Acting
Mary Jackson
One of those strikingly familiar matrons you just can't place, character actress Mary Jackson is probably best known for her recurring role as one of the delightfully eccentric bootlegging sisters, "Miss Emily" Baldwin, on the series The Waltons (1971) that ran for nine seasons. She was born November 22, 1910 in rural Milford, Michigan, and earned a bachelor's degree from West Michigan University in 1932. A Depression-era school teacher for one year before pursuing her interest in theater, she returned to college (this time Michigan State University) in a fine arts program. She started out on the Chicago stage and in summer stock before migrating to the larger stages in New York and Los Angeles. Film and TV roles did not come her way until well into middle age. Guesting on such TV shows as "The Andy Griffith Show," "The Twilight Zone," "My Three Sons," "Hazel," "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Barnaby Jones" and "Highway to Heaven," she usually appeared as ladylike small-town citizens. She was also part of the ensemble in Peter Bogdanovich's first low-budget film thriller Targets (1968), which was Boris Karloff's last feature. In the 70s she started gathering up character bits here and there, such as her nuns in the all-star epic Airport (1970) and the horror Audrey Rose (1977). A variety of pleasant, maternal parts came her way, including Lynn Carlin's mother in the Blake Edwards' western Wild Rovers (1971) and Jane Fonda's in the comedy caper Fun with Dick and Jane (1977). She supported Fonda again in the Vietnam-era drama Coming Home (1978), was among the cast in the cultish Big Top Pee-wee (1988) and had a noticeable role in Steve Martin's Leap of Faith (1992). As for "The Waltons" success, character actress Dorothy Stickney played the part of Emily in the initial TV pilot along with Josephine Hutchinson as older sister Mamie. When the series came to fruition, Mary and actress Helen Kleeb, another one of those "I've seen her before" character faces, took over the spinster roles. Both she and Kleeb continued their sister act periodically in several Walton "reunion" TV-movies, which included assorted weddings and holiday gatherings. Both ladies made their final TV appearances in A Walton Easter (1997). Kleeb died of natural causes in 2003 at age 96. Mary passed away two years later at age 95 of complications from Parkinson's disease. - IMDb Mini Biography
Filmography
A Family Thing
Film · 1996
Christy
Series · 1994
A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion
Film · 1993
Ozone
Film · 1993
Leap of Faith
Film · 1992
The Exorcist III
Film · 1990
Skinned Alive
Film · 1990
Parenthood
Series · 1990
The Case of the Hillside Stranglers
Film · 1989
Big Top Pee-wee
Film · 1988
Meet the Munceys
Film · 1988
My Town
Film · 1986
L.A. Law
Series · 1986
The Snow Queen
Film · 1985
Highway to Heaven
Series · 1984
Hunter
Series · 1984
Scarecrow and Mrs. King
Series · 1983
Hardcastle and McCormick
Series · 1983
Some Kind of Hero
Film · 1982
A Day for Thanks on Waltons Mountain
Film · 1982
A Wedding on Waltons Mountain
Film · 1982
Between Two Brothers
Film · 1982
Family Ties
Series · 1982
Cagney & Lacey
Series · 1982
Faerie Tale Theatre
Series · 1982
A Small Killing
Film · 1981
The Two Lives of Carol Letner
Film · 1981
Hill Street Blues
Series · 1981
Open All Night
Series · 1981
Magnum, P.I.
Series · 1980
When the Whistle Blows
Series · 1980
Letters from Frank
Film · 1979
Hart to Hart
Series · 1979
A Death in Canaan
Film · 1978
Coming Home
Film · 1978
The Runaways
Series · 1978
Audrey Rose
Film · 1977
Fun with Dick and Jane
Film · 1977
The Bionic Woman
Series · 1976
Quincy, M.E.
Series · 1976
The Jeffersons
Series · 1975
Our Time
Film · 1974
The Manhunter
Series · 1974
Blume in Love
Film · 1973
Kid Blue
Film · 1973
Terror at Red Wolf Inn
Film · 1972
The Trial of the Catonsville Nine
Film · 1972
The Rookies
Series · 1972
The Streets of San Francisco
Series · 1972
The Waltons
Series · 1972
The Failing of Raymond
Film · 1971
Wild Rovers
Film · 1971
Cannon
Series · 1971
Columbo
Series · 1971
Airport
Film · 1970
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Series · 1970
Targets
Film · 1968
Lancer
Series · 1968
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night
Film · 1967
The Invaders
Series · 1967
The Invaders
Series · 1967
The Second Hundred Years
Series · 1967
CBS Playhouse
Series · 1966
The F.B.I.
Series · 1965
The F.B.I.
Series · 1965
The F.B.I.
Series · 1965
The F.B.I.
Series · 1965
The F.B.I.
Series · 1965
The F.B.I.
Series · 1965
The Fugitive
Series · 1963
The Fugitive
Series · 1963
The Fugitive
Series · 1963
The Outer Limits
Series · 1963
Stoney Burke
Series · 1962
Hazel
Series · 1961
The Andy Griffith Show
Series · 1960
Route 66
Series · 1960
The Barbara Stanwyck Show
Series · 1960
The Andy Griffith Show
Series · 1960
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis
Series · 1959
The Twilight Zone
Series · 1959
Friendly Persuasion
Film · 1956
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Series · 1955
General Electric Theater
Series · 1953
Robert Montgomery Presents
Series · 1950
The Philco Television Playhouse
Series · 1948