en Jan Shepard

Jan Shepard
Jan Shepard
	Jan Shepard in 1963
Born	Josephine Angela Sorbello; March 19, 1928; Quakertown, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	January 17, 2025 (aged 96); Burbank, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1954–2017
Spouse	Ray Boyle (m. 1954; died. 2022)
Children	1

Josephine Angela Sorbello (March 19, 1928 – January 17, 2025), known professionally as Jan Shepard, was an American actress.

Early years

Josephine Angela Sorbello^[2] was born in Quakertown, Pennsylvania, on March 19, 1928,^[3]^[4] to parents of Sicilian descent, Mr. and Mrs. Sam Sorbello.^[5]^[3] She was valedictorian of her class at Quakertown High School,^[5] and acted in plays produced locally.^[2]

Shepard honed her acting skills at the Pasadena Playhouse.^[5] She appeared in the films Sabre Jet, as well as King Creole (1958) and Paradise, Hawaiian Style (1966) with Elvis Presley, thus before and after his Army induction and his mother's death.^[6] She played Nurse Betty in the syndicated television series Dr. Christian^[7] and appeared in the television series Waterfront, Bat Masterson, The Man Behind the Badge, Tales of the Texas Rangers, Private Secretary, Dr. Christian, Rawhide, Laramie, Perry Mason, Highway Patrol, Gunsmoke, Tombstone Territory, The High Chaparral and The Virginian, among others.^[3]^[8]

In 1951, Shepard met actor Ray Boyle. They married in 1954, and remained together until Boyle's death in 2022. Shepard died from pneumonia at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, in Burbank, California, on January 17, 2025. She was 96.^[4]

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1959	Wanted Dead or Alive	Lilith Preston	Season 2 Episode 17 "Mental Lapse"
1964	Gunsmoke	Marge	Season 9 Episode 17 "Friend"
1965	Bonanza	Sally	Season 7 Episode 21 "The Code"

^ "Raymond Boyle Obituary (1923-2022)". Los Angeles Times. August 14, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2022.
^ ^a ^b Witbeck, Charles (July 21, 1966). "Actress Aims At Movie Life". The Journal News. New York, White Plains. p. 36. Retrieved September 11, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b ^c Magers, Boyd; Fitzgerald, Michael G. (July 2004). Westerns Women: Interviews with 50 Leading Ladies of Movie and Television ... - Boyd Magers, Michael G. Fitzgerald. McFarland. ISBN 9780786420285. Retrieved 2017-06-24.
^ ^a ^b Barnes, Mike (27 January 2025). "Jan Shepard, Actress in 'King Creole' and a Wagonful of TV Westerns, Dies at 96". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Quakertown Girl Makes Good In TV, Movie Roles; Wins Part In New Series". News Herald. Pennsylvania, Perkasie. September 27, 1956. p. 11. Retrieved September 11, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Interview with Jan Shepard, Elvis' co-star in 'King Creole' and 'Paradise, Hawaiian Style'". Retrieved June 20, 2018. https://www.elvis.com.au/presley/interview-with-jan-shepard.shtml
^ Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 268. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
^ Fitzgerald, Michael G.; Magers, Boyd (February 2, 2006). Ladies of the Western: Interviews with Fifty-One More Actresses from the ... - Michael G. Fitzgerald, Boyd Magers. McFarland. ISBN 9780786426560. Retrieved 2017-06-24.