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Barbara Billingsley

Barbara BillingsleyAKA Barbara Lillian Combes

Born: 22-Dec-1915
Birthplace: Los Angeles, CA
Died: 16-Oct-2010
Location of death: Santa Monica, CA
Cause of death: Illness

Gender: Female
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Actor

Nationality: United States
Executive summary: June Cleaver on Leave It to Beaver

Barbara Billingsley played June Cleaver, wife of Ward (Hugh Beaumont) and mother of Wally (Tony Dow) and the Beav (Jerry Mathers) on Leave It to Beaver. Prior to becoming the iconic perfect mom of the 1960s, she had roles on two other television series, as a doctor's wife on the quickly-canceled Professional Father, and as Gale Gordon's girlfriend on The Brothers. She also had bit parts in such well-remembered 40s and 50s films as Act of Violence with Van Heflin, The Bad and the Beautiful with Kirk Douglas, and the gamblers' nightmare Two-Dollar Bettor with Carl Switzer. She had somewhat meatier supporting roles in the film noir classic Shadow on the Wall with Ann Sothern, and the stewardess-in-love comedy Three Guys Named Mike with Jane Wyman.

After Beaver, Billingsley was completely unemployable, as no-one in Hollywood could see her as anyone but Mrs. Cleaver. She worked occasionally on stage, but was falsely rumored to be dead by the mid-1970s. In the 1980 slapstick classic Airplane!, she played against type as the bilingual passenger who translated Jive into English. After that, Billingsley began a second career of small roles inspired by or parodying her sitcom persona. She also reprised her Mrs Cleaver character in a late-1980s attempt to milk the original with Still the Beaver and a 1995 episode of Roseanne.

Her first husband, Glenn Billingsley, was a nephew of Sherman Billingsley, owner of the famous nightspot the Stork Club. Her grand-nephew is Peter Billingsley, child star of A Christmas Story and director of Couples Retreat.

Husband: Glenn Billingsley (restaurateur, m. 1941, div. 1947, two children)
Son: Drew Billingsley (co-owner, Billingsley's Restaurant in Van Nuys, b. 1942)
Son: Brad Billingsley (co-owner, Billingsley's Restaurant, b. 1945)
Husband: Roy Kellino (director, b. 1912, m. 1953, d. 1956 heart attack)
Husband: William Mortensen (physician, m. 1959, d. 1981)

    University: Los Angeles Junior College (dropped out)

    Endorsement of McDonald's 1988
    Johanns for Senate 2008

    TELEVISION
    Still the Beaver June Cleaver (1985-89)
    Leave It to Beaver June Cleaver (1957-63)

    FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
    Secret Santa (14-Dec-2003)
    Leave It To Beaver (22-Aug-1997)
    Bay Coven (25-Oct-1987)
    Back to the Beach (7-Aug-1987)
    Airplane! (2-Jul-1980) · Jive Lady
    The Careless Years (2-Sep-1957) · Helen Meredith
    Two Dollar Bettor (Aug-1951)
    Inside Straight (2-Mar-1951)
    Three Guys Named Mike (1-Mar-1951) · Ann White
    Pretty Baby (16-Sep-1950) · Receptionist
    Shadow on the Wall (19-May-1950)


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