Lori Saunders is an actress that fans of classic television might recognize for her time playing
the character of Bobbie Jo Bradley on the 1960s series Petticoat Junction.
Although Lori didn’t originate the role, she made it her own once she took it over
from original actress Pat Woodell.
Though Lori remains best known for her work on Petticoat Junction to this day, she performed
in many other works before retiring from acting in 1980.
Nowadays, the actress spends most of her time meditating and practicing a vegan lifestyle
alongside her longtime husband.
Join Facts Verse as we explore what happened to Lori Saunders from Petticoat Junction.
Lori Saunders’ Early Life Lori Saunders was born in Kansas City, Missouri,
on October 4, 1941.
At the time of her birth, the future star was given the name of Linda Marie Hines.
As she began to become famous later in life, Lori would change her name a couple of times
in order to stand out.
However, until just after her coming of age, Lori went by her original first and last name.
Young Lori began showing an interest in becoming a star early on, and she secured the help
of an acting coach during her teenage years.
In 1960, when Lori was only 19 years old, she made her debut on television acting in
a handful of episodes of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.
The series had been airing since 1952 and was incredibly popular.
Not long after entering her new career as a professional actress, Lori came up with
her first stage name.
Instead of Linda Marie Hines, she wanted to be known as Linda Saunders.
Lori would make a name for herself as Linda Saunders by acting in numerous commercials.
It has been suggested that Lori acted in over 100 commercials during her early career, which
made her a ubiquitous face on television.
Soon enough, she’d start getting more real acting roles as a result of this increased
exposure.
After appearing all over television, Lori Saunders started appearing in films during
the mid-1960s.
Though these films were largely unremarkable B pictures, it still worked!
Some of the B movies that Lori appeared in around the time include The Girls on the Beach
and Mara of the Wilderness, both of which were released in 1965.
In 1966, she could be seen performing in a film by the name of Blood Bath.
This film also happened to feature Adam West, who would premiere as the titular character
on the series Batman the very same year.
How Lori Got Cast on Petticoat Junction As Lori flirted with becoming a star on the
big screen, she continued performing on television.
She could be seen on the 1963 series Burke’s Law, but it would be that same year’s Petticoat
Junction that would eventually go on to give Lori the role that she continues to be remembered
best for to this day.
Though Petticoat Junction came on the air in 1963, it wouldn’t be until a few years
later that Lori would be brought onto the series.
The series was a follow-up project from Beverly Hillbillies creator Paul Henning.
It revolved around the owners of the Shady Rest Hotel, which was located in the fictional
town of Hooterville.
These owners were the lead characters Kate Bradley and her three daughters.
Kate Bradley’s three daughters on Petticoat Junction were Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, and Betty.
The character of Bobbie Jo was originally played by an actress named Pat Woodell, who
ended up becoming pretty famous as a result of her work on the series.
Pat Woodell become so famous from her Petticoat Junction exposure, in fact, that she decided
that she didn’t need the show anymore.
Pat left Petticoat Junction after only a few seasons, and that meant that someone else
had to be brought on to play Bobbie Jo.
The producers tried out many girls to replace Pat Woodell as the character of Bobbie Jo
Bradley on Petticoat Junction, and the person that they ended up deciding on was Lori Saunders.
At the time, Lori was still going by the name of Linda Saunders.
Since there was already another actress named Linda on the series, the producers asked Lori
if she wouldn’t mind coming up with a new name yet again.
Thus, Lori finally decided upon her ultimate stage name, with that ultimate stage name
being Lori Saunders.
Lori debuted on Petticoat Junction in the role of Bobbie Jo Bradley in 1965, and audiences
welcomed the replacement actress with open arms.
Not long after, Lori and some of the other girls from the series would start a musical
act dubbed the Girls from Petticoat Junction.
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Lori Started Singing with the Other Petticoat Junction Girls
After leaving Petticoat Junction behind, originating Bobbie Jo Bradley actress Pat Woodell went
on to try her hand at a professional singing career.
This is quite the coincidence, as Lori Saunders’ time as her replacement actress on the series
would see her dabbling in a professional singing career herself.
Not long after Lori was hired onto the series, she and the two other actresses that played
the Bradley daughters on the show began singing as a trio that went by the decidedly uninspired
name of the Girl from Petticoat Junction.
Besides Lori Saunders, the two other actress that formed the Girls from Petticoat Junction
were Linda Henning and Meredith MacRae, who played Lori’s on-screen siblings on the
series.
The three actresses found some moderate success in real life as a result of performing as
the Girls from Petticoat Junction.
They performed in nightclubs and even made a memorable appearance on The Tonight Show
Starring Johnny Carson.
The girls also sometimes performed their songs on Petticoat Junction itself, with the characters
of the Bradley sisters forming an in-universe band by the name of the Hooterville Honeys.
Perhaps if the real-life group had called itself the Hooterville Honeys instead of the
Girls from Petticoat Junction, they would’ve found more success!
However, there’s always the chance that removing the show’s branding from their
name would’ve made it so that they didn’t have any success whatsoever.
Lori Saunders went on to portray the character of Bobbie Jo Bradley for 147 episodes of Petticoat
Junction in total.
However, she was also given the opportunity to play the character of Bobbie Jo on a few
other related series!
As we’ve already established, The Beverly Hillbillies creator Paul Henning created Petticoat
Junction with the intention of the latter series being a spiritual successor of sorts
to the former.
The two shows ended up crossing over, with Lori portraying the character of Bobbie Jo
Bradley in a handful of episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies.
Lori also got to play the role in a few episodes of the series Green Acres, which was a spin-off
of Petticoat Junction.
Though Lori Saunders wasn’t the first actress to play the character of Bobbie Jo, she is
the actress that has portrayed the character the most.
In addition to playing the character of Bobbie Jo Bradley in 7 episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies,
Lori Saunders also played a completely different character during the final season of the show.
During The Beverly Hillbillies last season, Lori could be seen playing the character of
Betty Gordon, who was one of the secretaries of Mr. Drysdale.
Lori Worked with Another Successful Creator In 1973, Lori Saunders began playing the role
of Betsy McGuire on the television series Dusty’s Trail.
This was another show that was created by an established creator to capitalize on the
success of a prior series.
This time, the creator was Sherwood Schwartz, and the series that he was attempting to capitalize
on was Gilligan’s Island.
However, Dusty’s Trail ended up being far less successful at capturing the tone of the
series that inspired it than Petticoat Junction was.
While Petticoat Junction proved nearly as successful as The Beverly Hillbillies, Dusty’s
Trail only lasted for one season.
A big part of this may have been the fact that Dusty’s Trail was more of a complete
rip-off of Gilligan’s Island than a mere tonal successor.
According to Sherwood himself, the show was simply Gilligan’s Island in the West.
Though Dusty’s Trail featured Gilligan’s Island’s Bob Denver returning to play the
male lead, it still failed to find success.
The show only lasted for one season, which was 26 episodes long.
The 1970s also saw Lori Saunders continue to perform in B movies, with some of the low-budget
theatrical fair that the star appeared in during the time including 1971’s Head On
and 1973’s So Sad About Gloria.
In 1980, Lori decided to retire from acting after appearing in the film Captive, which
was released that year.
Where Is Lori Saunders Today?
After leaving the entertainment industry behind, Lori Saunders decided to dedicate herself
to other pursuits.
The former actress has been married to her first and only husband since 1961, with that
husband being Bernard Sandler.
The two have a couple of children and live happily together in Montecito, California.
Though Lori Saunders isn’t the most famous face there ever was, she has plenty of money
in the bank.
It seems her net worth is $3 million.
Lori has things she’s more passionate about than acting nowadays, including her creative
outlets and her spirituality.
Lori likes to paint, take photographs, and sculpt.
She’s also a devoted animal-rights activist and longtime vegan.
Her work in the field of animal rights has seen her become involved with numerous charities,
and she also like to spend her free time meditating.
Lori is now 80 years old, and it seems that she’s doing pretty well for herself since
retiring!
Lori Saunders retired from acting in 1980, and she remains best known for her time playing
the character of Bobbie Jo Bradley on the hit 1960s television series Petticoat Junction.
Now it’s time to hear from you: did you know that Lori Saunders had to change her
name to get her part on Petticoat Junction and that she and some of the other actresses
from the show formed a musical group?
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