Gray-Haired Joyce Bulifant Stuns at 85 as Grandma of 'Twin' Grandson after Love of Her Life Passed Away

• Joyce Bulifant, known for starring on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "Love Thy Neighbor," is now 85!
• She is currently a grandmother of her only grandson, who was called her twin.
• The star found true love over 20 years ago and cared for her husband until his death.

Joyce Bulifant was a star well-known for her appearances on "Airplane," "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," and "Love Thy Neighbor." The actress was originally cast on "The Brady Bunch" as Carol Brady.

The Newport News native tried out outfits and rehearsed for the role two days before it started shooting in 1969. She heard that an ABC head preferred Florence Henderson, who was then available after completing the shooting of a movie.

Sherwood Swartz, "The Brady Bunch" producer, told her that they felt if she did the show it would be more like "The Lucy Show," but if Henderson did it, it would mimic "The Donna Reed Show."

Swartz said they were fighting for her but the heads in New York had the final say. Henderson got cast for the role and became a star in television's history, while Bulifant continued working for over 50 years on screen and stage.

The iconic actress has featured on dozens of television shows, on Broadway, and movies. Her career was fulfilling with her landing roles on "Dr. Kildare" and during a 2020 interview she was asked if she thought her voice helped her professional success.

The actress acknowledged how the uniqueness of her voice got her many jobs in commercials and work in general. Bulifant confessed that she'd forgotten it didn't sound like other people's and sometimes when she answered the phone and people asked if her mother was home, she'd hilariously tell them “I am Mommy!”

The star was quite famous for her squeaky voice and in 1971, she was picked to play the role of Marie Slaughter on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.” Her favorite recollection from the time of the sitcom was when they called and asked her to go in for a table reading they needed her to come in for that week.

However, she told them she wouldn't make it as she was giving birth in the labor room. Her fondest memory was when she had her son, John Asher, and she ended up enduring a 30-day stay in rehabilitation in 1999 for “co-dependency issues” and several troubled marriages.

Bulifant believed her big ego got her in trouble as she started relationships with Hollywood men who weren't right for her. The star explained how most alcoholics were generally sensitive people until they drank.

She'd thought of them as being lonely or unhappy and that if they knew she loved them, they wouldn't drink anymore - not knowing or realizing it alcoholism was a disease. Later in life, she luckily found someone else to give all her love to.

Joyce Shows off Her Only Grandson, Who Is Her Twin

Bulifant welcomed two more children besides John, Charles and Mary MacArthur, and she prioritized all of them while working on her Hollywood career. In October 2020, she confessed “What I love most is seeing my kids happy,” realizing their dreams, and being healthy, with her adding:

“I love that we hug and kiss each other and we always express the love we have for each other.”

"The Happiest Millionaire" star's first husband was James MacArthur whom she married in 1958 before they had Charles and Mary. The couple stayed together for nine years before separating in 1967.

By 1969, the actress married her second husband, Edward Mallory, and two years after their wedding, they welcomed John. However, by 1974, the duo had decided to got their separate ways and now Bulifant's focus was on her career and children.

The "Big John, Little John" actress didn't mind being single in her 80s and was the greatest grandmother to Evan, her grandson. Speaking about her role as a grandparent, the star admitted that she loved it.

She noted how one got to spoil their grandchildren and joked that she sometimes had to explain why their parents treated them the way they did. The star joked that it was all her fault, before reiterating that she loved being a grandmother.

In October 2017, Bulifant shared a lovely Facebook photo of her with her grandson. The "Tooken" actress explained that she was on her way to a book signing in Chicago and visited with her grandson who was king, sweet, and good looking!

The star explained that she was a "happy Grandma." A fan who replied to the post shared how a friend had advised her to turn an image upside down to see if the people in it had any resemblance, and when she did that with the actress' photo she realized the star and Evan "look like twins!"

Besides loving her adult children and her grandson, the actress met someone whom she had a bond with for years. Bulifant found someone whom she could give her heart and cared for him until he passed.

Joyce Cared for Her Beloved Man for 18 Years until His Death: “I Was Blessed”

Bulifant was married four times and all her husbands struggled with alcohol abuse. "My Four Hollywood Husbands" chronicled her difficulties on and off screen and in 2017 she was in Chicago at a fundraising event that supported bringing awareness to substance abuse and championed children with learning disabilities.

Being dyslexic herself, she founded the Dyslexia Foundation and national Dyslexia Awareness Program. The "Dirty Love" star shared how it took some reading, learning, and counseling before she could find fulfillment in marriage.

Sadly, on July 12, 2018, he [Roger Perry] died at home at age 85 from prostate cancer.

Bulifant and Roger Perry dated on and off since the 1960s and by 2017 he'd been sober for 20 years, and they were married for 15. The actress said she had been in love with Perry for long and now they were finally together.

She said they looked at each other daily and noted how it was a miracle they reconnected at the right time. Bulifant recalled how someone said to halves made a whole and Perry was a whole person and she was the same and they were brought together by love.

Perry was her longtime friend when they tied the knot in 2002 when she was 64 or 65. However, their relationship began in 1962 when they were working together but were called "star-crossed lovers" by a friend because of how they failed to unite properly.

When they'd finally married, their union was a happy one because her husband stopped drinking. Bulifant noted how her children also loved and respected him and that she was in a loving and giving marriage which they both saw as a miracle.

Sadly, on July 12, 2018, he died at home at age 85 from prostate cancer. Speaking about her loss, the actress said she'd physically lost the "love of my life," but felt he was still with her spiritually, stating:

"I was blessed to be able to care for him at home, until his passing, and grateful that we had a full and rich life together."

In February 2017, Bulifant uploaded a Facebook photo of herself looking happy and healthy at age 85. Despite being closer to 90, she was still working and in the image she was speaking to students at her alma mater, The American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

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