Michele Ann Marie "Shelley" Fabares (/fæˈbreɪ/; born January 19, 1944) is a retired American actress and singer. She is best known for her television roles as Mary Stone on the sitcom The Donna Reed Show (1958–1963) and as Christine Armstrong on the sitcom Coach (1989–1997), the latter of which earn ... ed her two Primetime Emmy Awards nominations. Her film roles include playing the leading lady to Elvis Presley in Girl Happy, Spinout, and Clambake. As the niece of singer/comedienne Nanette Fabray, she was indoctrinated early into the show biz life. Tap dancing from age three, she also modeled during her elementary school years and began appearing on such TV shows as Captain Midnight (1954) and Annie Oakley (1954) (the latter a recurring role). At age 12, she made her professional film debut in the Rock Hudson/Cornell Borchers tearjerker Never Say Goodbye (1956) as Hudson's daughter, and went on to play kid sister roles in the rock 'n' roll-themed Rock, Pretty Baby! (1956) and its sequel Summer Love (1957) both starring John Saxon. Teen-idol status came with her coming-of-age role as the ever-wholesome daughter "Mary Stone" on The Donna Reed Show (1958), a part she played for five seasons before embarking on a more grown-up film career. The character of "Mary Stone" was gently phased out of the show as her character "left for college". During its' run, she and TV "brother" Paul Petersen grew so popular that they sprinted to adjoining pop singing celebrity, although both admitted that their vocal talents were limited. In 1962, her recording of "Johnny Angel" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. She left The Donna Reed Show in 1963 (she would return periodically until its end in 1966) to pursue other acting opportunities. This was followed by a second album, The Things We Did Last Summer, which included two hit songs "Johnny Loves Me" (no. 21) and "The Things We Did Last Summer" (no. 46). She released a third album, Teenage Triangle in 1963. She landed top femme parts in such fun-and-frolic fare as Ride the Wild Surf (1964), Hold On! (1966) in which she played the love interest of Peter Noone (of Herman's Hermits) and sings Make Me Happy, as well as three of Elvis Presley's less-acclaimed films of the later 1960s: Girl Happy (1965), Spinout (1966) and Clambake (1967). She then played the love interest of a young Hank Williams Jr. in A Time to Sing (1968). She had support roles in television films like Brian's Song (1971) (playing Brian Piccolo's wife with James Caan as Brian), and Two for the Money (1972). Her performance in Brian's Song earned her a Golden Globe nomination. For her work, she was nominated twice for a Primetime Emmy Award and, in 1994, she was honored by the Young Artist Foundation with its Former Child Star "Lifetime Achievement" Award for her role as Mary Stone on The Donna Reed Show. From 2004 to 2011 she produced the Screen Actors Guild Awards.
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| Organization | Category | Movie |
|---|
Coach
as Christine Armstrong
Episodes: 200
First Aired: Feb 28, 1989
The Donna Reed Show
as Mary Stone
Episodes: 191
First Aired: Sep 24, 1958
The Brian Keith Show
as Dr. Anne Jamison
Episodes: 48
First Aired: Sep 15, 1972
One Day at a Time
as Francine Webster
Episodes: 41
First Aired: Dec 16, 1975
The Practice
as Jenny Bedford
Episodes: 27
First Aired: Jan 30, 1976
Annette
as Moselle Corey
Episodes: 20
First Aired: Feb 08, 1957
Superman: The Animated Series
as Martha Kent (voice)
Episodes: 9
First Aired: Sep 06, 1996
Highcliffe Manor
as Helen Straight Blacke
Episodes: 6
First Aired: Apr 12, 1979
Hello, Larry
as Marion Alder
Episodes: 3
First Aired: Jan 26, 1979
Mork & Mindy
as Cathy McConnell
Episodes: 3
First Aired: Sep 14, 1978
Murder, She Wrote
as Liza Caspar
Episodes: 2
First Aired: Sep 30, 1984
Mr. Novak
as Dani Cooper
Episodes: 2
First Aired: Sep 24, 1963
The Twilight Zone
as Ellen Tillman
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Oct 02, 1959
Daniel Boone
as Charity Brown
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1964
Letter to Loretta
as Marie Schumann
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 20, 1953
Justice League
as Martha Kent (voice)
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Nov 17, 2001
Matt Helm
as Chris / Tina
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 20, 1975
Arrest and Trial
as Donna Blaney
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 15, 1963
The Rockford Files
as Jolene Hyland
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 13, 1974
Love, American Style
as Julie
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 29, 1969
A Whole New Ballgame
as Christine Armstrong
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Jan 09, 1995
Love, American Style
as Sheila
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 29, 1969
Marcus Welby, M.D.
as Norma Fritchie
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 23, 1969
The Love Boat
as Cathy
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1977
The Incredible Hulk
as Holly Cooper
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Nov 04, 1977
The Wonderful World of Disney
as Grace Donovan
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Oct 27, 1954
The Love Boat
as Mary Frances Bellflower
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1977
Ironside
as Charlotte Black
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Mar 28, 1967
Forever Fernwood
Episodes: 8
First Aired: Oct 03, 1977
McCloud
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Feb 17, 1970
The Rookies
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 11, 1972
Mannix
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 16, 1967
Newhart
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Oct 02, 1982
Medical Center
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1969
Arrest and Trial
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 15, 1963
Vega$
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 20, 1978
Police Story
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Mar 20, 1973
Shindig!
as Self - Singer
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 16, 1964
Lancer
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1968
Lucan
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 12, 1977
Matt Houston
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 26, 1982
The Ghost & Mrs. Muir
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 21, 1968
The Donna Reed Show
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1958
Matinee Theater
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Oct 31, 1955
Spencer's Pilots
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 17, 1976
The Bob Hope Show
as Self
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Apr 09, 1950
Mork & Mindy
Episodes: 0
First Aired: Sep 14, 1978
Superman: The Animated Series
Episodes: 0
First Aired: Sep 06, 1996
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 6 | 18 | 26 | 10 |
| 2024 | 7 | 19 | 32 | 11 |
| 2024 | 8 | 19 | 50 | 11 |
| 2024 | 9 | 14 | 26 | 6 |
| 2024 | 10 | 9 | 14 | 6 |
| 2024 | 11 | 6 | 8 | 3 |
| 2024 | 12 | 9 | 16 | 4 |
| 2025 | 1 | 18 | 39 | 9 |
| 2025 | 2 | 6 | 19 | 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 1 |