‘Beverly Hillbillies’ Actress Lisa Seagram Dead at 82

Actress Lisa Seagram has died at the age of 82.

The Hollywood legend, known for appearances on TV Shows like Batman, The Beverly Hillbillies and Bewitched, as well as films like Bachelor in Paradise, passed away on Feb. 1 at an assisted care facility in Burbank after a nine-year battle with dementia, as first reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

One of Seagram’s most popular roles was Edythe Brewster—the bride of Frank Wilcox’s oil baron John Brewster, the guy who made Jed (Buddy Ebsen) a millionaire—on CBS series The Beverly Hillbillies.

The actress also made her mark in the role of Lila, the red-headed accomplice of Milton Berle’s villainous Louie the Lilac on the third season of ABC’s Batman.

Seagram also had a recurring role on ABC series Burke’s Law, had a memorable appearance on ABC’s Bewitched, and made appearances on other shows like My Three Sons, My Favorite Martian, The Double Life of Henry Phyfe, Perry Mason, McHale’s Navy, Honey West and The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.

The daughter of a New York City police detective, Seagram was born Ruth Browser in Brooklyn on July 7, 1936. She worked as a graphic artist and as a model in New York’s garment district before she studied acting with Paul Mann, Herbert Berghof, Utah Hagen and Bill Hickey. Her first role was on John Cassavetes’ Faces in 1959.

Seagram’s daughter Chela Fiorini opened up to the New York Daily News about her mother’s first meeting with Paramount Studio head Martin Rackin.

“They asked if she had an appointment and she said, ‘No, but he’ll see me,’” Fiorini said with a laugh.

“I’m Lisa Seagram and I’m here to give Paramount the first chance at me,” she told Rackin, according to her daughter. The meeting resulted in her replacing an actress who had gotten sick on the set of Love in a Fish Bowl.

“She just kept working, role after role. But she was never really satisfied with what Hollywood was offering, all the lusty vixens,” Fiorini told the publication. “She went to Rome to work in films there and got more interesting work in Europe.”

Her film resume also includes The Thrill of It All (1963), The Carpetbaggers (1964), A House Is Not a Home (1964), Caprice (1967), 2000 Years Later (1969) and several films made in Italy.

The actress later worked in commercial real estate in Los Angeles and as an acting teacher in Hawaii.

Seagram is survived by Fiorini, daughter Alisa and grandchildren Jessica and Michael.