Fern Persons

Fern Gwendolyn Persons (née Ball; July 27, 1910 – July 22, 2012) was an American film and television actress and a member of the Screen Actors Guild‐American Federation of Television and Radio Artists from 1937 until her death. Her film credits included Field of Dreams and Hoosiers.

Persons served on the national board of directors of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) from 1976 to 1998.

Early years Fern Gwendolyn Ball She moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan, as a young girl with her family and being recognized at commencement for achieving honors in French and English. In 1933 she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts of acting from Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Personal life Ball married Max Persons, whom she had met while both were college students, in October 1935, and they remained married for thirty-six years until his death in November 1971. On July 27, 1999, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley officially declared "Fern Persons Day" to mark her 89th birthday. She was survived by her daughter, Nancy Rockafellow, three grandsons and six great-grandchildren.

Filmography Films The Golden Gloves Story (1950) - Mrs. Burke Man of Steel (1965) On the Right Track (1981) - Flower Lady Hudson Taylor (1981) Class (1983) - Headmistress DeBreul Risky Business (1983) - Lab Teacher Grandview, U.S.A. (1984) - Teacher Hoosiers (1986) - Opal Fleener Field of Dreams (1989) - Annie's Mother Prelude to a Kiss (1992) - Elderly Woman The Secret (2000) - Great Aunt Daria Boricua (2004) - Hilde Klingenberg (final film role)

Television Those Endearing Young Charms; main cast (1952) - Abbe Charm The Mickey Mouse Club; 1 episode (1956) Adventure in Dairyland; main cast (1956) - Mrs. McCandless Cavalcade of America; 1 episode (1957) - Mrs. Hubbard Chicago Story; TV Movie (1982) American Playhouse; 1 episode (1984) - Aunt Vera Hard Knox; TV Movie (1984) Jack and Mike; 1 episode (1987) Sable; 1 episode (1987) - Rebecca Sable Mario and the Mob; TV Movie (1992) Missing Persons; 1 episode (1993) - Althea Swanson Early Edition; 2 episodes (1997–1999) - Mrs. Flowers, Librarian / Helen ER; 1 episode (1999) - Old Woman on El