She was a little girl whom other little girls envied, but who, in truth, experienced tremendous pressures during those years that should be reserved for the simple joys of childhood, wrote Marilyn. However, Jones' family also blamed her doctor Dr. Don Carlos Moshos for her death. Anissa was born on March 11, 1958, in West Lafayette, Indiana, US to an engineering graduate and a Purdue University faculty board member, John Paul Jones, and zoology student Mary Paula Jones (ne Tweel). The Difficult Childhood of Anissa Jones from "Family Affair" and the All rights reserved. Actress: To Rome with Love. She was born on March 11, 1958, in Indiana to John Paul Jones and Mary Paula Jones. Anissa Jones charmed audiences as Buffy during the shows five seasons. The Heartbreaking Death of Anissa Jones, Buffy from Family Affair For Family Affair costar Brian Keith life was also hard to cope with. Her parents went through an ugly divorce. However, she went on to attain success in both her personal and professional life. When it ended, they went their separate ways. She sadly died at the young age of 18 from combined drug intoxication. We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. Many think that Jones' troubles started when she was very young and only escalated as she got older. Her family relocated to Playa Del Rey, California, after her brother John Paul Jones, Jr. was born. At Playa Del Rey, her father started working in aerospace engineering and she started attending Paseo del Rey Elementary School. Kathy Garver today. Though the cancellation seemed like good timing for Anissa Jones, who yearned to try something new, the young actress would struggle in the subsequent years. Her mother, Mary Paula Jones, studied zoology, while her father was an engineer. She did not like being remembered as a member of "Familly Affair," but instead, she liked talking about deeper things, like poetry. Anissa Jones. Anissa Jones Mary Anissa Jones / nis / [a] (March 11, 1958 - August 28, 1976) was an American child actress known for her role as Buffy Davis on the CBS sitcom Family Affair, which ran from 1966 to 1971. On February 25, 1971 she along with American singer-dancer-actor-comedian Sammy Davis Jr. and American classical pianist Garrick Ohlsson appeared on The Dick Cavett Show hosted by notable American TV personality, talk show host and comedian Dick Cavett. Anissa Jones Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images 'Family Affair' Star Anissa Jones Suffered Such A Loss Of Identity Anissa Jones was born on March 11, 1958, in West Lafayette, Indiana. Now, she stated, those pressures are permanently, tragically over. Unfortunately, she never got to reach her full potential due to her death. She died on 28 August 1976 in Oceanside, California, USA. After she turned 18 in March 1976, she became eligible to handle her own earnings from her acting endeavours and also some U.S. Savings Bonds, which were till such time held in a trust fund on her behalf. Here are the details about child actress, Anissa Jones, who starred in one of my favorite TV shows, "Family Affair". Actually, she did know, Anissa bought a place for her and her brother to stay and spoiled him with a stacked out Camero. By clicking Sign Up, you agree to our Terms and Conditions and that you have read our Privacy Policy. However, Jones wasn't interested in the opportunity. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. His two recent books -- Talk Show: Confrontations, Pointed Commentary, and Off-Screen Secrets (2010) and Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic moments, and Assorted Hijinks(October 2014) are both collections of his online opinion column, written for The New York Times since 2007. From Jackie Coogan (The Addams Familys Uncle Fester), who was ripped off to the point of destitution by his mother, to the systematic abuse Dennis the Menace star Jay North took from his guardians, an aunt and uncle; the young cast of Diffrent Strokes and Anissa, there are so many instances. Diane Brewster (second from left) tries to make friends with Anissa Jones, Kathy Garver, and Johnnie Whitaker (left to right) in a scene from the TV series, "Family Affair." She wasn't being very social. It's interesting the way that we approach the characters. A family man. Her friends discovered her unresponsive, and they immediately called paramedics, but sadly, it was too late, and she was declared dead at the scene. The beach parties and the drinking and all the drugs escalated for two more years until Anissa turned 18. And if the two Buffys have anything at all in common, its that both battled demons, one metaphorical and the other quite real. But if you wanted to talk about poetry, Steinbecks Of Mice and Men (Anissa named her dog Lynny after Lenny) or just about anything else and she was a great listener then you had a chance of making a new friend. All the bedroom shots, all of the kitchen shots, all of the living room shots. Please fill in your e-mail so we can share with you our top stories! I had gone to her 18th birthday party, and her mom had said, "Kathy, I wish you'd spend some more time with Anissa because I really think that she's in with a bad group of people. Also, we had seen that they were taking drugs. So, I don't think it's a curse. Medical examiners found cocaine, Quaaludes, PCP, and Seconal in her system. Well, when you control a young person and then all of a sudden theyre not wanted anymore, theyve got nothing to fall back on.. She mostly worked alongside Johnny Whitaker and Kathy Garver, her brother and sister on the show. I had 50 baby frogs and four other pets two kittens and their mother and a parakeet, she explained. By the time she was six, Anissa was hawking cereal in her first television commercial. We'd been on for five years. The ones who end up truly well, like Ron Howard, are because his family knew exactly what to do and made sure when he was away from that set, he was a child that had chores in the house and responsibilities at home. Naomi Judd's Heart Was 'Ripped Out and Stomped on by Men' Inside Her Marriages, Elvis Was Pressured to Marry 'Living Doll' Priscilla Who Was 'Young Enough to Train' Any Way He Wanted, After Millionaire Husbands Death, Old Widow Is Forced to Live In Dirty Old Trailer Story of the Day, Cloris Leachman Did "Everything Humanly Possible" to Save Her Son & Failed - Meet Her 5 Grown-up Kids, After Estranged Mother's Death, Siblings Find Dusty Old Box In Parents' Closet Story of the Day, Melissa Sue Anderson Declared Love for Mike Landon - She Was Shaken When He Had Affair with a Teen, Mickey Rooney Said He 'Died' When 5th Wife Was Killed by Her Lover Yet He Married Her Best Friend. This goes from Shirley Temple and Judy Garland and Jackie Coogan all the way through to todays young people. And her mother, at the suggestion of a neighbor, started bringing Jones to TV commercial auditions. We all come from different styles. (Getty), Fox News: What caused the show to end?Garver: I think there was a change in the times. And that theyd only have to work six or 10 weeks a year, depending on the season. Family Affair producers discovered that even in the land of make believe, you can't always hide everything. Anissa Jones, late child star | Source: Wikimedia Commons By CBS Television Network, Public Domain. At the same token, being a very macho guy. Mary Anissa Jones was an American child actress who rose to stardom playing Ava Elizabeth Buffy Patterson-Davis on the American television sitcom Family Affair. So, I dont think its a curse.. Her mother and father had fought bitterly over custody of Anissa and her brother, Paul. Fox News: Your book implies that you survived playing Cissy. Anissa Jones - Family Affair on Series-80.net When its a real happy day and then I have to do a scene where I have to cry, I have to think of something sad and then I think of it all day. Legal Statement. 'Family Affair': The Heartbreaking Story Behind the - Outsider Its just a really nice thing to do. I work, have a glass of wine, make dinner and spend time with my husband. Photo by CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images. The Overdose Death of Anissa Jones Where that love and affection are not only given because of the paycheck theyre bringing in. At a time when her mind and body were developing, she was still being given the wardrobe and dialogue fitting a video character who had remained eight years old. Anissa Jones - IMDb 1967. However, Moshos died on December 27, 1976 due to cancer before the verdict on the case came out that found him 30% liable of Anissas death. How old was Anissa Jones when she died? Another "Family Affair" cast member who was almost typecasted for her role on the show was Kathy Garver. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org. Tom Jones Had to Take DNA Test for His Homeless Second Son Whom He Never Saw & Denied for 20 Years, Mother Discovers She's Been Raising a Stranger's Child for 55 Years, Little Girl Doesnt Let Anyone into Her House until Old Farmer Breaks In Story of the Day, Michael Douglas Told Catherine Zeta-Jones He Would Father Her Kids during 1st Meeting despite Their 25-Year Gap, Inside Tom Jones' Former LA Mansion Decorated by Wife of 59 Years Her Last Wish Was to Move Out, Sons Learn Their Old Mom Gave Her $3.7M Mansion to Young Man Who Isnt Her Child Story of the Day, Michael Douglas Divorce After 23 Years Cost Him $45M Ex Defended Herself 10 Years After Accusations of Greed, Loretta Lynn Gave Birth at 16 She Felt 'Sorry' for Her Twins & 2 of Her 6 Kids Died Unexpectedly, James Earl Jones Who Was Raised by 'The Most Racist' Person Found True Love in an Interracial Marriage, The Queen Ruined Her Sisters Life Saying No to Her Marrying the Man She Loved Inside Their Relationship, 'He Wants Me, Not My House': 82-Year-Old Grandma Marries 36-Year-Old Lover, Defends Their Love, Ozzie Nelson's Wife Harriet Gave up Career When She Fell in Love & Wanted a Family with Him before They Wed, Ron Howard Was Most Concerned about His Kids' Values Inside His Decision to Protect Them, Erin Moran 'Battled Demons' & Was 'Nobody' after Hollywood 'Chewed Her up and Spat Her Out'. She was only 18. Her character, Buffy, was famous for her charm and for her favorite doll named Mrs. Beasley. So the whole season would have to be written beforehand; they didnt do them one at a time. Spanning five decades, Dick Cavetts television career has defined excellence in the interview format. But he was able to get off drugs and he became a drug counselor, which is really good. She has an uncanny ability to convey, on screen, a childs feelings of rejection, sadness, fun, pride, stubbornness and wish to be loved, sometimes all in one episode., In an effort to encapsulate Anissa, Brian Keith OHara, who at one time had a friendly relationship with her mother, Patty, blogs, It would have driven her crazy that people remember her as the star of Family Affair, because she never saw herself that way. No, of course, theres not a curse, but for some people, coincidences or different lifestyles that happened to people. So it was very hard work for Johnnie and Anissa. Anissa Jones - Wikipedia Some four commercials later, wrote the San Francisco Examiner, Anissa was seen and signed by a producer of Family Affair for the part of Buffy.. Here's What Happened to Anissa Jones a.k.a. 'Buffy' from 'Family Affair' Actor Brian Keith dies in apparent suicide | AP News The next year, she received her trust fund savings when she turned 18. As far as she was concerned, acting and Hollywood had lost its allure. Anissa [Jones] came over to my house a couple of times and spent the night. He was the fifth of eight children born to Thelma and John O. Whitaker, Sr. Per the New York Times, the doctor was charged with 11 felony counts of illegally prescribing powerful drugs, and Jones' family received $79,500 as compensation. It was drugs she was known to use, but on that night it would be her last. Kathy Garver on April 19, 2009 in Universal City, California | Source: Getty Images. I think that that is maybe one of the reasons that someone can inspire others. She was reportedly partying the night before with her new boyfriend Allan Butch Koven and others in the beach town. Her role was later re-written as twin of Jody upon insistence of Brian Keith who played Uncle Bill in the series. Anissa Jones was trapped in the role of little Buffy from "Family Affair" and when she finally got away from it all, her life was tragically cut short. Tragic Details Found In Anissa Jones' Autopsy Report. Born In: Lafayette, Indiana, United States, place of death: Oceanside, California, United States, Cause of Death: Combined Drug Intoxication, See the events in life of Anissa Jones in Chronological Order. While its not quite as common today as it once was, Hollywoods history is littered with the bodies of child stars who were ripped off, disposed of or utterly ignored, driving many of them to alcoholism and/or drug abuse with resulting psychological scars or, in the worst cases, their deaths. She died of a drug overdose on August 28, 1976, in one of her friends Helen Hennessys fathers house in Oceanside, California, US. Life is wonderful, but life is difficult. She was a darling little girl and a lovely teenager, and I don't think she would have taken her own life. Getty. Steve Hanford, Jones' friend, said, "The night Anissa died was weird. I was just so upset. TwitterThis is thought to be the last photo of Anissa Jones, who died in August 1976. So, here I was. Sadly shortly after their father gained custody of Anissa and Paul in 1973, he died of heart disease, and the siblings were forced to go back to their mother. Please fill in your e-mail so we can share with you our top stories. I do think she likes to be recognized in public it has some meaning., In October 1967, the same paper ran another piece on her in which Anissa explained how she makes herself cry: I hate it. While other children her age played, Mary drove Anissa to learn more skills that would count in her favor in the industry. Born Mary Anissa Jones on March 11, 1958, in Lafayette, Indiana, Anissa Jones found fame at a young age.