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IMDbPro

Melba Rae(1922-1971)

  • Actress
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Melba Rae was best known for her portrayal of "Marge Bergman", best friend to "Joanne Gardner", on the soap opera Search for Tomorrow (1951), from 1951 until her untimely death from a cerebral hemorrhage in 1971. Rae was the first high-profile daytime actress to die unexpectedly during an active series.

A lifelong member of the Mormon church and native of Utah, Rae married Gilbert S. Shawn in a Mormon ceremony in New York City on September 2, 1955. The couple had two children, Eric Shawn and Lisa Shawn.
BornOctober 7, 1922
DiedDecember 30, 1971(49)
BornOctober 7, 1922
DiedDecember 30, 1971(49)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Add photos, demo reels

Known for

Lights Out (1946)
Lights Out
6.9
TV Series
  • Actress
Shadow of the Cloak (1951)
Shadow of the Cloak
TV Series
  • Shirley
Roscoe Karns in Rocky King, Detective (1950)
Rocky King, Detective
7.3
TV Series
  • Actress
The Plainclothesman
5.5
TV Series
  • Actress

Credits

IMDbPro

Actress



  • Jane Krakowski, Matthew Ashford, Domini Blythe, Colleen Dion, Terri Eoff, David Forsyth, Lee Godart, Louan Gideon, Marcia McCabe, Jeffrey Meek, Jacqueline Schultz, and Mary Stuart in Search for Tomorrow (1951)
    Search for Tomorrow
    7.0
    TV Series
    • Marge Bergman (1951-1971) (original cast)
    • Marge Bergman
    • 1951–1971
  • True Story (1957)
    True Story
    TV Series
    • 1958
  • Robert Montgomery Presents (1950)
    Robert Montgomery Presents
    7.8
    TV Series
    • Grace
    • 1956
  • Danger (1950)
    Danger
    7.1
    TV Series
    • 1955
  • The Plainclothesman
    5.5
    TV Series
    • 1954
  • Roscoe Karns in Rocky King, Detective (1950)
    Rocky King, Detective
    7.3
    TV Series
    • 1950–1954
  • The Big Story (1949)
    The Big Story
    6.6
    TV Series
    • Margrete Daney
    • 1950–1954
  • City Hospital (1951)
    City Hospital
    7.8
    TV Series
    • 1953
  • Shadow of the Cloak (1951)
    Shadow of the Cloak
    TV Series
    • Shirley
    • 1952
  • Lights Out (1946)
    Lights Out
    6.9
    TV Series
    • 1950–1951
  • Hands of Murder
    5.0
    TV Series
    • 1949–1951
  • Armstrong Circle Theatre (1950)
    Armstrong Circle Theatre
    7.5
    TV Series
    • 1951
  • The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre (1948)
    The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre
    7.2
    TV Series
    • Helen
    • 1950
  • Mady Christians in The Clock (1949)
    The Clock
    7.0
    TV Series
    • 1949
  • NBC Presents (1949)
    NBC Presents
    5.3
    TV Series
    • 1949

Personal details

  • Born
    • October 7, 1922
    • Willard, Utah, USA
  • Died
    • December 30, 1971
    • New York City, New York, USA(cerebral hemorrhage)
  • Spouse
    • Gilbert ShawnSeptember 2, 1955 - December 30, 1971 (her death, 2 children)
  • Other works
    Active on Broadway in the following productions:

Did you know

  • Trivia
    Mother of son Eric Shawn and daughter Lisa Shawn.

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