Actress Marjorie Reynolds, wooed by rivals Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire in "Holiday Inn" and later the long-suffering wife on television's "The Life of Riley," has died at age 80. She died Feb. 1, her family said Wednesday.
"Holiday Inn," the 1942 film that featured Crosby singing "White Christmas," crowned Reynolds' hard-won place in Hollywood.She went on to star in the Fritz Lang drama "Ministry of Fear" opposite Ray Milland, ham it up in the comedy "Up in Mabel's Room" opposite Dennis O'Keefe, and dance in another musical, "Bring On the Girls," with Eddie Bracken.
As Peg Riley, Reynolds became a familiar face in American living rooms. She played the role opposite William Bendix as Chester A. Riley, aircraft plant worker and lovable bumbler, from 1953 to 1958.
After the Riley television series, Reynolds returned to films in "Juke Box Rhythm" in 1959 and "The Silent Witness" in 1962.
She was born Marjorie Goodspeed in Buhl, Idaho, and moved to Los Angeles with her family when she was a child. She began acting in her childhood under the stage name Marjorie Moore.
She changed her screen name after marrying production manager and screenwriter Jack Reynolds. After they divorced, she was later married to film editor Jon M. Haffen.
She is survived by a daughter.