USMC actor dies at 88

Elizabeth MacRae, the famous Hollywood actress known for her television roles in the 1960s and 1970s, died on Monday at the age of 88.

MacRae, best known for her appearances on “Gomer Pyle, USMC” and “General Hospital,” died in her hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina, Deadline reported.

She began her acting career in 1956, moved to New York City after high school and took lessons from legendary teacher Uta Hagen at the Herbert Berghof Studio.

The blonde, blue-eyed ingenue began her career in off-Broadway productions before landing her first television role as a court witness in the CBS show “The Verdict Is Yours” in 1958.

In the decades that followed, MacRae starred in numerous shows, including Bonanza, Route 66, Gunsmoke, The Andy Griffith Show, and I Dream of Jeannie.

MacRae also appeared in several soap operas, playing the role of Meg Baldwin on “General Hospital” from 1969 to 1973 and appearing on “Days of Our Lives,” “Springfield Story,” and “Search for Tomorrow.”

She is best known for her role as Lou-Ann Poovie, Gomer’s girlfriend, in Gomer Pyle, USMC, where she starred alongside Jim Nabors.

“I loved him deeply,” MacRae told the Fayetteville Observer when Nabors died in 2017 at age 87.

Her film credits include Frances Ford Coppola’s “The Dialogue,” “Everything’s Okay,” “The Incredible Mr. Limpet” and her final role in 1989’s “Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives!”.

MacRae leaves behind her five stepchildren: Peter Halsey, Terry Halsey, Cate Halsey, Hugh Halsey and Alex Halsey Topper.