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Ruth McDevitt (September 13, 1895 – May 27, 1976) was an American stage, film, radio and television actress. She was born Ruth Thane Shoecraft in Coldwater, Michigan. After attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, she married Patrick McDevitt and decided to devote her time to her marriage. After her husband's death in 1934, she returned to acting. She performed on Broadway, in particular understudying and succeeding Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace and The Solid Gold Cadillac. She also worked as a radio actor. McDevitt was a familiar face on television during the 1950s,... MORE

Ruth McDevitt (September 13, 1895 – May 27, 1976) was an American stage, film, radio and television actress. She was born Ruth Thane Shoecraft in Coldwater, Michigan. After attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, she married Patrick McDevitt and decided to devote her time to her marriage. After her husband's death in 1934, she returned to acting. She performed on Broadway, in particular understudying and succeeding Josephine Hull in Arsenic and Old Lace and The Solid Gold Cadillac. She also worked as a radio actor. McDevitt was a familiar face on television during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. She played "Mom Peepers" in the 1950s sitcom Mr. Peepers. She was a regular with Ann Sheridan, Douglas Fowley, and Gary Vinson in CBS's Pistols 'n' Petticoats, a 1966-67 satire of the Old West. The series attracted a good audience, but was cancelled two months after Sheridan's 1967 death from cancer. She was a series regular on Bright Promise from 1974–75, McDevitt also had a regular role as Emily Cowles on Kolchak: the Night Stalker, starring Darren McGavin. McDevitt guest starred in such series as Suspense, Cosmopolitan Theatre, Decoy, Westinghouse Studio One, The United States LESS