Shelley Fabareswas a prolific television star before her retirement and over dozens of movies and TV shows, she showcased her acting and singing talents. Born on June 22, 2025, Fabares began her professional career at the young age of 10 in an episode of the TV series,Letter to Loretta. From thereafter, she went on to appear in numerous TV shows, often in one-episode roles in classic series likeThe Twilight ZoneandThe Incredible Hulk. At the same time, she managed to dot her resume with some notable movie roles, thrice appearing alongside Elvis Presley.
Fabares' rising star also led to her becoming a popular recording artist. In April 1962,her single “Johnny Angel” reached number one on theBillboardHot 100(viaBillboard). She ended up releasing five studio albums in total, with a few singles on each peaking high on theBillboardcharts. At the same time, she began to parlay her music career into bigger roles in musical films. Successful in TV, music, and film, Fabares decided to exit the industry on her own terms, retiring in 2006, and she left behind a legacy of memorable performances.
Spinoutis Shelley Fabares' second collaboration with Elvis Presley and while itmay not be Presley’s worst movie, it still ranks somewhat low on the King’s list of performances. None of that is due to Fabares, however, who is as fun and charming as ever. In the 1966 movie, Mike McCoy (Presley) is the lead singer of a band and a race car driver who is enjoying his carefree life when three eligible women arrive, seeking to marry him.
10 Famous Actors You Probably Didn’t Know Made A Movie With Elvis Presley
Across Elvis Presley’s 31 feature films, there were plenty of recognizable names viewers may be surprised to learn starred opposite The King.
Fabares plays Cynthia Foxhugh, a spoiled heiress who is determined to make Mike her husband, no matter the cost. While Presley is not at his most energetic, everyone else in the cast and the story gel together very well.Fabares plays the part of the “daddy’s-girl” character perfectly, but she’s charming and sweet enough that the performance is never grating. When she’s matched up with a different man later in the film, it’s actually a happy ending.
The Practiceis an American sitcom that premiered in 1976 and follows Jules Bedford (Danny Thomas), a grumpy, but idealistic, old-school doctor living in New York City. Despite having plenty of gripes with his clientele, Jules genuinely cares for those who come through his office. He has a grown boy, David (David Spielberg), who is also a doctor, though he’s generally more concerned with how much money he can make than with the medical help he provides.
It’s a funny and engaging performance from Fabares, who is sweet enough to abide Jules' needling but also able to bark back whenever he goes too far.
David is married to Jenny (Shelley Fabares), a kind and intelligent young woman who helps David raise their two young sons, Paul (Allen Price) and Tony (Damon Raskin). Jenny is often challenged on her parenting style and frequently butts heads with her father-in-law. It’s a funny and engaging performance from Fabares, who is sweet enough to abide Jules' needling but also able to bark back whenever he goes too far.
8Highcliffe Manor (1979)
Helen Blacke (6 Episodes, 1979)
Highcliffe Manoris a short-lived gothic horror sitcom in the vein ofshows likeThe MunstersorThe Addams Family. In the series, a vivacious, but flaky, widow, Helen Blacke (Shelley Fabares) owns a creepy, old mansion on a desolate island in New England. The mansion was once a scientific research institute and now houses a mad scientist, a bionic man, a womanizing preacher, and a host of other undesirable, but ultimately loveable characters.
Eight episodes of the show were filmed, but only six were ever aired. Despite the short-lived nature of the show, it was an exciting premise, and it’sone of the few times that Fabares headlined a TV series or a movie all on her own. She’s funny and confident in the lead role, and it’s a shameHighcliffe Manordidn’t turn into something bigger.
Girl Happyis a musical romantic comedy anda summer vacation movie, which instantly sets the mood and tone for the film. It’s the first collaboration between Shelley Fabares and Elvis Presley, and it’s clear why their electric union spawned two more movies.Girl Happyfollows Rusty Wells (Presley), a nightclub singer who is hired by the club’s owner, Big Frank (Harold Stone), to act as a bodyguard for his daughter, Valerie (Fabares), when she goes to Fort Lauderdale for spring break.
There, while partying in the sun, the two begin to fall for one another.It’s a romantic and breezy film with some excellent musical momentsas well. One of the songs featured in the film, “Puppet on a String”, reached #14 on theBillboardHot 100 (viaBillboard). Fabares gets the chance to sing on the soundtrack, performing a memorable duet of “Spring Fever” with Presley.
Shelley Fabares co-stars inHold On!as Louisa Page, playing alongside the real-life English rock band, Herman’s Hermits. When the American public votes to name one of their new spaceships after the band, NASA sends an investigator to shadow the band and verify they’re a wholesome group that won’t cause any embarrassment for the agency.
Louisa is a young woman who Herman (Peter Noone), the lead singer of Herman’s Hermits, falls in love with. When she also begins to fall for Herman, Louisa convinces her mother to let the band play a charity benefit. While Herman’s Hermits plays most of the songs on the album,Fabares sings one of the tracks, “Make Me Happy”, a poppy and ethereal beach tune that feels like it came from The Mamas & the Papas. It’s enough to woo Herman to her side.
The Brian Keith Show, calledThe Little Peoplein its first season, is a sitcom that ran from 1972-1974 and starred Brian Keith as Dr. Sean Jamison, a pediatrician who runs a free clinic in Oahu, Hawaii. Shelley Fabares plays Jamison’s daughter, Dr. Anne Jamison, who works with her dad. The tropical setting of the series makes it all the more watchable and Keith and Fabares have excellent chemistry together.
Anne Jamison is a smart and resourceful young doctor, and she’s also able to temper some of Sean’s worst impulses. This was the first major television role for Fabares afterThe Donna ReedShow. It was immediately clear fromThe Brian Keith Show, that she had not lost her ability to perform the same role week in and week out and not lose her energy and understanding of the character.
Superman: The Animated Series
Cast
Superman: The Animated Series is a cartoon centered around the Man of Steel’s many adventures. Aired from 1996 to 2000, it is part of Warner Bros.' DC Animated Universe, set in the same continuity as Batman: The Animated Series and Justice League: Unlimited.
Superman: The Animated Seriesis considered one ofthe best animated Superman showsever thanks to its bright color palette, understanding of the character as both an all-powerful being and a symbol of hope for humanity, and its consideration of Superman’s extensive lore. Shelley Fabares voices Martha Kent in the series and even reprises the role in theJustice Leagueshow andher final film or TV appearance, the direct-to-video movie,Superman: Brainiac Attacks.
Fabares brings a gravitas to the role that’s crucial to being Superman’s adoptive mother, but she also provides a warmth that figures into questions about Superman’s relationship with humanity. It’s also a powerful and energetic voice performance. The character may be older, but Fabares' voice work makes the character younger, explaining how she’s been able to keep up with her god-like son all these years.
One Day at a Time
One Day at a Time is a comedy that originally aired on CBS between 1975 and 1984. It follows a recently divorced mother who raises her two kids in Indianapolis. The original series starred Bonnie Franklin, Pat Harrington, Valerie Bertinelli, and Mackenzie Phillips, but the show was also rebooted in 2017. The reboot ran for four seasons and centered on three generations of a Cuban-American family.
InOne Day at a Time, a divorced mother, Ann Romano (Bonnie Franklin), moves herself and her teenage daughters to Indianapolis from their home in Logansport, Indiana. There, Ann falls in and out of love, makes a new life for herself, and deals with all the struggles that come from trying to be a breadwinner and a single parent. Shelley Fabares appears in season 3 as Francine Webster, a workplace rival to Ann.
The series earned two Golden Globe Awards and two Emmys. Fabares' performance is funny and heartwarming at points when she and Ann begin to support one another.
As the seasons go on, Ann and Francine develop a begrudging respect which becomes a full-on friendship, and Fabares goes from a guest character to a main one in later seasons. Ann and Francine even eventually open an advertising business together. The series earned two Golden Globe Awards and two Emmys. Fabares' performance is funny and heartwarming at points when she and Ann begin to support one another.
2The Donna Reed Show (1958-1966)
Mary Stone (191 Episodes, 1958-1964)
One of Shelley Fabares' early major roles,The Donna Reed Show, follows Donna Stone (Reed), a middle-class housewife who tries to be a good mother, wife, and all-around person in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Her daughter, Mary Stone, is played by Shelley Fabares. This role is what boosted Fabares star up enough that she was soon after able to pursue a singing career. She even left the show towards the end of the series to pursue filmmaking and singing full-time.
The Donna Reedshow is notable for being one of the few TV sitcoms to feature a mother at the center of the story. Donna Stone isone of the best TV moms ever, but Fabares is one of the best TV daughters as well. Despite being very young, Fabares handles her scenes extremely well and doesn’t ever seem out of her depth, despite the breadth of talent on screen.
Coach
Coach: This sitcom centers on Hayden Fox, the blunt and gruff head coach of a college football team, as he balances the demands of sports management with the challenges of family life. The series explores the comedic interactions between his professional responsibilities and personal relationships.
Coachwas an extremely popular sitcom that aired on ABC, and it is probablyCraig T. Nelson’s best performance of his career. Part of his success has to be attributed to his screen partner, Shelley Fabares, who plays Hayden Fox’s (Nelson) wife, Christine Armstrong. Starting the series as a news anchor, Christine soon marries Hayden. Christine is a very smart, affable, and funny character in the series who can go toe to toe with Nelson in any scene.
Fabares earned two Emmy nominations for her work on the showand is an extremely memorable part of the series. She can go from being a consummate professional to a furious, wise-cracking wife at a moment’s turn. Christine stands up for herself and rarely gives up on the things she wants. It’sShelley Fabares' most complete performance, showcasing everything that makes her such an excellent actress.
