Sandra Spence TV Schedule

Sandra Spence was a comedian and actress who came to the profession by way of beauty pageants and modeling. Born Nettie Jane Fowler in Olympia, Washington in 1925, she began her movie career in the second half of the 1940s in small uncredited roles in which her looks were more important than her ability to read lines. These included appearances as a dental assistant in the Abbott & Costello vehicle The Noose Hangs High (1948) and a cigarette girl in East Side, West Side (1949).

Spence worked in radio on Stump The Stars, but her appearance made her a natural for television. She began working regularly on the small screen in the early 1950s, including a role (as -- big surprise -- a beauty-contest entrant) on The Abbott & Costello Show. In 1953, she earned the role of Burma, the morally compromised femme fatale in the adventure series Terry & The Pirates.

With her long blonde hair and impressive physique, topped by a world-weary look that eerily anticipated aspects of Anna Nicole Smith's image, Spence was the most visually appealing aspect of the low-budget series, apart from the DC-3 aircraft flown by the two heroes. She never seemed to stray too far from aviation, later playing a regular role on Whirlybirds from 1956 to 1957. In between the two series, she played Pa Kettle's secretary in Ma and Pa Kettle at Waikiki (1955).

Spence left acting after the 1950s. She died in 1974 at age 48.