Debbie Watson (actress)

Debbie Watson
Watson as Tammy, 1965.
Born	Deborah Lynn Watson January 17, 1949 Culver City, Los Angeles County, California
Residence	Southern California
Occupation	Actress (retired)
Years active	1964–1971
Spouse(s)	Richard Sanford Orshoff
Children	1

Debbie Watson, (born January 17, 1949) is a retired American movie and television actress.

Career

Born Deborah Lynn Watson in Culver City, Los Angeles County, California, Watson began her acting in community theatre, appearing in productions of Gangway in Tustin, Forty-five Minutes from Broadway in Long Beach, and, in 1963, Bye Bye Birdie and Brigadoon at Melodyland in Anaheim.

Television

She got her start on television as a hopeful on Ted Mack and the Original Amateur Hour in 1963.^[1] She went on to star as the boy-struck teenage girl Karen Scott in the 1964 sitcom TV series Karen,^[2] the only portion of the largely unsuccessful "90 Bristol Court" to last the entirety of the 1964-65 season. She then appeared as Tammy Tarleton in the 1965 rural themed sitcom TV series Tammy, with co-stars Denver Pyle and Frank McGrath.^[3]

Film

Watson's film appearances include the character of Marilyn Munster in Munster, Go Home! 1966.^[4] The actress was a Universal Pictures starlet at the time, and the studio used Watson to replace Pat Priest, who had played Marilyn through most of the The Munsters TV sitcom series. In 1967, Watson co-starred with Roddy McDowall in The Cool Ones,^[5] followed by Tammy and the Millionaire, which comprised four episodes of Tammy re-edited into a feature-length film.

Later career

Watson married record producer-engineer Richard Sanford Orshoff^[6] in 1965, and they had a child, Darren, in August 1967. She made her final TV appearance on Love, American Style in 1971 before retiring from acting. Watson now lives in Southern California, and she most recently made an appearance on A&E's "Biography" of the Munsters.^[7]

Television series

• Karen (1964–1965)
• Tammy (1965–1966)
• The Virginian (1967) and (1969)
• Love, American Style (1970) and (1971)

Filmography

• Munster, Go Home! (1966)
• Tammy and the Millionaire (1967) [4 episodes of Tammy re-edited into a feature]
• The Cool Ones (1967)

References

1. Debbie Watson on the Internet Movie Database
2. "TV schedule". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. October 3, 1964. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
3. "Goodby Karen Here's Tammy". St. Petersburg Times. August 30, 1965. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
4. "`Munsters` actress sues slot maker". Las Vegas Review-Journal. December 28, 2004. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
5. "Huffing Hoofers Turn Directors". St. Petersburg Times. May 14, 1967. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
6. Richard Orshoff Discography at Discogs
7. http://www.munsterland.net/debbiewatson.html

External links

• Debbie Watson at the Internet Movie Database