Cheerio Meredith
{{Short description|American actress (1890–1964)}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2020}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Cheerio Meredith
| image = Cheerio Meredith in Desirable Lady (A Fig Leaf for Eve).jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = Meredith in A Fig Leaf for Eve (1944)
| birth_name = Edwina Lucille Hoffmann
| birth_date = {{Birth date|mf=yes|1890|07|12}}
| birth_place = Missouri, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1964|12|25|1890|07|12|mf=yes}}
| death_place = Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| resting_place = [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)|Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Hollywood Hills]]
| occupation = Actress
| years_active = 1944–1964
| spouse = {{plainlist|
- {{marriage|Conde Thompson Mosley|1910|1949|reason=died}}
- Chester Morrison
}}
| children = 4
}}
Cheerio Meredith (born Edwina Lucille Hoffmann; July 12, 1890 – December 25, 1964) was an American character actress. She was described in a 1963 newspaper article as having "a face like a wrinkled rosebud."{{cite news |last1=Schroeder |first1=Mildred |title=A Trouper Who Loves Every Little Wrinkle |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/16737691/?terms=%22Cheerio%2BMeredith%22 |access-date=December 20, 2018 |work=The San Francisco Examiner |location=California, San Francisco |page=27|via = Newspapers.com}}
Early life
Meredith was born in 1890; her mother was an elocutionist in the Chautauqua movement, and one of her grandmothers was an evangelist. Meredith made her own debut on stage with a monologue at age 3. The name Cheerio resulted from her cheerful attitude as a child.
As a teenager, Meredith sought to play older characters. At age 15, she asked a producer to give her the part of an old woman, and he made her a witch in the play.{{cite news |title=Cheerio Meredith Teenager at 70 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/16737691/?terms=%22Cheerio%2BMeredith%22 |access-date=December 20, 2018 |work=Arizona Republic |agency=United Press International |date=December 24, 1960 |location=Arizona, Phoenix |page=30|via = Newspapers.com}}
Film and television
Films in which Meredith appeared included Brand of Courage (1958), The Long Count (1962),{{cite web |title=Cheerio Meredith |url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2bab34daa5 |website=BFI Film Forever |publisher=British Film Institute |access-date=December 20, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181220195819/https://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2bab34daa5 |archive-date=December 20, 2018}} The Fat Man (1951), I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955), I Married a Woman (1958), The Legend of Tom Dooley (1958), The Three Stooges in Orbit (1962), The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962){{cite book |last1=Robinson |first1=Dale |last2=Fernandes |first2=David |title=The Definitive Andy Griffith Show Reference: Episode-by-Episode, with Cast and Production Biographies and a Guide to Collectibles |date=2012 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=9781476601878 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tcr6UMkvVPwC&q=%22Cheerio+Meredith%22&pg=PT28 |access-date=December 20, 2018 |language=en}} and Sex and the Single Girl (1964).
On television, Meredith portrayed Lovey Hackett on One Happy Family (1961).{{cite book|last1=Terrace|first1=Vincent|title=Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010|date=2011|publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers|location=Jefferson, N.C.|isbn=978-0-7864-6477-7|page=789|edition=2nd}} She also was seen regularly on The Ames Brothers Show (1955) and had the role of Emma Brand (later Emma Watson) on The Andy Griffith Show. Mary Lou Gedman wrote about Meredith's role on the Griffith show, "During her two-year stint on the show, she only appeared in six episodes but somehow, to the American people, she made a lasting impression."{{cite book |last1=Gediman |first1=Mary Lou |title=Journeywoman |date=2009 |publisher=Brandylane Publishers Inc |isbn=9781883911959 |page=3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eHpdpXiB0aMC&q=%22Cheerio+Meredith%22&pg=PT14 |access-date=December 20, 2018 |language=en}} She also had roles in other programs such as Petticoat Junction, December Bride, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Tom Ewell Show, McHale's Navy, Perry Mason and Bonanza.{{cite news |title=Deaths |url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/65-OCR/1965-01-04-BC-OCR-Page-0057.pdf |access-date=December 20, 2018 |work=Broadcasting |date=January 4, 1965 |page=57}}
Personal life and death
Meredith was twice married and had four children, three of whom acted on Broadway before going into other careers. The fourth became a producer of plays.
In December 1964, "after a long illness", Meredith died at the Motion Picture Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. She was 74 years old.{{cite news |title=Last Rites for Actress Cheerio Meredith Set |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/26382528/cheerio_meredith/ |access-date=December 20, 2018 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=December 27, 1964 |location=California, Los Angeles |page=C 9|via = Newspapers.com}} Meredith was buried at [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)|Forest Lawn Memorial Park
Hollywood Hills]], Los Angeles County, California.Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 25047-25048). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.
References
{{Portal|Biography|Film|Television}}
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- {{IMDb name|0580568}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meredith, Cheerio}}
Category:American film actresses