Jackie Loughery

Summary

Jackie Loughery (sometimes credited as Evelyn Avery; April 18, 1930 – February 23, 2024), born Jacqueleen Virginia Loughery, was an American actress and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned "Miss Rockaway Point" in 1949 before becoming crowned Miss New York USA 1952 and later was the first-ever winner of the Miss USA competition, in 1952.

Jackie Loughery
Loughery in a 1956 American Airlines press photograph
Born
Jacqueleen Virginia Loughery [1]

(1930-04-18)April 18, 1930
DiedFebruary 23, 2024(2024-02-23) (aged 93)
Other namesEvelyn Avery
Occupations
  • Actress
  • beauty pageant titleholder
Spouses
  • (m. 1952; div. 1955)
  • (m. 1958; div. 1964)
  • Jack W. Schwietzer
    (m. 1969; died 2009)
Beauty pageant titleholder
TitleMiss New York USA 1952
Miss USA 1952
Years active1951–1969
Hair colorRed
Major
competition(s)
Miss Universe 1952 (top 10)

Early life edit

Jacqueleen Virginia Loughery was born on April 18, 1930, and raised in Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York,[2][3] the daughter and only child of Joseph Clark Loughery and Ellen (Avery) Loughery.[4] She attended St. Francis Xavier Academy for Young Ladies.[5]

Career edit

Miss USA edit

In 1952, Loughery won the Miss USA title after a second ballot broke a first-place tie. Loughery, a redhead, went on to represent the US at the first Miss Universe pageant, where she placed ninth.[6]

Entertainment edit

Loughery appeared in several films, including the 1956 comedy Pardners with Martin and Lewis[7] and the 1957 drama The D.I.,[8] with Jack Webb, whom she married in 1958.[9]

In 1951, Loughery appeared in the short-lived variety show Seven at Eleven. In 1954, she was Johnny Carson's assistant in the short lived CBS game show Earn Your Vacation, in which contestants were asked geography questions.[10] In 1956, she co-starred with Edgar Buchanan and Jack Buetel in the syndicated western television series Judge Roy Bean, as Judge Bean's niece, Letty.[10]: 547  In 1957–58, she made five guest appearances on The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show; three as "Joyce Collins" and the other two as "Vicki Donovan". In 1963, she appeared on Perry Mason as Nell Grimes, the actual murderer of the title character in "The Case of the Bigamous Spouse". She appeared as Martha, sister of Sheriff Sam Phelps in the May 18, 1961, episode of the series Bat Masterson, "Farmer with a Badge". She was featured in the film Eighteen and Anxious (1957) and top-billed in The Hot Angel (1958).[11][better source needed]

Personal life and death edit

 
Loughery and Jack Webb applying for marriage licence in 1958

In October 1952, Loughery married Guy Mitchell, a singer. After that marriage ended, she wed, in July 1958, actor/producer Jack Webb. (A 1964 newspaper brief reported that Loughery and Webb were wed June 24, 1958, in Studio City.)[9] Loughery divorced Webb in March 1964.[12] She married Jack W. Schwietzer in 1969, and they remained married until his death in 2009. All three marriages were childless.[citation needed]

After retiring from acting, Loughery worked at the Home Savings and Loan Association.[13] In December 2022, she was featured in Western Clippings where she discussed her onscreen career.[14]

Loughery died in Los Angeles on February 23, 2024, at the age of 93.[15][2]

Filmography edit

Year Title Role Notes
1953 The Mississippi Gambler Bridesmaid Uncredited
1953 Abbott and Costello Go to Mars Venusian Guard No. 1
1953 Take Me to Town Dancehall Girl Uncredited
1953 The Veils of Bagdad Handmaiden
1955 Escape to Burma Uncredited
1955 Son of Sinbad Harem Girl Uncredited
1955 The Naked Street Francie Uncredited
1956 Pardners Dolly Riley
1956 The D.I. Annie
1957 Eighteen and Anxious Ava Norton
1958 Alfred Hitchcock Presents Slats Season 3 Episode 32: "Listen, Listen...!"
1958 The Hot Angel Mandy Wilson
1962 A Public Affair Phyllis Baines

References edit

  1. ^ Obituary, neptunesociety.com. Accessed April 4, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Evans, Greg (February 26, 2024). "Jackie Loughery Dies: First Miss USA, Abbott and Costello Co-Star & Early Johnny Carson Sidekick Was 93". Deadline. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  3. ^ "Beauty From Flatbush Now Rides The Range". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. November 11, 1955.
  4. ^ "Jackie Loughery - The Private Life and Times of Jackie Loughery. Jackie Loughery Pictures". glamourgirlsofthesilverscreen.com.
  5. ^ "Boro Beauty Queen Admits Marital". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. September 22, 1953. p. 3. Retrieved April 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ "Boro Beauty Named Miss U.S." The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. New York, Brooklyn. June 28, 1952. p. 1. Retrieved April 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ Maes, Jack; Hixon, Harry (August 3, 1956). "The Movies". The Atchison Daily Globe. Kansas, Atchison. p. 3. Retrieved April 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.  
  8. ^ "Miss U.S.A." The Terre Haute Tribune. Indiana, Terre Haute. June 23, 1957. p. 61. Retrieved April 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.  
  9. ^ a b "Filed". Independent. Long Beach, California. February 27, 1964. p. 2. Retrieved April 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.  
  10. ^ a b Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 294. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
  11. ^ Jackie Loughery at IMDb
  12. ^ "Loughery Divorces Webb". The Evening Independent. Ohio, Massillon. Associated Press. March 25, 1964. p. 8. Retrieved April 18, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.  
  13. ^ Claesson, Samuel. "Jackie Loughery", Classic Images (April 2024)
  14. ^ Clemens, Samuel. "Jackie Loughery", Western Clippings (December 2022)
  15. ^ Barnes, Mike (February 26, 2024). "Jackie Loughery, 'The D.I.' Actress and Wife of Jack Webb, Dies at 93". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 26, 2024.

External links edit

  • Jackie Loughery at IMDb
  • Jackie Loughery pictures, at allstarpics.net