- On September 20, actress Elaine Devry died at the age of 93.
- No specific cause of death has been shared yet.
- Devry was known for a strong television career that included ‘Bonanza,’ ‘Perry Mason,’ ‘I Dream of Jeannie,’ and more.
Longtime actress Elaine Devry has died. Devry passed on September 20 at the age of 93 while at her home in Grants Pass, Oregon, according to a notice at a local funeral home; a specific cause of death has not yet been specified.
In a career spanning almost 50 years, Devry became a star of television with credits including Bonanza, My Three Sons, I Dream of Jeannie, 77 Sunset Strip, and Perry Mason. On film, she was known for A Guide for the Married Man and Atomic Kid.
Elaine Devry became a powerhouse of television acting
Born as Thelma Elaine Mahnken on January 10, 1930, and originally billed as Elaine Davis, Devry was born in Compton, California. She grew up there and began modeling at the age of 15, while balancing her studies at Compton High School and then Compton Community College. After uprooting and moving to Montana, she married her high school sweetheart Dan Ducich, but the two split after four years.
RELATED: All The Stars We Lost In 2022: In Memoriam
Returning to California, Devry became Mickey Rooney’s fourth wife when she was 22 and he was 32; the couple stayed together from ’52 to ’58. Where her romance life seemed hectic – she would get married one more time to Will J. White – her acting career was even busier, starting with an uncredited role in A Slight Case of Larceny, through The Atomic Kid, The China Doll, Once You Kiss a Stranger, and many more.
A bit of everything in this filmography
Many classic, beloved shows have Devry’s touch in them somewhere, including the season six episode of Bonanza titled “The Search” and from Death Valley Days, in the episode titled “Yankee Confederate.” Deadline also reports that she was in the CBS anthology series General Electric Theater, led by Ronald Reagan.
Devry continued populating countless treasured programs, including A Guide for the Married Man, where she was the sensual divorcée opposite Walter Matthau’s character. Then Devry stepped away from acting in the ’70s, although she made a brief return by the ’90s and remained active until 1999. Her full retirement came not long after her third husband, White, died on April 23, 1992. Starting in 2005, Devry took up residence at an Oregon ranch, in the same state where White passed.
Devry’s funeral was held on October 7 in Oregon. Rest in peace, Elaine Devry.
