Jillian Kesner-Graver

Jillian Kesner-Graver (August 9, 1949 – December 5, 2007), credited onscreen as Jillian Kesner, was an American actress and historian who worked with her husband, Gary Graver, to preserve the work and legacy of director Orson Welles. She was best known as an actress for playing Fonzie's girlfriend, Lorraine, on a 1977 episode of Happy Days.

Jillian Kesner-Graver
Kesner-Graver with Michael Cavanaugh filming Inferno in 1996
Born	Jillian Kesner August 9, 1949 Portsmouth, Virginia, U.S.
Died	December 5, 2007(2007-12-05) (aged 58) Irvine, California, U.S.
Occupations	Actress film historian
Years active	1976–2006
Spouse	Gary Graver ​ ​ (m. 1981; died 2006)​

Early life

Kesner-Graver was born in Portsmouth, Virginia. Her father was in the United States Navy and she spent much of her childhood in Denver, Colorado. She first moved to Los Angeles in 1959, where she worked as a model before getting into television and movie acting.

Career

Kesner-Graver was best known for playing Fonzie's girlfriend, Lorraine, on Happy Days. She appeared in a number of "B-rated" films throughout the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Her credits included Raw Force, Starhops and Beverly Hills Vamp. She developed a following among fans of B-level action films.

She appeared on a number of television shows, including Three's Company, The Rockford Files and Mork & Mindy. She met her husband, director and cinematographer, Gary Graver, on the set of the film The Student Body in 1976.

Death

Jillian Kesner-Graver died on December 5, 2007, in Irvine, California of complications from a staphylococcal infection, which she contracted after having been diagnosed with leukemia. She was 58 years old.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1976	The Student Body	Carrie
1978	Starhops	Angel
1980	Ang agila at ang falcon		(English: The Eagle and The Falcon)
1981	Firecracker	Susanne Carter	aka Naked Fist in Australia
1982	Raw Force	Cookie Winchell	aka Kung Fu Cannibals
	Trick or Treats	Andrea
1987	Moon in Scorpio	Claire
	Evil Town	Dorothy
1989	Jaded	Sara
	Beverly Hills Vamp	Claudia
1992	Roots of Evil	Brenda
1997	Operation Cobra	Jasmine	aka Inferno

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1975	S.W.A.T.	Miss California	Episode: "The Steel-Plated Security Blanket"
1976	The Blue Knight	Lady in swimsuit	Episode: "Bullseye"
	Happy Days	Patty Petrolunga	Episode: "Fonzie the Superstar"
1977	The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries	Paula Clark	Episode: "Mystery of the Solid Gold Kicker"
	Happy Days	Lorraine	Episode: "Marion Rebels"
1979	Co-ed Fever	Melba	Main cast
	The Rockford Files	Lily Showalter	Episode: "No Fault Affair"
	The Ropers	Linda Graham	2 episodes
1981	Three's Company	The sister	Episode: "The Not-So-Great Imposter"
1982	Mork & Mindy	Judi	Episode: "Metamorphosis - The TV Show"
1983	T.J. Hooker	Crystal	Episode: "A Child Is Missing"
1996	Subliminal Seduction	Cherl	TV movie

External links

• Jillian Kesner-Graver at IMDb