MovieChat Forums > Petticoat Junction (1963) Discussion > Bea Benaderet's last appearance(s)

Bea Benaderet's last appearance(s)

posted 8 years ago by Mjollnir
3 replies | jump to latest

In her last onscreen appearance, she has one quick scene where she rushes in to Steve and Betty Jo's home to check on Betty Joe, who is currently with Doc Stuart. Pretty quick scene, and for some reason she's holding a towel or something in front of her. Possibly to mask some weight loss? She still looked pretty good to me.

In the next episode, when Kathy Jo is born, she has a body double with her pre-recorded lines being dubbed in.

It would have been interesting to hear any of the actors' comments on her health condition during the last episodes she appeared in.

[–] kpactg-1 8 years ago

I always wondered about that too. Bea's appearances in the first two episodes of season 6 seemed normal; she was in the entire show and seemed in good health. Then the third episode shows her in one scene for only seconds and
by the fourth episode you only hear her voice.
Were the first two episodes filmed much earlier than the third? Did Bea suddenly take a turn for the worse during the third episode? It would be interesting to know the filming dates of these first four episodes.
Also, at what point did it become clear that Bea wouldn't return?
I wonder if Linda Kaye Henning remembers any of this. After all, that was 48 years ago. The only thing I remember her saying was that the episode which only had Bea's voice was very hard to film because they knew Bea wasn't coming back.

[–] kpactg-1 8 years ago

As I think about it episode three really does seem strange. Why was Bea's character of Kate only in the one scene which wasn't even a minute long?
During the episode it's shown that the three girls are making a crib. You would think that Kate would also be involved in that project with her daughters. Yet one of the daughters (I think it was Billie Jo) says that she's "going to help Mom with the refreshments." Then toward the end of the episode when the guys come home drenched from the rain Betty Jo calls out "Mom more hot lemonade" . Yet Kate never comes out. It seems like her character was originally written in this episode for several scenes but was rewritten. Was Bea too sick to finish this episode?

[–] PaladinNJ (20747) 6 years ago

Bea Benederet was much too ill to appear on set. Unfortunately times being what they were they didn't incorporate her death into the show. Just merely sent her on a trip from which she never returned. Conversely though, they did mention that Charley had passed earlier in the show's run.