American actress Brenda Benet is well recognized for her roles in the soap operas “Days of Our Lives” and “The Young Marrieds.” In 1964, she landed her first acting role in the sitcom “Wendy and Me” on ABC. She eventually rose to fame as an actor and appeared on numerous TV series, including “I Dream of Jeannie,” “Daniel Boone,” “Mannix,” “My Three Sons,” “Hogan’s Heroes,” “Love, American Style,” “Wonder Woman,” “The Love Boat,” and “The Courtship of Eddie’s Father.” In the 1965 motion picture “Beach Ball,” she debuted as “Samantha.” She also played a significant part in the 1973 motion picture “Walking Tall.” Her final TV appearance was in the 1982 season of “Father Murphy.” In a show episode, she portrayed a character named Rachel Hansen. Brenda had a successful career, but she left the entertainment business later to concentrate on her family. Nevertheless, after her son passed away, she experienced a serious depressive episode. She put a handgun in her mouth in 1982 and ended her life. She passed away at home in Los Angeles.
Early Life & Childhood of Brenda Benet
On August 14, 1945, Brenda Ann Nelson was born in Los Angeles, California. Brenda’s siblings were lighter in color. She started to wonder aloud if she was adopted as a result.
She frequently thought she didn’t belong in the family. When she was a teenager, she felt uncomfortable and self-conscious.
She briefly studied at the “University of California, Los Angeles” (UCLA), specializing in languages.
Career of Brenda Benet
In 1964, she made her television debut on the show “Wendy and Me.” She appeared in a series episode as “Shamir.”
She was selected to star in the American daytime soap opera “The Young Marrieds” as “Jill McComb” in 1965.
Prior to her appearance on “The Young Marrieds,” she portrayed “Karema” in the television series “McHale’s Navy.” She portrayed “Gizelle” in the 1966 television spy thriller “The Girl from U.N.C.L.E.”
She also had an appearance in the American action-adventure TV series “Daniel Boone” the same year as “Princess Little Fawn.” Fess Parker played the role of “Daniel Boone” in the show.
She made two appearances in the 1966 season of “My Three Sons,” an ABC television series.
In 1967, she starred in television programs like “I Dream of Jeannie,” “The Iron Horse,” and “The Green Hornet.” She made appearances in two episodes of the action-adventure series “It Takes a Thief” on ABC in 1968.
She also made three appearances in “Hogan’s Heroes” episodes that same year. She had appearances in television programs in 1969, including “Where the Heart Is,” “The F.B.I.”, “To Rome With Love,” and “The High Chaparral.”
She appeared in three episodes of the comedic TV show “Love, American Style” the following year. She appeared in several television shows in the 1970s, including “Death Valley Days,” “The Virginian,” “Mannix,” “Search,” “Tattletales,” “The Love Boat,” “Fantasy Island,” and “Carter County.”
In 1978, she also had a significant part in the American television series “Wonder Woman.” She appeared in a series episode as “Morgana.”
She portrayed “Lee DuMonde Carmichael Williams” in the “Days of Our Lives” daytime soap series. She appeared in 255 episodes of the show as a regular cast member.
She played “Annie Caplan” in the television series “The Incredible Hulk” in 1980. She made her final on-screen appearance in a “Father Murphy” episode in 1982. In the drama series, she portrayed Rachel Hansen.
In the 1956 motion picture “Beach Ball,” she played the role of Samantha.
She was given the chance to feature in Elvis Presley’s American musical comedy “Harum Scarum” that same year. In the movie, she portrayed “Emerald.”
She starred in the 1967 stock car racing movie “Track of Thunder.” In the movie, she played “Shelly Newman.”
She portrayed “Luan Paxton” in the beloved film “Walking Tall” in 1973. The American semi-biopic was based on the life of professional wrestler turned law enforcement officer Sheriff Buford Pusser.
Due to its enormous success, the movie spawned two direct sequels, a TV movie, and a short-lived TV series. There were two sequels to its remake as well.
Brenda has a significant part in the movie. Her career came to an end with this movie as well.
Brenda made the decision to concentrate on starting a family after 16 years in the field. She therefore gave up performing to concentrate on her personal life.
Individual Life of Brenda Benet
In 1967, Brenda wed Paul Petersen, an actor from “The Donna Reed Show.” In 1970, the couple separated when Brenda began dating the actor Bill Bixby.
In 1971, after divorcing Paul, she wed Bixby. In September 1974, she gave birth to her son, Christopher Sean.
Brenda and Bixby separated in 1980. After that, she began dating Tammy Bruce, an American radio personality, writer, and contributor to “Fox News.”
When her six-year-old son Christopher passed away, Brenda was devastated. When the tragedy occurred, they were visiting Mammoth Lakes for a skiing vacation.
Her son’s acute epiglottitis was treated with a breathing tube, but he later went into cardiac arrest. In March 1981, he passed away.
Brenda was devastated at Christopher’s passing. Her declining mental state was also exacerbated by her divorce from Bixby.
When her character on “Days of Our Lives” ended the beloved pair “Doug” and “Julie,” her followers also lost interest in her. Brenda fell into a deep despair as a result of her inability to handle life’s obstacles.
She took a Colt.38 caliber handgun in her lips and squeezed the trigger on April 7, 1982. In her West Los Angeles home, she passed away instantly.
When she passed away, she was just 36 years old. The day Brenda took her own life was described by Tammy Bruce in her book, “The Death of Right and Wrong.”
Brenda passed away in the home that Tammy and Brenda shared. Tammy clarified that two weeks prior to the suicide, she had already moved out.
Tammy was meant to meet Brenda for lunch on the day of her death. Brenda was in the restroom when Tammy came inside.
When Tammy walked outside to seek assistance because she felt something wasn’t right, Brenda had already shot herself.
Net worth of Brenda Benet
The estimated net worth of Brenda Benet is about $1 million.