Occupation Actress Years active 1928–1952, 2002 | Name Mary Stearns | |
Full Name Mary Katherine Jones Born October 27, 1925 (age 98) ( 1925-10-27 ) Glendale, California, U.S. Spouse(s) Johnny Stearns (m. 1946; wid. 2001) | ||
Mary Katherine Jones (born October 27, 1925), better known by her stage name Mary Kay Stearns, is an American actress best known for portraying the fictional version of herself on the sitcom Mary Kay and Johnny from 1947 until 1950.
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Career
Stearns' career began at the age of 2 and a half as an actress and singer at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California. She also appeared in several films before going to Broadway.
On November 18, 1947, the DuMont Television Network debuted a new show starring Mary Kay and her newlywed husband Johnny entitled Mary Kay and Johnny. The series had the Stearns' playing fictional versions of themselves. On the show the pair portrayed a newlywed couple, also named Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns, who were trying to make it in New York. Most of the episodes took place in an apartment complex in Greenwich Village, New York. Mary Kay's counterpart was an everyday, run-of-the-mill, zany housewife and Johnny's counterpart was a bank employee. The series moved from DuMont to NBC in 1948 then to CBS then back to NBC where it finished its run in March 1950.
Mary Kay and Johnny also achieved some firsts during its run. The series was the first sitcom to air on television, contrary to popular belief that I Love Lucy which premiered four years later was the first. It was also the first television series to feature a pregnancy, (the Stearns' real life son Christopher), whose birth and character was written in the show in December 1948. It was also the first to feature a couple sharing a bed.
After the show ended, the Stearns' moved to California where Johnny pursued a career in production. Stearns did another weekly television series by herself entitled Mary Kay's Nightcap which aired on NBC during the 1951-52 television season. She also had guest star appearances on Armstrong Circle Theatre and Kraft Television Theatre. She and her husband also had a seven-year stint as the spokespeople for U.S. Steel.
Personal life
Stearns was married to actor and producer Johnny Stearns. They married in 1946 and she was widowed on December 16, 2001 when Johnny Stearns died at the age of 85. They had three children together; Christopher, Jonathan and Melinda. Stearns also has one grandson.