Sian Barbara Allen, a Golden Globe-nominated actor who appeared in dozens of TV series including “The Waltons” from the 1970s to the ’90s and also was known for her work in the 1972 film “You’ll Like My Mother,” has died.
Allen died Monday in Chapel Hill, N.C., of Alzheimer’s disease, her family announced in an online obituary. The actor’s loved ones said Allen was best known for portraying characters who “showed great vulnerability and uncommon empathy, which won her a legion of fans all over the world.” She was 78.
Throughout her career, Allen garnered dozens of credits ranging from hit series “Columbo,” “Kojack” and “Hawaii Five-O” to films “Billy Two Hats” and “You’ll Like My Mother.” Allen also appeared in several TV movies, including “Scream, Pretty Peggy” and “The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case,” notably sharing the screen with Bette Davis and Anthony Hopkins, among others.
Allen was born in Reading, Penn., on July 12, 1946, and was raised by her mother and grandmother. Before her screen debut in “O’Hara, U.S. Treasury” in 1971, she accepted a scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse. She studied under Peggy Feury through the Journeyman program at the Mark Taper Forum, according to her obituary.
The first couple of years of Allen’s television career were defined by minor roles in series including Westerns “Gunsmoke” and “Bonanza” and TV movies “The Scarecrow” and “The Family Rico.” In 1972, she tried her hand at film, portraying a mentally challenged young woman in “You’ll Like My Mother” opposite Patty Duke, Rosemary Murphy and Richard Thomas.
For Allen, “You’ll Like My Mother” was more than just another acting credit under her belt. The film earned her a new star of the year nomination at the 1973 Golden Globes (Diana Ross won the prize for her starring role in “Lady Sings the Blues”) and marked the beginning of her partnership with Thomas. They had a brief romance before Allen married (and later divorced) Peter Gelblum in 1979.
After their time on “You’ll Like My Mother,” Allen and Thomas reunited in 1972 for the CBS drama “The Waltons.” Allen briefly portrayed Jenny Pendleton, the love interest of Thomas’ John-Boy Walton. Throughout the ’70s, Allen had a steady stream of minor roles in shows including “Marcus Welby, M.D.,” “Ironside,” “Baretta” and “The Incredible Hulk.”
Allen’s screen career began to taper off in the ’80s and her final acting credit was in 1990 for a single episode of “L.A. Law,” according to IMDb. Allen, who also enjoyed a theater career, withdrew from the public eye in 1990 and focused on local politics, including supporting Cesar Chavez’s United Farmer Workers labor movement.
Allen received the key to the city of her hometown and was also a poet, music enthusiast and lover of “mac and cheese, root beer floats, and bacon cheeseburgers (no lettuce or tomato),” her family said. She is survived by her ex-husband, Peter, their daughter, Emily (whom she named after her “Our Town” character Emily Webb), sisters Hannah Davie and Meg Pokrass, nephew Miles Bond, several cousins and grandson Arlo Fonseca.
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