{{short description|American actress}} {{about|the actress|the television series featuring the character Molly Dodd|The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd}} {{Infobox person | name = Molly Dodd | image = Molly_Dodd_in_The_Andy_Griffith_Show_1963.jpg | imagesize = | caption = Molly Dodd in ''The Andy Griffith Show'', 1963 | birth_name = Mary Elise Dodd | birth_date = {{Birth date|1921|11|11}} | birth_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | death_date = {{Death date and age|1981|3|26|1921|11|11}} | death_place = Santa Monica, California, U.S. | occupation = Actress | spouse = Henry Farrell (1920-1981; her death)}} {{Multiple issues| {{Lead too short|date=March 2026}} {{No footnotes|date=March 2026}} {{Notability|date=March 2026}} }} '''Molly Dodd''' (November 11, 1921 — March 26, 1981) was an American actress.
== Biography == Born as '''Mary Elise Dodd''' in Los Angeles, California to Rev. Neal Dodd (September 6, 1879 — May 26, 1966) and Lila Elsie Dodd (née Weaver; September 12, 1889 — March 28, 1949), her father was a priest of the Anglo-Catholic Episcopal Church.
Dodd began her career on the Los Angeles stage in 1939, debuting in a revival of the play ''The Cradle Song'' with the Westwood Theatre Guild. Her performance in ''The Penguin'' (1940), at the Call Board Theatre in Hollywood, was reviewed as demonstrating unusual eccentric comedy gifts. That same year, she appeared in ''And Eternal Darkness'' at the Call Board and the review read, "Molly Dodd as the love interest was appealing."
In February 1947, Dodd received a citation from the USO for her performance in Noël Coward's ''Private Lives'' at United States Army camps. She acted in numerous stage productions through the years, including summer stock in La Jolla.
Dodd was in only four theatrical movies. She first appeared as a beautician in Hitchcock's ''Vertigo'' (1958) starring James Stewart and Kim Novak. She also appeared as Mrs. Rigg in ''What's the Matter with Helen?'' (1971), which was written by her husband, writer Henry Farrell, and starred Debbie Reynolds and Shelley Winters. {{citation needed|date=May 2014}} In 1965, Dodd and actor/writer Robert Lansing formed the State Repertory Theatre as a rallying ground for professional actors who wanted to do plays outside the realm of commercial theatre. They did various productions – ''Spoon River Anthology'', a concert titled ''From Our Bag'', Pirandello's ''As You Desire Me'', and a double-bill titled ''Those Mad Victorians'', which the company took to Caltech in the late 1960s. When they returned to Caltech the following season, they performed ''An Evening With Oscar Wilde'', a concert reading based on Wilde's ''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' and ''The House of Pomegranates'', with Dodd as one of the players. {{citation needed|date=May 2014}}
She made a number of guest appearances on various top-rated TV shows, including ''The Rifleman'', ''The Andy Griffith Show'', ''The Twilight Zone'', ''Gomer Pyle'', ''Hazel'', ''Petticoat Junction'', ''The Brady Bunch'', ''Bewitched'' and ''The Rockford Files''. Dodd also played a mental patient in the TV movie ''How Awful About Allan'' (1970), which was written by her husband, and starred Anthony Perkins and Julie Harris. {{citation needed|date=May 2014}}
==Death== Molly Dodd died at the age of 59 in Santa Monica from undisclosed causes and was interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
==Filmography== {| class="wikitable sortable" |+Films !Year !Title !Role !Notes |- |1958 |''Vertigo'' |Beautician |Uncredited |- |1963 |''My Six Loves'' |Woman |Uncredited |- |1971 |''What's the Matter with Helen?'' |Mrs. Rigg | |- |1978 |''Harper Valley PTA'' |Olive Glover | |} {| class="wikitable sortable" |+TV Series !Year !Title !Role !Notes |- |1954 |''Man Against Crime'' |Woman |1 episode, credited as Bea Chilton |- |1958 |''Bachelor Father'' |Woman at Laundromat |1 episode |- |1958 |''Playhouse 90'' |Reporter with Capone |1 episode |- |1959 |''M Squad'' |Police Sgt. Connally |1 episode |- |1960 |''The DuPont Show with June Allyson'' |May |1 episode |- |1960 |''The Rifleman'' |Bessie Steel-Weaver |1 episode |- |1960 |''Peter Loves Mary'' |Singing Teacher |1 episode |- |1961 |''The Tom Ewell Show'' |Vancouver Passenger |1 episode |- |1961 |''Margie'' |Mrs. March |1 episode |- |1962 |''The Detectives'' |Monica |1 episode |- |1963 |''The Twilight Zone'' |May |Season 4 Episode 12, "I Dream of Genie" |- |1970 |''How Awful About Allan'' |Unidentified patient |TV Movie |- |1974 |''The Whiz Kid and the Mystery at Riverton'' |Mrs. Blake |TV Movie |- |} *''How Awful About Allan'' (1970) ... unidentified patient *''The Whiz Kid and the Mystery at Riverton'' (1974) ... Mrs. Blake *''The Rockford Files'' (1977) Trouble in Chapter 17.... Housekeeper *''Ruby and Oswald'' (1978) Woman on Bus *''The New Adventures of Heidi'' (1978) ... Mother Gertrude *''A Last Cry for Help'' (1979) ... Ms. Harrison *''Hazel'' episode "Hazel's winning personality" as Laura (Season 1 episode 11-Aired December 14, 1961) (ref: https://watch.plex.tv/show/hazel/season/1/episode/11) *''Bachelor Father'' episode "Peter Falls in Love" as Woman at Laundromat (1958) *''Playhouse 90'' episode "Seven Against the Wall" as Reporter with Capone *''Dennis the Menace'' episode "Alice's Birthday" as Mrs. Williams - clerk in store *''M Squad'' episode "The Outsider" as Police Sgt. Connally *''ABC Afterschool Special'', "The Skating Rink" (1975) ... Mrs. Bayliss *''The DuPont Show with June Allyson'' episode "Threat of Evil" as May Vale *''The Rifleman'' episode "The Jailbird" as Bessie Steel Weaver *''Peter Loves Mary'' episode "A Star Is Born" as Singing Teacher *''Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' episode “The Carriage Waits” as Woman #2 *''Bewitched'' 2 episodes 1970-72 as Mrs. Brock *''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' episode "The Courtship of Mary's Father's Daughter" as Woman at Party *''The Brady Bunch'' 2 episodes "Brace Yourself" as Saleslady (1970) & "Kelly's Kids" as Mrs. Payne (1974)
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{IMDb name|0230101}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodd, Molly}} Category:1921 births Category:1981 deaths Category:20th-century American actresses Category:American stage actresses Category:American television actresses Category:American film actresses Category:Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery