Yvonne Jean Doughty American actress Date of Birth: 14.08.1927 Country: USA

1. Early Life and Career
2. Modeling and Beauty Pageants
3. Relationship with Jesse Barker
4. Legal Battles and Birth of Morgan Ruth
5. Marriage to Lafayette Bartholomew Utter
6. Film Career
7. Friendship and Family
8. Divorce and Later Life

Early Life and Career

Yvonne Jean Doughty was born in Oklahoma on August 14, 1927. Her family had ties to the famous French writer Alexander Dumas. As a child, she moved to Sherman Oaks, California.

Modeling and Beauty Pageants

Before finding her footing in television, Doughty won several beauty pageants and worked as a model.

Relationship with Jesse Barker

In 1953, Doughty met actor Jesse Barker at a restaurant in the San Fernando Valley. Barker, who was 42 years old at the time, was separated from his wife, actress Susan Hayward. The pair spent the next night together and eventually moved into an apartment.

Legal Battles and Birth of Morgan Ruth

After a year, Barker backed out, stopped paying rent, and finally broke up with Doughty in November 1954. In April 1955, he learned that Doughty was pregnant with his child. Despite promising not to make public statements, the actress named Barker as the father in September and demanded $1,000 for medical expenses and future child support. The court ordered Barker to pay medical costs and $50 per month for the child, which later increased to $200 and finally $250. Morgan Ruth, the "culprit" of the legal proceedings, was born in December.

Marriage to Lafayette Bartholomew Utter

In 1961, Doughty married wealthy businessman Lafayette Bartholomew Utter in Las Vegas, Nevada. He was around 47 years old, while Yvonne was 34. Utter owned Utter Pontiac in Los Angeles and provided his wife with a life of yachting, luxury apartments in West Hollywood, and visits to Lake Tahoe.

Film Career

Doughty's last film role was in Robert Aldrich's 1962 horror classic "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" However, her scene was cut from the final edit. Prior to that, she appeared in films such as "Tulsa" (1949), "The Flame and the Arrow" (1950), "The Wild One" (1953), and Aldrich's "Kiss Me Deadly" (1955).

Friendship and Family

Yvonne was close friends with the families of John Wayne and Pat Boone. Her daughter, Morgan Ruth, attended private schools and was best friends with Wayne's daughter, Aissa.

Divorce and Later Life

Doughty's life of luxury in a Newport Beach mansion was marred by a divorce in August 1968. In 1989, Utter died at the age of 75. Doughty dabbled in writing short stories in the 1970s. She passed away in California on March 15, 2004, at the age of 76 from pneumonia.