Maureen Arthur, Veteran TV, Movie & Stage Actress, Dies at 88

Veteran actress Maureen Arthur, who appeared in numerous television series, including Mork & Mindy, Perry Mason, and The New Dick Van Dyke Show, has died. She was 88.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Arthur passed away on Wednesday, June 15, of natural causes at her home in Beverly Hills after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. She is survived by her brothers Gerald and David, sisters-in-law Elaine and Marsha, and stepson Tom.

Born on April 15, 1934, in San Jose, California, Arthur became a staple of television and films in the late 1950s through the 1970s, appearing in the series The Monkees, The Flying Nun, Sanford and Son, Laverne & Shirley, Murder, She Wrote, Matlock, and many more.

However, she is perhaps best remembered for her role as Hedy La Rue in the 1967 film adaptation of the Broadway smash How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, a part she first portrayed on a national tour and on Broadway. Arthur returned to Broadway following the movie, starring alongside Bob Dishy and Linda Lavin in the comedy Something Different.

Her other film work includes the screwball comedy The Love God? alongside Don Knotts, How to Commit Marriage with Bob Hope, The Wicked Dreams of Paula Schultz opposite Elke Somme, Killers Three with Robert Walker Jr., and A Man Called Dagger alongside Paul Mantee and Sue Ane Langdon.

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“I can’t overstate how important she was to me,” wrote Arthur’s friend and actress Ilene Graff (Hart of Dixie) on Facebook. “Her amazing talent and skill were only a small part of who she was. A tireless advocate for children in need, especially those with physical, emotional and/or intellectual challenges, she helped raise countless millions of dollars for them.”

Arthur was the president of the Variety Club of Southern California children’s charity, where “she spent tireless hours and traveled the country for telethons to raise money for them,” according to her brother Gerald (via THR).