Jean Byron

Jean Byron (born Imogene Audette Burkhart; December 10, 1925 – February 3, 2006) was an American film, television, and stage actress. She is best known for the role of Natalie Lane, Patty Lane's mother in The Patty Duke Show. She was also known as Jean Audette early in her career.

Early life Byron was born in Paducah, Kentucky, Her family moved to Louisville when she was still quite young, and then to California when she was 19 during World War II.

As a teenager, Byron tap danced and performed comedy. In the summer of 1939, she sang with a production company at the Iroquois Amphitheater in Louisville. Byron sang on alternate days on Kentucky Karnival, a program that originated at WGRC beginning on August 30, 1943, and was distributed nationally via the Mutual Broadcasting System.

She also sang with Tommy Dorsey's band, followed by a stint with Jan Savitt's group. She then studied drama from 1947 to 1950, followed by a run with the Players Ring, but offered the performers needed exposure. There, in a play titled Merrily We Roll Along, she came to the attention of Harry Sauber, talent adviser for Sam Katzman. She was asked to read from the script and imitate a British accent, which she did. She got her union card then and there. When asked her name, she replied Imogene Burkhart. Katzman rejected that name, so she volunteered the stage name, Jean Byron, which she had already been using and which the Columbia Pictures brass found more palatable.

Byron's first film was Voodoo Tiger (1952). In the 1950s, Byron appeared in several B-movies, including The Magnetic Monster and Serpent of the Nile, in addition to guest roles on The Millionaire, The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse, Science Fiction Theatre, Fury, Bourbon Street Beat, The Cheyenne Show, plus five appearances on State Trooper. Byron also served as spokeswoman for Revlon and Lux products on NBC's The Rosemary Clooney Show. She played Minnie in the syndicated TV series Mayor of the Town (1954).

In 1959, Byron landed a semiregular spot on CBS's The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis playing Dr. Imogene Burkhart, her real name. During her time on the show, she was cast in a spinoff pilot about Dobie Gillis' girlfriend, Zelda, where she would have played the girl's mother. However, the pilot was not picked up. In the show's final season, Byron convinced producers to allow her character to discard the plain, repressed appearance she presented, and show a more modern version of a schoolteacher.

The following year, she starred in the short-lived soap opera Full Circle. In 1963, she won the role of Natalie Lane on The Patty Duke Show. After the series ended in 1966, she continued appearing in guest roles on Batman, Marcus Welby, M.D., Maude, and Hotel. from 1955 to 1956. Some sources have it as 1949 to 1956. The couple had no children and Byron never remarried.

On February 3, 2006, Byron died at the age of 80 in Mobile, Alabama, of complications following hip replacement surgery.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1952 Voodoo Tiger Phyllis Bruce1953 The Magnetic Monster Connie Stewart Serpent of the Nile Charmion (Cleopatra's handmaiden) 1955 Jungle Moon Men Ellen Marsten1956 There's Always Tomorrow Miss Byron, saleswoman Uncredited Johnny Concho Pearl Lang 1959 Invisible Invaders Phyllis Penner 1963 Wall of Noise Mrs. Muriel Harrington 1969 Flareup Jerri Benton1972 Conquest of the Planet of the Apes Bookstore Owner Uncredited Where Does It Hurt? Dr. Kincaid 1987 Valet Girls Edie Smegmite 1988 The Perfect Match Mom 1989 Pucker Up and Bark Like a Dog Gallery Buyer Television Year Title Role Notes 1954 City Detective ReesaJean 2 episodes1955 The Millionaire Betty Jane Ryan/Bea Ryan 1 episode The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin Irene Larrimore 1 episode You Are There Caroline Lucas 1 episode Science Fiction Theatre 2 episodes: "The Human Equation" and "The Long Day"1956 My Friend Flicka Barbara Schuyler 1 episode Tales of the 77th Bengal Lancers Katherine Cheney 1 episode State Trooper Claire Walden, Jean Burton, Beverly, Millie Marvin, and Stella Bender (1956–1959) 5 episodes Science Fiction Theatre 2 episodes: "One Thousand Eyes" and "The Miracle Hour"1957 The 20th Century Fox Hour Wilma Standish 1 episode Cheyenne Fay Kirby, newspaperwoman Episode: "The Broken Pledge"1958 Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Miss Lewis 1 episode Jefferson Drum Angela 1 episode Yancy Derringer Dorinda Ashton 1 episode Official Detective Lola Paul Episode: "Hired Killer" 1959 The Dennis O'Keefe Show Miss Diffendorf 1 episode 1959–1960 Bourbon Street Beat Martha Delastone, Grace Carvay 2 episodes: "The Taste of Ashes" and "Find My Face!" 1959–1963 The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis Dr. Imogene Burkhart, Mrs. Ruth Adams 18 episodes1960 77 Sunset Strip Claire Donaldson 1 episode Hawaiian Eye Karen Ward 1 episode Tightrope Marla Keel 1 episode1961 Hennesey Gloria Grayson 1 episode Bus Stop Helen Adamson 1 episode 1962 The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor Livona Hart Episode: "Crossed Wires" 1963–1966 The Patty Duke Show Natalie Lane 105 episodes 1968 Batman Mrs. Lindseed, Mayor's Wife 1 episode1971 Columbo Pat 1 episode Marcus Welby, M.D. Dr. Koerner 1 episode1972 McCloud Evelyn Reinhart 1 episode Mannix Helen 1 episode 1974 Maude Housekeeper Applicant 1 episode 1975 S.W.A.T. Nurse Marlowe 1 episode 1981 The Brady Girls Get Married Mrs. Covington, Jan Brady's mother-in-law Television movie 1987 Hotel Dorothy Anderson 1 episode 1999 The Patty Duke Show: Still Rockin' in Brooklyn Heights Natalie Lane Television movie, (final film role) - | 1973 | Barnaby Jones | Merrick's Secretary Episode: "Catch Me If You Can"