Barbara Rush, who starred in It Came from Outer Space and Peyton Place, died on Sunday, March 31, 2024. Her daughter Claudia Cowan confirmed her passing, stating that she “passed away peacefully” in the morning.

In It Came from Outer Space, Rush played teacher Ellen Fields who witnessed the crash of a mysterious meteorite and joined an astronomer to investigate it. Her performance in the movie earned Rush the most promising female newcomer award at the Golden Globes. She played Marsha Russell in the soap opera Peyton Place in 1968 and 1969 during the fourth and fifth seasons.

Rush was born in Denver, Colorado on January 4, 1927. She graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara where she started her acting career in the school’s theatrical department. Her onscreen career began in the movie The Goldbergs in 1950, followed by Quebec and When Worlds Collide a year later.

She was in Taza, Son of Cochise, Magnificent Obsession, World in My Corner, Harry Black and the Tiger, and The Young Philadelphians. She was in Strangers When We Meet, Come Blow Your Horn, Robin and the 7 Hoods, and she did a few episodes of Dr. Kildare and Batman.

After Peyton Place, Rush guest starred in The Mod Squad, Maude, The Bionic Woman, and The Love Boat. Continuing TV work, she was in Fantasy Island, Magnum, P.I., Murder, She Wrote, and she played Nola Orsini in All My Children in the early ‘90s. She played Ruth Camden in 7th Heaven and her last onscreen role was the short film, Bleeding Hearts: The Arteries of Glenda Bryant in 2017.