Ruby Joyce Wilbar (1940 - 2003)

Born 21 Oct 1940 in Middlesboro, Bell, Kentucky, United States

Ancestors

Died 1 Oct 2003 at age 62 in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, California, United States

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Biography

Julie Wilbar is Notable.

Actress. Born Ruby Joyce Wilbar, in Middlesboro, Kentucky, the eldest of six children, born to Gladys Marie Webb and William Robert Wilbar. She attended a modeling school in Ohio, after which she won a national contest for "Young Model of The Year" in which Jerry Lewis was a judge. He subsequently cast her in small roles in his films, “It's Only Money” (1962) and “The Nutty Professor (1963). She guest starred in numerous television series including, "Family Affair," "Gidget," "Mannix," "Gunsmoke," "Ben Casey," and "Star Trek," before making a mark as Elvis Presley's girlfriend in the film, "Paradise Hawaiian Style" (1966). Other credits included roles in "Good Morning, World" which ran from 1967 to 1968, "Return to Peyton Place” from 1972 to 1973, "The Doberman Gang" (1972), "When She Was Bad" (1979), "The Devil And Max Devlin" (1981), and "Baby M" (1988). She went back to school, eventually earning a degree in Chemical Dependencies Counseling, after which she worked for nearly a decade as a a staff counselor at a shelter for battered women and their children. In November 2000 she was a featured guest at the Asheville, North Carolina Film Festival. She died in Los Angeles at the age of 62 after a battle with ovarian cancer.

Born Ruby Joyce Wilbar, Julie Parrish played Miss Piper on the "Star Trek" episode The Menagerie, Part I.

Every young woman who played the part of Elvis’ girlfriend in a movie was known ever after as an Elvis Girl so when Julie played his girl friend in “Paradise Hawaiian Style” she became a part of that elite group and that became a part of her identity. She was proud of her role and she loved Elvis for his kind and gentlemanly ways. She went every year to Graceland to celebrate Elvis’ birthday with his wife and the special group that gathered there.

Julie traveled around the United States to her fan clubs, speaking and singing at their meetings as long as she was able. She went also to fan clubs for Elvis to speak and sing for the commemoration of his passing or his birthday. She was generous with her time and loved doing these things.

In 2003 on her way back from Graceland she stopped at my home in New Mexico and spent a week with me. Julie was an avid genealogist as am I and we spent the week exchanging Wilbar information and enjoying being together. She went all over the country visiting Wilbars and gathering information about our family. We corresponded until her death and it was and is a great sadness to me that she is gone from us. You can bet that she would have loved WikiTree and would have taken a very active part.^[1]

Obituary

Julie Parrish, who starred in the 1967 CBS sitcom " Good Morning World " and appeared in films with Jerry Lewis and Elvis Presley, has died. She was 62.

She died Oct. 1 at Tarzana Community Hospital of natural causes that likely were related to her history of ovarian cancer, said her brother, James Wilbar.

Miss Parrish portrayed Linda on " Good Morning World, " which ran from 1967-68 and also featured Billy De Wolfe, Joby Baker, Ronnie Schell and Goldie Hawn. She also appeared on shows including " Star Trek, " " Bonanza, " " My Three Sons " and " Beverly Hills 90210. " She had roles on soap operas including " Return to Peyton Place " and " Capitol. "

She was in the film " Paradise Hawaiian Style, " with Presley, and in one of the film ' s best moments held a group of dogs at bay as Presley sang to her in a helicopter.

Born Ruby Joyce Wilbar, on Oct. 21, 1940, in Middlesboro, Ky., she attended modeling school in Toledo, Ohio, where she became active in theater.

Her film career began when she was chosen by Lewis as the winner of a national modeling contest, and she appeared in the Lewis film " It ' s Only Money. " She changed her name to Julie Parrish for her next film, " The Nutty Professor, " in which she had a small role as a student.

She also had several stage roles, and received a Los Angeles Drama Critics Award for her portrayal of Maggie in Arthur Miller ' s " After the Fall. "

She had several writing credits, including an episode of " Laverne and Shirley, " and recorded " When We Dance, " an album of country music.

Miss Parrish began undergraduate studies in her late 40s, and earned a degree in chemical dependencies counseling.

She served as a member of the board of directors of the Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women, and worked as a counselor at Haven Hills Shelter for Battered Women. She spoke to audiences about domestic violence, and visited schools to discuss dating violence.

" I think the thing she ' s remembered most for is she was a champion for women' s abuse problems, " her brother said. " That was a part of her life as well as the acting and other things. "

She is survived by two sisters, Barbara Scheffler, of Clinton, Mich., and Liza Phairow of Ashland, Ore., her brother, James, and another brother, Robert Wilbar, of Tecumseh, Mich.^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ Lula Tuttle Sinnott
2. ↑ Published in The San Diego Union Tribune, 09 Oct 2003

See also:

• Wikipedia: Julie Parrish
• Wikidata: Item Q4846297, en:Wikipedia
• Find A Grave: Memorial #7943306
• Ancestry Profile
• "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007," Ancestry.com.Ancestry Record 60901 #43368969
• IMDb
• Memory Alpha
• "Kentucky, Vital Record Indexes, 1911-1999," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKHJ-9J2W : 1 July 2015), Ruby J Wilbar, 21 Oct 1940; citing Birth, Bell, Kentucky, United States, Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, Frankfort.
• "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JLSJ-KQ3 : 19 May 2014), Julie Parrish, 01 Oct 2003; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
• The Menagerie Part I