Lilimae Clements
| Lilimae Clements | |||||||||
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| Knots Landing character | |||||||||
| Portrayed by | Julie Harris | ||||||||
| Duration | 1980–87 | ||||||||
| First appearance | January 25, 1980 (Episode: Will the Circle Be Unbroken) |
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| Last appearance | November 19, 1987 (Episode: Flight of the Sunbirds) |
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| Created by | David Jacobs | ||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||
| Occupation | Country Music singer | ||||||||
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| Siblings | June Wiley Virginia Bullock |
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| Spouse | Jeremiah Clements (in 1940s-1950s) Jonathan J. Rush (in 1960s) |
| Children |
Valene Ewing Joshua Rush |
| Grandchildren |
Lucy Ewing Betsy Ewing Bobby Ewing II |
Lilimae Clements (maiden name Wiley; formerly Rush) is a fictional character from the long-running CBS soap opera, Knots Landing. She was played by Julie Harris between 1980 and 1987. Although not a series regular until season 4, Lilimae was created by producer David Jacobs as one of the series earliest characters.
Harris was hired by Knots Landing in January 1980. She went on to play the character for seven years before exiting the show in 1987 as a result of budget cuts. The actress said in an interview with People magazine that she took the role because she didn't have anything to do at the time. "I had just been sick and got better." She noted that she enjoyed her time on Knots, playing a "second-rate Southern singer" appealed to her. In an interview with Jerry Buck of the Orlando Sentinel, Julie Harris said that she joined the show on advice from her agent, the deceased Ed Bondy.
Before her first appearance, Lilimae meets and marries Jeremiah Clements in Tennessee. Shortly after the birth of their daughter, Valene, Lilimae abandons them to pursue her singing career. When Jeremiah dies, Lilimae moves Valene in with her sister, June Wiley. There she meets Reverend Jonathan Rush (Albert Salmi). After a brief romance, he asks her to marry him but she refuses to be tied down. After the birth of their son, Joshua, they live together for a year until Lilimae receives a career proposal and leaves her responsibilities again. While she is on tour, her daughter, Valene, comes looking for her in search of help. She is pursued by oil tycoon J.R. Ewing, who wants to take her baby, Lucy, but Lilimae refuses to let her in, saying that if the producer discovers that she is a grandmother, her career will be ruined. Val frantically tries to hide the baby, but J.R. eventually gets a hold of her, causing Val to be resentful of her mother.
In 1980, Lilimae learns of Val's re-marriage to J.R.'s brother, Gary Ewing (Ted Shackelford). She decides to visit the two of them in Los Angeles, California, where she is met with her daughter's hostility towards her. After Val confronts her mother, she is able to move on and work things out. In 1981, Gary and Val see a newscast featuring Lilimae, which shows her stopping a thief. They portray her as being homeless and Valene invites her to stay with the two of them. The next day, Lilimae is arrested for shoplifting, but the judge says he'll give her a slide with six months probation if Val and Gary assume responsibility for her. Shortly after, Gary has an affair with their neighbor, Abby Cunningham (Donna Mills).
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