Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth interview with Joyce Bulifant, Actress and Author, “My Four Hollywood Husbands”
About Harvey's guest:
Joyce Bulifant is an American actress and author noted for her cheerful, girlish voice. In addition to recurring roles on television including The Mary Tyler Moore Show as Marie Slaughter. She is recognized for film roles in The Happiest Millionaire and Airplane! and as a frequent panelist on game shows, including Chain Reaction, Match Game, and Password Plus.
Joyce was born in Newport News, Virginia.[2] She attended Solebury School in New Hope, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1955 in the same class as her first husband, James MacArthur, son of Helen Hayes and Charles MacArthur. She then studied acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.
Bulifant's Broadway credits include Tall Story (1958) and The Paisley Convertible (1966), Glad Tidings, Auntie Mame, Gentlemen, The Queens!, and Under the Yum-Yum Tree.
She has written and performed autobiographical shows, Life Upon the Wicked Stage and Remembering Helen Hayes with Love, about her former mother-in-law, Helen Hayes, as well as Lillian Gish.
One of Bulifant's earliest roles on television was as a dancer on Arthur Murray's Dance Party (1950-1960). She played Timmie Barnes in Too Young to Go Steady (1959), Mary Gentry in Tom, Dick and Mary (1964-1965), Marie Slaughter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977), Peggy Wilson on Love Thy Neighbor (1973), Lois on It's a Man's World (1962-1963), Marsha Patterson on The Bill Cosby Show (1969-71), Marjorie Martin on Big John, Little John (1976-1977),   and Alice Wurlitzer on The Bad News Bears (1979-1980).
She guest starred as Jessica in Tales of Wells Fargo, episode "Fraud," in 1961, in addition to episodes of Channing, Empire, The Virginian, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Wagon Train, Destry Rides Again, The Real McCoys, McHale's Navy, Dr. Kildare, Naked City, Police Woman, My Three Sons, Love, American Style, The Facts of Life, Harper Valley P.T.A.,The Bad News Bears, Alice, Three's Company, The Joey Bishop Show, and The Donald O'Connor Show.
Joyce appeared as a frequent guest on game shows including Name That Tune, Password, Match Game, Crosswits, Tattletales, To Tell the Truth, $25,000 Pyramid, and Decisions, hosted by David Letterman.
She was the original choice for the role of Carol Brady on ABC's The Brady Bunch, but the part ultimately went to Florence Henderson.
Joyce’s most popular film roles were as Rosemary in the Disney live-action feature The Happiest Millionaire, in which she sang "Bye-Yum Pum Pum," and in the 1980 comedy Airplane!
She has twice been directed by her son, John Asher, in Diamonds and Tooken, and appeared in a comedic short, The Haircut, opposite John Cassavetes.
Joyce received a Theatre World Award for 1961-1962 for her performance in Whisper to Me.
In 2014, she and her husband Roger Perry were honored with a Golden Palm Star on the Walk of Stars in Palm Springs, California.
Joyce has been married five times.
She and her first husband James MacArthur married on November 2, 1958, had two children together, Mary MacArthur and Charles MacArthur and divorced in 1967.
Her second husband was Days of Our Lives star, Edward Mallory. They married on September 19, 1969, and had one child, John Mallory Asher. They divorced in 1974.
Her third husband, William Asher, adopted her son John, giving him the last name of Asher. She and Asher married August 28, 1976 and divorced in 1993.
Her fourth marriage was to Glade Hansen; they married in 2000 and divorced the next year.
Her fifth husband was Roger Perry. They married in 2002 after he divorced his wife of many years, Jo Anne Worley, and remained wed until Perry's death on July 12, 2018.
She has a grandson, Evan Joseph Asher, from her son John's marriage to Jenny McCarthy.
Joyce discovered she had dyslexia in her 40’s and has served as a longtime advocate for dyslexia research, including writing two musicals on the subject, Gifts of Greatness and Different Heroes, Different Dreams. Recipients of the Hans Christian Andersen Award, which she founded to recognize dyslexics who've made a positive contribution to society, include Stephen J. Cannell, and Whoopi Goldberg. Joyce herself is a recipient of the 2015 Broken Glass Award from The Dyslexia Foundation.
She has for many years been actively involved with the child abuse prevention non-profit Childhelp, including serving as a Celebrity Ambassador and as a vice-president on the National Board of Directors.
She also advocates for autism research.
Her memoir, “My Four Hollywood Husbands”, details the alcoholism of four of her spouses and her recovery from codependent relationships.
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