Poplar Bluff, Missouri, to a rather huge family, including several sisters, notably Carlene Dobber; and several brothers, notably Odell. Charlene is one of the older sisters, (in fact, she is the first born child) and respects her parents position as the head of the family. She, in fact, adores her parents, Bud and Ione Frazier.

She attended Poplar Bluff High School, Three Rivers Secretarial College, and also worked as a secretary at the state capitol in Little Rock, Arkansas, when she was hired by Hayden McIlroy (who eventually married Julia Sugarbaker) to be his secretary in Atlanta, Georgia. After his death, Julia asked Charlene to come into her new design business.

At Sugarbakers, she is the office manager and does her job rather well. At first, in addition to working at Sugarbakers, she sold cosmetics door to door, and used that money to help buy her shares of the business. During this time, she also ran into her old childhood friend, Monette Harlan, who was a hooker. At first, the other women knew not what to think of her, but eventually, they got to like her, her choice of work, notwithstanding.

Charlene also had a medical scare, when she thought she had a cancerous lump in her breast; her doctor told her not to worry about it, and that scared her so badly, that she turned to another doctor, Julia's family doctor, for advice. Her previous doctor, Dr. Mitchell, ended up on the receiving end of a blistering tirade by Julia, for daring to suggest what he did to Charlene. As it turned out, she and her sister, Suzanne had a mutual friend who had also seen that doctor and was told the same thing, with fatal results.

However, her naivete often made her an easy target for some very shady individuals, and more often than not, annoyed her co-workers by being, to quote Julia, "utterly fascinated by absolutely nothing." Rarely did Charlene get angry with anyone, but when she did, it was noticeable.

She is also a rabid fan of Elvis Presley; and a sucker for romantic movies. One of her favorites is To Kill a Mockingbird. She is also a fan of the romantic songs of World War II.

Her best friend in Atlanta is Mary Jo Shively, whom she met when she first arrived in Atlanta. The two lived next door to one another in her former apartment building. The two women are very close; and although Mary Jo too can be annoyed by Charlene's naivete, in reality, she truly does care for her. She does eventually gain a close friendship with Suzanne as well.

Also living in Atlanta, is her cousin, Mavis Madling, (Kim Zimmer) who was a victim of domestic violence. With Charlene's help and the rest of the Sugarbaker staff's help as well, she left her unhappy situation. She and her coworkers also helped diffuse the long-time feud between her father, Bud and Earl Sloan, whose daughter, Cissy, later married her brother, Odell.

Her ideal was a home and family, though, yet she worked. She met her future husband, Air Force Colonel Bill Stillfield who was a childless widower, when the firm was asked to design a wing of the VA Hospital in his late father's name. Their romance bloomed and they were married, despite Charlene's initial trepidation when she met her in-laws in Virginia.

During the wedding, Mary Jo, Julia, Suzanne, and her younger sister Darlene (of whom some people confuse their names, to Charlene's dismay and consternation) were her attendants. She and Bill conceived on their honeymoon.

She continued to work at Sugarbakers, even during her pregnancy, eventually giving birth to her daughter, Olivia Frazier Stillfield, of whom all the women, even Suzanne, doted upon. Sometimes, Charlene was insecure, since Bill was so often away and was also in the first Gulf war. She had the support of Suzanne, Mary Jo and Julia, who stuck by her through thick and thin.

After Carlene, who is even more naive than Charlene was, divorced her husband Dwayne Dobber, she moved to Atlanta, and gave Charlene some much needed help in raising her daughter, since Bill was away in England. Although she is naturally friendly and kind to everyone, Charlene had little, if any, liking for Allison Sugarbaker because she did nothing but insult her and her family. Mercifully, to get away from Allison, Charlene and Olivia eventually left Atlanta for good, moving to England to be with Bill.