Misty Rowe Born:  June 4, 1950 Hee! Haw!

About The Artist Linda Marie "Misty" Rowe is a native of San Gabriel, California, who is best known for long years of involvement in comedy skits on the country music TV program Hee Haw. As she humorously says, "I was born in the middle of a cornfield. I was the love child of Junior Samples and Lulu Roman." Then she concedes that she really was not, but "always wanted to say that." While Ms. Rowe is an actress who appeared in a wide variety of sit-coms, she makes no secret about Hee Haw being her signature achievement. Growing up poor in southern California, Linda Rowe became interested in dancing and school plays that she admits got her through high school-in Glendora CA-as she had minimal interest in other forms of academia. A drama teacher, Harriet Reiner, and dancing instructor, Willie Billmeyer, became almost like her second parents and even made her clothing. Because she had a school friend also named Linda, she took a new nickname "Misty" and eventually had her real name legally changed. Possessed of good lucks, she also became involved in modeling which eventually led her into acting. After winning some beauty contests and some minor acting jobs, she auditioned for Hee Haw in 1972 and remained part of the cast for nineteen years when she along with several other veterans were dropped, a disastrous move as later events proved. In addition to various jokes in the "kornfield," Misty regularly appeared in regular skits with the late Junior Samples at the used car lot and with gossipy girls around a wash tub. Although not originally a country music fan, she quickly f ell in love with it and appeared in many country shows, While she never fancied herself a singer, she could hold her own and performed such country numbers as one of June Carter's favorites from the early fifties, "No Swallerin' Place." Since Hee Haw shows were video-taped in two six-week sessions twice a year, Misty had time to appear in other TV programs filmed in Hollywood which included several episodes of Happy Days as Wendy the car hop (1974-75), and as Maid Marion in the Robin Hood satire When Things Were Rotten (1975). Motion pictures included female leads in The Man with Bogart's Face and portraying Marilyn Monroe in Goodbye Norma Jean. In stage productions, Rowe had a role in Always . . . Patsy Cline in Nashville and other locales, usually playing a character named Louise. Over her life span Misty has been married twice. The first was to James DePaiva (1986-1996) who later played a major role in the daytime soap opera One Life to Live. During their marriage, she suffered a heartbreaking miscarriage, but had a daughter Dreama in 1992. In 2006, she married Barry Singer after a six-year courtship. Although semi-retired after Dreama's birth, she continued to make off-and-on appearances including some Hee! Haw! Reunions. Over a seven decade lifespan, Rowe has had her share of ups and downs, but has generally maintained a positive outlook. During the Pandemic lockdown, she worked heavily on an autobiography titled Misty's Memories which came outin 2020 (England Media). As far as this writer can determine, Misty Rowe never made any commercial recordings. Credits & Sources Hillbilly-Music.com would like to express its thanks to Ivan M. Tribe, author of Mountaineer Jamboree — Country Music in West Virginia and other books that can be found on Amazon.com and numerous articles in other publications for providing us with information about this artist.

Printer Friendly Version