Today for #womencrushwednesday we begin our look at frequent “Lucy” background character Joan Carey.
Carey is one of the very few people outside of core cast members to make appearances on I Love Lucy, The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, and Here’s Lucy – but we’ve been able to find out surprisingly little about her life and career.
From what we’ve been able to determine, Carey was born Joan Somerville Norbury on February 18, 1921 in Yorkshire, UK. Following her marriage to Halton A. Carey, with whom she had a son, Dennis, she carved out a brief career as an actress and dancer, including an appearance in The Harvey Girls, before moving primarily to small roles in front of and behind the camera.
In 1952, she became a regular fixture in “Lucy” group scenes through to 1974, and although any role she may have had behind-the-scenes on I Love Lucy have been lost to the mists of time (at least for now), she served as Lucille Ball’s stand-in from the fourth season of The Lucy Show through Here’s Lucy.
Throughout her association with Ball, Joan Carey could be seen in the background of many series filmed at Desilu and, later, in several MTM Enterprises productions, including The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Phyllis.
Through at least 1985, Carey appeared as a bar patron in several episodes of Cheers, balancing this with her purported role as Rhea Pearlman’s stand-in. The latest we have spotted Carey is in a small uncredited role in My First Love, a 1988 TV movie starring Bea Arthur.
Following the death of her second husband, TV cameraman Vaughn Wilkins, in 2007, we have been unable to find any reference to Carey, even whether she is still with us at the age of 101. If you have any further information on Joan Carey, it would be greatly appreciated. Send us a DM or email us at [email protected].
With thanks to Lucie Arnaz and Wanda Clark for helping us fill in some of the blanks.
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