TV Beverley Owen, original Marilyn on The Munsters, dies at 81 By Tyler Aquilina Tyler Aquilina Tyler Aquilina is a former digital writer at Entertainment Weekly. He left EW in 2022. EW's editorial guidelines Published on February 25, 2019 02:33PM EST Photo: Everett Collection Beverley Owen, who played Marilyn Munster in the first season of the classic sitcom The Munsters, has died at age 81. Owen's daughter, Polly Stone, confirmed her death to TMZ. The actress passed away on Thursday after battling ovarian cancer. According to TMZ, Owen was diagnosed in January 2017, but kept her illness from the public. Butch Patrick, who played Owen's onscreen cousin Eddie Munster, posted a tribute on Facebook, saying, "Beautiful Beverly Owen has left us. What a sweet soul. I had the biggest crush on her. RIP Bev and thanks for your 13 memorable Marilyn Munster episodes." <iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2F1.800.gay%3A443%2Fhttps%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fewmunster%2Fposts%2F2317767041601719&width=500" width="500" height="439" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media" class="" allowfullscreen="" resize="0" replace_attributes="1" name=""></iframe> She left the sitcom after the first season to marry producer Jon Stone, who went on to help develop Sesame Street. They had two daughters before divorcing in 1974, after a decade of marriage. Stone died in 1997. Owen began her TV career on As the World Turns and went on to have roles in Wagon Train and Another World. She remained best-known for playing Marilyn, a role actress Pat Priest took over after Owen's departure from the show.