‘General Hospital,’ ‘Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.’ Star Dies: Elizabeth MacRae Was 88

Elizabeth MacRae, who starred in the sitcom Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. and the ABC soap opera General Hospital, has died. MacRae passed away in her hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina on Monday, May 27, according to local outlet City View and Deadline. She was 88. A cause of death was not disclosed.

“She had a wonderful life. She was bright and articulate. She was still getting fan mail at Highland House,” MacRae’s nephew Jim MacRae told City View. “It’s sad, but she has crossed the river. She had a wonderful life. The last few years were rough, but she is with my dad, who she adored, her father and mother, sister and husband. She lived a good life.”

Born in Columbia, South Carolina in February 1936, MacRae, who grew up in Fayetteville, pursued acting in 1956 after being educated in Washington D.C. and moving to New York City. After auditioning d for Otto Preminger’s production of Saint Joan in 1956, a role she ultimately didn’t land, MacRae made her television debut as a courtroom witness in CBS’ The Verdict Is Yours in 1958. She followed the part with appearances in shows like Route 66, Surfside 6, Rendezvous, The Fugitive, Judd for the Defense, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, I Dream of Jeannie, and The Andy Griffith Show.

With a career spanning 25 years and dozens of credits, MacRae was perhaps best known for her starring role on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. The actress appeared in the recurring role of Gomer’s girlfriend Lou-Ann Poovie on the show from 1966 to 1969. She is also well-remembered for her role as Meg Baldwin on General Hospital. Her first stint on the show was from 1969 to 1970 when she took over for Patricia Breslin, who played the part from 1966 to 1969. MacRae returned to General Hospital for a second stint as Meg from 1972 to 1973. She also had roles in soaps including Another World, Days of Our Lives, and Guiding Light.

On the big screen, MacRae played Meredith, the woman who seduced Gene Hackman’s surveillance expert, in Frances Ford Coppola’s 1974 film The Conversation. She also voiced Ladyfish in the Don Knotts comedy The Incredible Mr. Limpet, with her other film credits including Live in a Goldfish Bowl, Everything’s Ducky, and 1989′s Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives!, her final film credit.

MacRae retired from acting in 1989 and returned to New York City, where she worked as a drug and alcohol counselor with the Freedom Institute. She and her husband, the late Charles Halsey, later relocated to Fayetteville. She was inducted into the Fayetteville Performing Arts Hall of Fame in April 2023, and her most recent acting credit came in 2011 when she voiced several characters in Supernatural: The Animation, per her IMDb profile.

MacRae is survived by her five stepchildren, Terry Halsey, Peter Halsey, Hugh Halsey, Cate Halsey, and Alex Halsey Topper.