Person:
BiographyHersha Parady was born on May 25, 1945, in Ohio, USA. She grew up in Ohio and later moved to California, where she pursued a career in acting. Hersha's early life was marked by her love for animals, particularly her free-spirited dog Lightning, who would often roam the streets of Hollywood. It was through her friendship with actress Katherine "Scottie" MacGregor, who played Harriet Oleson in the popular television series Little House on the Prairie, that Hersha got her big break.
Katherine "Scottie" MacGregor and her co-star Richard Bull were so impressed with Hersha's performance in a play that they recommended her to the Little House casting director. This led to Hersha being cast as a guest star in one episode and later as a regular cast member, playing the role of Alice Garvey, the wife of Merlin Olsen.
Hersha's personal favorite Little House episode was "May We Make Them Proud," which featured a tragic storyline involving the death of her character's infant son in a fire. She enjoyed acting in scenes involving real, controlled fire, supervised by the Los Angeles Fire Department. Hersha's death scene was particularly memorable, and she jokingly remarked that she "went out with a bang and not a whimper."
In her personal life, Hersha was married to Oscar-winning producer John Peverall, with whom she had a son named Jonathan. After her divorce, she moved to Florida, where she passed away in 2023.
