Dawn Lyn
Encyclopedia
Dawn Lyn is an American actress best known for her role as Dodie Douglas during the last three seasons of the long-running CBS
family comedy My Three Sons
.
, California
, Lyn first appeared as an American Indian
child in the 1967 B-grade western Cry Blood, Apache
at age 4.
In 1969, Lyn auditioned for the character Prudence on the short-lived ABC
series Nanny and the Professor
, but when the pilot did not initially sell, she was released from her contract with ABC. ABC unsuccessfully sued to get Lyn for the part after she'd already been cast for M3S.
Lyn worked steadily in her youth on many popular series like Adam 12, Emergency
, Marcus Welby and Gunsmoke
. In 1971 Lyn had a major role in the western Shoot Out
as Gregory Peck's daughter. She also appeared in movies such as the Walking Tall
trilogy. In 1973 Lyn auditioned for the role of Regan in The Exorcist
, but was considered too young for the subject matter.
In 1974, Lyn appeared in the cult classic
Devil Times Five, where Lyn's character Moe dumps a bucket of piranha
s into a bathtub to creatively kill the character Lovely, played by Lyn's mother. (In Cry Blood Apache, the cowboy
played by Lyn's father murdered the character played by her mother.)
She financially supported her mother and brother from 1969 until around 1980 when her brother's fame eclipsed her.
s, Lyn's 4'10" height began to work against instead of for her when in her teen years. She made a few appearances with Nickelodeon
when the network revived the syndicated M3S series; during a 1990 appearance in New York City
for Nickelodeon, she was invited for an in-studio radio broadcast of The Howard Stern Show along with actress Erin Murphy
(of Bewitched
fame). Lyn and Murphy discussed international politics while egged on by Stern. It was Lyn's second appearance on Stern's program.
While living in Avalon
on Catalina Island
from 1997 to 2006, Lyn performed live voice acting
with the Avalon Community Theater Radio Troupe. Actor Tony Dow
sat in for an in-studio show and later appeared with Lyn at an island charity fundraiser along with his TV brother Jerry Mathers
and TV mother Barbara Billingsley
. Actor Johnny Whitaker
, a childhood friend of Lyn's when Family Affair
was being shot on the same studio lot as M3S, joined her in a live broadcast of the troupe's satire of the film Pearl Harbor
.
video called “Wonder Woman’s New Partner” using clips of Lyn taken from an episode of the Wonder Woman
series entitled “My Teen Idol is Missing.”
In March 2010, Lyn was invited to dinner with Maureen O'Hara
while Lyn was on a visit to Ireland
attending Tedfest IV, a celebration of the Irish comedy Father Ted
. O’Hara’s brother Charles FitzSimons produced some of the TV programs in which Lyn appeared, and she generously spent the evening trading stories about the industry and people they both knew.
In September 2010, Lyn got into a heated and public Facebook
discussion about the so-called Ground Zero Mosque with actress Susan Olsen
, who portrayed the character Cindy Brady on The Brady Bunch
. Olsen’s position was that the Islamic center shouldn’t be built, while Lyn’s position was that the First Amendment to the United States Constitution
guarantees the Freedom of Religion, noting that there is already a mosque within the Pentagon
, the other target hit by extremists on September 11, 2001.
In October 2010 at the invitation of English documentary producer Steve Hardy, Lyn attended a reunion of the cast and crew of the 1970-1971 British children’s science-fiction series Timeslip
. The event was held north of London at a pub named The Plough in the town of Cuffley
in Hertfordshire
.
In February 2011 Lyn recorded several public service announcements for Armed Forces Radio Bavaria concerning the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
Lyn's most recent television appearance was as herself in a 2008 episode of A&E
's Biography about her troubled former teen idol
brother Leif Garrett
. She declined an on-air interview with Fox News host Bill O'Reilly
after her brother's arrest on heroin possession in 2006; actor Paul Petersen
gave O’Reilly Lyn's number and eventually appeared himself in Lyn's place on The O'Reilly Factor
. Similar requests from cable music channel VH1
and others for interviews about her brother were also declined.
Lyn currently resides in Germany
on a five-year mission with her second husband, a former soldier now a civilian with the Department of the Army.
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
family comedy My Three Sons
My Three Sons
My Three Sons is an American situation comedy. The series ran from 1960 to 1965 on ABC, and moved to CBS until its end on August 24, 1972. My Three Sons chronicles the life of a widower and aeronautical engineer named Steven Douglas , raising his three sons.The series was a cornerstone of the CBS...
.
Career
Born Dawn Lyn Nervik in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Lyn first appeared as an American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
child in the 1967 B-grade western Cry Blood, Apache
Cry Blood, Apache
Cry Blood, Apache is a 1970 western film directed by Jack Starrett and assistant director Robert Tessier. The film released by Liberty Entertainment was from an original story by Harold Roberts with a screenplay by Sean MacGregor and has been rereleased as part of a 20 movie DVD pack titled Mean...
at age 4.
In 1969, Lyn auditioned for the character Prudence on the short-lived ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
series Nanny and the Professor
Nanny and the Professor
Nanny and the Professor is a U.S. fantasy situation comedy created by AJ Carothers and Thomas L. Miller for 20th Century Fox Television. During pre-production, the proposed title was Nanny Will Do. The series first aired as a mid-season replacement on January 21, 1970, on ABC and was last telecast...
, but when the pilot did not initially sell, she was released from her contract with ABC. ABC unsuccessfully sued to get Lyn for the part after she'd already been cast for M3S.
Lyn worked steadily in her youth on many popular series like Adam 12, Emergency
Emergency (TV series)
Emergency is an Australian television series produced by GTV-9 in 1959.The series was set in the busy casualty department of a major Melbourne hospital, and is notable for being one of the first-ever dramas shown on Australian television....
, Marcus Welby and Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
. In 1971 Lyn had a major role in the western Shoot Out
Shoot Out
Shoot Out is a 1971 western film directed by Henry Hathaway. It stars Gregory Peck and Patricia Quinn.This was the second-to-last of the 65 films directed by Hathaway.-Plot:Clay Lomax gets out of prison after serving nearly eight years...
as Gregory Peck's daughter. She also appeared in movies such as the Walking Tall
Walking Tall
Walking Tall is a 1973 semi-biopic of Sheriff Buford Pusser, a former professional wrestler-turned-lawman in McNairy County, Tennessee. It starred Joe Don Baker as Pusser...
trilogy. In 1973 Lyn auditioned for the role of Regan in The Exorcist
The Exorcist
The Exorcist is a novel of supernatural suspense by William Peter Blatty, published by Harper & Row in 1971. It was inspired by a 1949 case of demonic possession and exorcism that Blatty heard about while he was a student in the class of 1950 at Georgetown University, a Jesuit school...
, but was considered too young for the subject matter.
In 1974, Lyn appeared in the cult classic
Cult Classic
Cult Classic is a Blue Öyster Cult studio recording released in 1994, containing remakes of many of the band's previous hits.-Track listing:# " The Reaper" - 5:05# "E.T.I...
Devil Times Five, where Lyn's character Moe dumps a bucket of piranha
Piranha
A piranha or piraña is a member of family Characidae in order Characiformes, an omnivorous freshwater fish that inhabits South American rivers. In Venezuela, they are called caribes...
s into a bathtub to creatively kill the character Lovely, played by Lyn's mother. (In Cry Blood Apache, the cowboy
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
played by Lyn's father murdered the character played by her mother.)
She financially supported her mother and brother from 1969 until around 1980 when her brother's fame eclipsed her.
Later career
Like many petite child actorChild actor
The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting in motion pictures or television, but also to an adult who began his or her acting career as a child; to avoid confusion, the latter is also called a former child actor...
s, Lyn's 4'10" height began to work against instead of for her when in her teen years. She made a few appearances with Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
when the network revived the syndicated M3S series; during a 1990 appearance in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
for Nickelodeon, she was invited for an in-studio radio broadcast of The Howard Stern Show along with actress Erin Murphy
Erin Murphy
Erin Margaret Murphy is an American actress who is best known for her role as young Tabitha Stephens on the top-ten television sitcom Bewitched, which ran from 1964 to 1972. For the first season, she shared this role with her sister, Diane, as they were of similar appearance and stature...
(of Bewitched
Bewitched
Bewitched is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972, starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York and Dick Sargent , Agnes Moorehead, and David White. The show is about a witch who marries a mortal and tries to lead the life of a typical suburban...
fame). Lyn and Murphy discussed international politics while egged on by Stern. It was Lyn's second appearance on Stern's program.
While living in Avalon
Avalon, California
Avalon, or Avalon Bay, is the only incorporated city on Santa Catalina Island of the California Channel Islands, and the southernmost city in Los Angeles County. Besides Avalon, the only other center of population on the island is the small unincorporated town of Two Harbors...
on Catalina Island
Santa Catalina Island, California
Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...
from 1997 to 2006, Lyn performed live voice acting
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
with the Avalon Community Theater Radio Troupe. Actor Tony Dow
Tony Dow
Tony Lee Dow is an American film producer, director, sculptor, and a television child actor of the 1950s and 1960s.Dow is best known for his role in the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver, which ran in primetime from 1957 to 1963...
sat in for an in-studio show and later appeared with Lyn at an island charity fundraiser along with his TV brother Jerry Mathers
Jerry Mathers
Gerald Patrick "Jerry" Mathers is an American television, film, and stage actor. Mathers is best known for his role in the television sitcom series Leave It to Beaver , in which he played Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver, the younger son of archetypal suburban couple June and Ward Cleaver , and the brother...
and TV mother Barbara Billingsley
Barbara Billingsley
Barbara Billingsley was an American film, television, voice and stage actress. She gained prominence in the 1950s movie The Careless Years, acting opposite Natalie Trundy, followed by her best–known role, that of June Cleaver on the television series Leave It to Beaver and its sequel Still...
. Actor Johnny Whitaker
Johnny Whitaker
Johnny Whitaker is an American actor and singer notable for several performances for film and television during his childhood...
, a childhood friend of Lyn's when Family Affair
Family Affair
Family Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to September 9, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do civil engineer and bachelor Bill Davis as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis' traditional...
was being shot on the same studio lot as M3S, joined her in a live broadcast of the troupe's satire of the film Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor (film)
Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American action drama war film directed by Michael Bay and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Randall Wallace, who wrote the screenplay...
.
YouTube, Ireland and Facebook
In 2008 a Spanish fan of Lyn’s produced a YouTubeYouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
video called “Wonder Woman’s New Partner” using clips of Lyn taken from an episode of the Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman (TV series)
Wonder Woman is an American television series based on the DC Comics comic book superhero of the same name. Starring Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince and Lyle Waggoner as Steve Trevor, the show originally aired from 1975 to 1979....
series entitled “My Teen Idol is Missing.”
In March 2010, Lyn was invited to dinner with Maureen O'Hara
Maureen O'Hara
Maureen O'Hara is an Irish film actress and singer. The famously red-headed O'Hara has been noted for playing fiercely passionate heroines with a highly sensible attitude. She often worked with director John Ford and longtime friend John Wayne...
while Lyn was on a visit to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
attending Tedfest IV, a celebration of the Irish comedy Father Ted
Father Ted
Father Ted is a comedy series set in Ireland that was produced by Hat Trick Productions for British broadcaster Channel 4. Written jointly by Irish writers Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan and starring a predominantly Irish cast, it originally aired over three series from 21 April 1995 until 1 May...
. O’Hara’s brother Charles FitzSimons produced some of the TV programs in which Lyn appeared, and she generously spent the evening trading stories about the industry and people they both knew.
In September 2010, Lyn got into a heated and public Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
discussion about the so-called Ground Zero Mosque with actress Susan Olsen
Susan Olsen
Susan Marie Olsen is a former American child television actress and current animal welfare advocate. Olsen is best known for her role as Mike and Carol Brady's youngest daughter, Cindy Brady, on the 1970s television sitcom The Brady Bunch for the full run of the show, from 1969-1974.-Early...
, who portrayed the character Cindy Brady on The Brady Bunch
The Brady Bunch
The Brady Bunch is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz and starring Robert Reed, Florence Henderson, and Ann B. Davis. The series revolved around a large blended family...
. Olsen’s position was that the Islamic center shouldn’t be built, while Lyn’s position was that the First Amendment to the United States Constitution
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
guarantees the Freedom of Religion, noting that there is already a mosque within the Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
, the other target hit by extremists on September 11, 2001.
In October 2010 at the invitation of English documentary producer Steve Hardy, Lyn attended a reunion of the cast and crew of the 1970-1971 British children’s science-fiction series Timeslip
Timeslip
Timeslip is a British children's science fiction television series made by ATV for the ITV network and broadcast between 1970 and 1971. The series centres around two children, Simon Randall and Liz Skinner who discover the existence of a strange anomaly, known as the “Time Barrier”, that enables...
. The event was held north of London at a pub named The Plough in the town of Cuffley
Cuffley
Cuffley is a village in the Welwyn Hatfield district of south-east Hertfordshire located between Cheshunt and Potters Bar. It has a population of just over 4,000 people. Politically, Cuffley is part of Broxbourne Constituency in the House of Commons, and sends a Councillor to Hertfordshire County...
in Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
.
In February 2011 Lyn recorded several public service announcements for Armed Forces Radio Bavaria concerning the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
Lyn's most recent television appearance was as herself in a 2008 episode of A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
's Biography about her troubled former teen idol
Teen idol
A teen idol is a celebrity who is widely idolized by teenagers; he or she is often young but not necessarily teenaged. Often teen idols are actors or pop singers, but some sports figures have an appeal to teenagers. Some teen idols began their careers as child actors...
brother Leif Garrett
Leif Garrett
Leif Garrett is an American singer and actor. He became famous in the late 1970s as a teen idol, but received much publicity in later life for his drug abuse and legal troubles.-Early life:...
. She declined an on-air interview with Fox News host Bill O'Reilly
Bill O'Reilly (political commentator)
William James "Bill" O'Reilly, Jr. is an American television host, author, syndicated columnist and political commentator. He is the host of the political commentary program The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, which is the most watched cable news television program on American television...
after her brother's arrest on heroin possession in 2006; actor Paul Petersen
Paul Petersen
William Paul Petersen is an American movie actor, singer, novelist, and activist. Primarily known for his character-type roles in the 1960s and 1970s, as an adult Petersen established the organization A Minor Consideration to support child stars and other child laborers through legislation,...
gave O’Reilly Lyn's number and eventually appeared himself in Lyn's place on The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor, originally titled The O'Reilly Report from 1996 to 1998 and often called The Factor, is an American talk show on the Fox News Channel hosted by commentator Bill O'Reilly, who often discusses current controversial political issues with guests.The program was the most watched...
. Similar requests from cable music channel VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
and others for interviews about her brother were also declined.
Lyn currently resides in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on a five-year mission with her second husband, a former soldier now a civilian with the Department of the Army.
External links
- Official Website http://www.dawn-lyn.com/