Ruth McDevitt

Ruth McDevitt (née Ruth Thane Shoecraft, September 13, 1895 – May 27, 1976) was an American actress whose career spanned stage, radio, television, and film for nearly three decades. Born in Coldwater, Michigan, she grew up in Ohio as the daughter of John Barnabas Shoecraft and Elizabeth Imber Shoecraft. After completing her studies at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts she married Patrick McDevitt in 1928 and temporarily stepped away from the profession to focus on her marriage. The untimely death of her husband in 1934 prompted her return to the performing arts, and she made her Broadway debut in 1940, eventually succeeding her friend Josephine Hull in productions such as Arsenic and Old Lace, Harvey, and The Solid Gold Cadillac. Her distinctive presence and timing earned her a reputation as a reliable character actress, and she quickly became a familiar face on the New York stage.

McDevitt transitioned to the airwaves in the late 1940s, portraying the title character’s mother in the radio series Keeping up with Rosemary and the lead in This Life Is Mine. She broke into television with a role as Bessie Thatcher on the DuMont drama A Woman to Remember (1949) and later delighted audiences as Mom Peepers in the sitcom Mister Peepers and Grandma Hanks on Pistols ’n’ Petticoats. Her small‑screen résumé includes recurring parts on The Everly Brothers Show, the NBC soap Bright Promise, and a memorable turn as Emily Cowles on Kolchak: The Night Stalker. In film, McDevitt debuted with The Guy Who Came Back (1951) and is perhaps best remembered for appearances as camp counselor Miss Inch in The Parent Trap and as Mrs. MacGruder, the pet‑store saleslady, in Alfred Hitchcock’s classic The Birds. She continued working steadily until her death in Hollywood in 1976, leaving behind a legacy of versatile, endearing performances across multiple media.