Doris Singleton

Dorthea "Doris" Singleton (September 28, 1919 – June 26, 2012) was an American actress, perhaps best remembered as Lucy Ricardo's frenemy, Carolyn Appleby, in I Love Lucy.

Early life and career

Singleton, born in New York City, trained as a ballerina, dancing for three seasons in the mid-1930s with the newly formed "Ballet Theatre", later to become the American Ballet Theatre. She began her career in show business as a vocalist in the late 1930s with Art Jarrett's orchestra. on which she played Young's girlfriend, Betty Dittenfeffer. She played Ruth Henshaw on the radio version of December Bride.

During a guest appearance on the radio show My Favorite Husband in 1948 she met Lucille Ball and began their long professional relationship. Singleton also appeared in All in the Family as Edith's hotel roommate, Lydia Stonehurst, in the 1971 episode "Edith has Jury Duty". She also appeared in two Perry Mason episodes, titled "The Case of the Crooked Candle" and "The Case of the Purple Woman".

She guest-starred on My Three Sons, playing two different characters who had recurring roles throughout the long run of the show. She originally played the mother of Meredith MacRae whose character Sally Morrison married original oldest son Mike Douglas (Tim Considine) in the 1964–65 season. Later she played Margaret, mother of Polly Williams (Ronne Troup) in the 1970–71 season. At the time of her death in June 2012, Singleton was the last surviving major recurring adult cast member from the "Lucy" shows. Her last major acting role was in Deadly Messages (1985), though she appeared in advertising and voice overs for many subsequent years, most notably in recurring ads for Hills Brothers' Coffee.

Personal life Singleton married comedy writer, director, and producer Charles Isaacs in 1941, and they remained married until he died on December 13, 2002.

Later life and death Singleton resided in the Greater Los Angeles area. She died in Los Angeles in 2012, aged 92, from complications of cancer. She had no children and left no immediate survivors.

Selected filmography Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955) (Season 1 Episode 8: "Our Cook's a Treasure") as Secretary Terror at Midnight (1956) as Linda (uncredited) Affair in Reno (1957) as Nora Ballard Gunsmoke (1962) (Season 8 Episode 8: "The Trappers") as Goldigger Irma My Three Sons (1965) (Season 5 Episode 34: “All the Weddings”) as Helen Morrison Amelia Earhart (1976) as Mary-Jacky Deadly Messages (1985) Marge