“I firmly believe. I don’t wallow in self-pity,” the 64-year-old actress continues.
One of the most well-known faces of the 1980s was Charlene Tilton, who played J. R. Lucy, the cunning niece of Ewing on Dallas. She was a regular on famous game shows like Match Game with Betty White and her 1981 TV wedding on the top-rated nighttime soap attracted 65 million viewers. She also appeared on more than 500 magazine covers.
Although Tilton kept it a secret from Dallas co-stars like Larry Hagman, behind the scenes, she was struggling with the pain of a complicated past and trying to help her mentally ill mother.
The actress talks about her traumatic past and how, at 64, she’s found contentment in a peaceful life in Nashville with her daughter Cherish Lee and granddaughters—as well as a revived career as a character actress.
Wide-opening her arms, Charlene Tilton walks into a restaurant in Nashville. She offers to hug you before quickly discussing how Nashville has changed over the seven years she has lived there and which library has the best storytime for her grandchildren.
Even without the enormous golden curls that were her defining feature as the iconic ’80s darling in Dallas, Tilton exudes the bubbly charm of Lucy Ewing with her wide smile.
However, the 64-year-old actress looks more like a sophisticated grandma than a blonde bombshell while wearing a green chenille sweater, skinny jeans, and ankle boots that highlight her small 5′ 1 1/2-inch frame—and that’s exactly how she wants it. Her grandchildren refer to her as “Glamma” or Dazzling Grandma.
Dallas was in a complete frenzy, she claims. “As I’ve aged, I’ve discovered how to be more present every day. I’m feeling pretty content right now. “.
Tilton explains, “My biological father refused to have anything to do with me. Dallas was so big that he must have heard about me, but he never contacted me, she claims. “.
Millions of Americans tuned in every Friday night to watch the glitz and splendor of Dallas, but Tilton, who appeared on 500 magazine covers at the height of her TV fame, kept her horrifying private life a secret: Her mother battled severe mental illness before being identified as having schizophrenia.
“Mental illness wasn’t talked about back then,” Tilton continues. The carpet was brushed over it. “Tilton is prepared to share her story now that she has settled into a peaceful life in Tennessee with her daughter Cherish Lee, 40, and her grandchildren (ages 6 and 2) close by—as well as a revived career as a character actress. “Getting things out in the open is very therapeutic. “.
Tilton’s earliest memories are of instability: her mother screaming as someone took away their TV while Charlene watched Captain Kangaroo; being thrown off a train from their Los Angeles home to Omaha after her mother had a breakdown; police removing her mother, leaving 5-year-old Charlene alone in a strange city; and seeing her mother in a straight jacket.
A rare means of escape was watching movies. Everything was amazing on screen, Tilton continues. I wanted Julie Andrews to be my mother when I saw her in Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music. ‘”.
When Katherine was placed in an institution when her daughter was five, Tilton was moved between family members and foster homes. When is she going to leave? the children asked I recollect.
The parents admitted they were trying to send their child out but had trouble finding someone to take her. “I vowed to never depend on anyone else to look after me. ‘”.
Tilton’s mother was released when he was around eight, and the family moved to California. Despite taking medication, her mother’s health deteriorated.
She “started fighting with herself, having a full-on conversation,” Tilton remembers when she was escorting one of Tilton’s junior high dances. “I wanted to die from embarrassment. “It went on for years,” she says of her mother’s insistence on using only Tupperware containers for urination. “I wouldn’t ever have friends over. “.
Tilton was still a child when she was cast in the J role. R. She had already left her mother’s filthy apartment in 1978 and was living independently in Los Angeles when Ewing’s cunning niece first appears in the film. “I can’t live like this, I thought one night as a rat crawled over me. ‘”.
After Dallas left, Tilton used her $15,000 weekly salary to try to assist, but her mother was frequently out of reach. One day, Tilton learned that her mother had been detained by police as she was walking naked down a Hollywood street, but had since been released after it was determined that she posed no threat.
Tilton’s co-stars were in the dark about her mother’s “crazy” emails to the show’s creators: “I was all about the work. “.
Lucy, who was raised by her grandparents, was eager to experience the love of her parents, according to Tilton’s description of her character. I understood her motivations. ”.
Her first marriage, to country musician Johnny Lee, who was 12 years older than she was, occurred when she was 23 years old. However, the union lasted just two years. She asserts that the union was doomed to fail. However, we had a lovely daughter. 1982-born Cherish “went everywhere with me,” Tilton continues.
After Tilton left Dallas in 1990, “there was a lot of stress. I wasn’t working or taking care of myself. Instead, she took care of her mother and daughter, who later moved into a nursing home, even though the cost depleted Tilton’s finances. “My home was seized by the bank. I only took what would fit in a one-bedroom apartment before leaving. “.
She started dating director of photography Cheddy Hart and acting in bit parts after the death of her mother in 2001. But shortly after getting married in 2009, he passed away suddenly from heart failure, plunging her into a severe depression.
She says, “I did nothing but sit on the couch and smoke. She became involved with Actors for Autism because of a friend who works there. She continues, “The students hit me. “You go aid someone in overcoming their sadness or grief. “.
When Tilton’s daughter moved to Nashville to study music, she saw a chance. Her time is now split between spending time with her grandchildren and acting, mostly in television movies or For religious streaming services (her most recent film, Heaven Sent, is currently streaming on PureFlix).
She continues, “When I was in Dallas and doing beach suit magazine covers, I couldn’t wait to get older. I’ve always regarded myself as a character actress. Although I’m short and curvy, I’m not tall and trim. I’m brazen; I lack grace. I enjoy my current age because it brings out a variety of personalities. “.
A DNA test revealed two years ago that she has three half-siblings who, like her, have never met their biological father. This revelation helped her to come to terms with her childhood and her relationship with her three half-siblings.
When they eventually located him, they learned he had passed away six months earlier at 93. She insists, “I don’t have a chip on my shoulder. I avoid moping around in my own misery. I try to see the bright side of things, which has helped me through challenging times. “.
