Mary Anissa Jones (March 11, 1958 – August 28, 1976) was an American child actress of The '60s. She is best known for her role as Buffy on the 1966–71 Dom Com Family Affair.
As she got older, Anissa developed a dislike for the fact that her character was Not Allowed to Grow Up; Family Affair producer Don Fedderson insisted that Buffy should remain perpetually six years old, even though by the end of the show's run Anissa was 13 and in the initial stages of puberty. She kept asking for Buffy's dialogue to be modified so that the character would sound more like people within her actual age range, but said requests were turned down by Fedderson.
The show's treatment of Buffy was only one of two problems that Jones had to deal with. At the time, viewers did not know that her home life was even worse. Her parents had filed for divorce before Family Affair began its run, and it involved a huge custody fight over Anissa and her brother Paul. The divorce was finalized in 1973, which was two years after the series ended. Her problems didn't end there, as her father, who had received custody of Anissa and Paul, died less than a year later of heart disease.
Anissa Jones died of a drug overdose at age 18, and this is believed to have been caused by a combination of the aforementioned difficulties. In a tragic postscript, Paul would also die prematurely of a drug overdose (at age 24 in 1984).
When Brian Keith died in 1997, those that knew him took comfort that "at least Buffy and Uncle Bill are now reunited in Heaven".
As a result of her tragedy, most media producers now have come to accept that treating child actors with the Not Allowed to Grow Up trope is out of the question, and thus allow their characters to mature in relative sync with them, hopefully becoming a Teen Idol if things work out.
This actress's work features examples of:
- What Could Have Been:
- Auditioned for the role of Regan in The Exorcist. William Friedkin thought audiences would think it was Buffy being possessed, as Family Affair was still on in re-runs.
- Offered the role of Iris in Taxi Driver but ultimately Jodie Foster was cast.
- Was considered for Pretty Baby but she died before filming started, and Brooke Shields starred in the film.
