# Roger Smith (actor)
**Roger Smith** (Roger LaVerne Smith; born December 18, 1932, in [South Gate, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-gate-california); died June 4, 2017) was an American actor, screenwriter, producer, and talent manager best known as the private detective Jeff Spencer on the ABC series *77 Sunset Strip*, and later as the manager of his wife, the actress and singer [Ann-Margret](https://www.edgepedia.org/ann-margret).[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/roger-smith/) • [2](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/roger-smith) After retiring from performing, he produced his wife's Las Vegas stage shows and television specials and co-produced her 1994 telefilm *Nobody's Children*.[3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born / died | December 18, 1932, South Gate, California; June 4, 2017, Los Angeles, age 84[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/roger-smith/) • [4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) |
| Signature role | Jeff Spencer on *77 Sunset Strip* (ABC, 1958–1964); he left the series in 1963[5](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/08/news/roger-smith-77-sunset-strip-star-and-ann-margrets-husband-dies-at-84/) |
| Other series | Lt. Douglas Roberts in *Mister Roberts* (NBC, 1965–66)[3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith) |
| Films | *Man of a Thousand Faces* (1957), *Auntie Mame* (1958), *Operation Mad Ball* (1957), *Never Steal Anything Small* (1959)[6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/) |
| Marriages | Victoria Shaw (divorced 1965, three children); Ann-Margret (married 1967, 50 years)[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) • [7](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html) |
| Illness | Diagnosed with myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune neuromuscular disease causing extreme weakness; obituaries give different diagnosis years[7](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html) • [5](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/08/news/roger-smith-77-sunset-strip-star-and-ann-margrets-husband-dies-at-84/) |
| Death cause | Reported variously as complications from Parkinson's disease or a long-term/terminal illness[3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith) • [4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) |
## Early life and discovery by Cagney
Smith's parents enrolled him at age six in a professional school in Hollywood where he learned singing and dancing; when he was twelve the family moved to [Nogales, Arizona](https://www.edgepedia.org/nogales-arizona), where he acted in high school productions and played football.[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) At the [University of Arizona](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-arizona) in Tucson, which he attended on a football scholarship, he won several amateur talent prizes as a singer and guitarist, leading to an appearance on Ted Mack's *[The Original Amateur Hour](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-original-amateur-hour)*.[6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/)
The turning point came during his two and a half years in the Navy Reserve, while he was stationed in Honolulu and sang at social events. [James Cagney](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-cagney), who was in Hawaii filming *Mister Roberts* with [Henry Fonda](https://www.edgepedia.org/henry-fonda), met Smith at a party and urged him to try a film career after his discharge.[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) • [7](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html) Cagney also recommended him for the 1957 [Lon Chaney](https://www.edgepedia.org/lon-chaney) biopic *Man of a Thousand Faces*, in which Smith played Chaney's son Creighton as a young man.[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html)
## Columbia, Warner Bros., and 77 Sunset Strip
After his Navy service ended, Smith signed with [Columbia Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/columbia-pictures), appearing in the anthologies *Damon Runyon Theater* and *Celebrity Playhouse*, the western *Sheriff of Cochise*, the sitcom *Father Knows Best*, and films including *No Time to Be Young*, *Operation Mad Ball*, and *Crash Landing*.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/roger-smith/) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/) In 1958 he played the adult Patrick Dennis, Rosalind Russell's nephew, in *Auntie Mame*, and rejoined Cagney in the 1959 musical *Never Steal Anything Small*.[6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/)
The move to Warner Bros. produced the role that defined his career. On *77 Sunset Strip*, created by Roy Huggins, Smith played Jeff Spencer, a onetime federal undercover agent and nonpracticing attorney working out of a stylish Los Angeles detective agency with [Efrem Zimbalist Jr.](https://www.edgepedia.org/efrem-zimbalist-jr)'s Stuart Bailey; [Edd Byrnes](https://www.edgepedia.org/edd-byrnes)'s parking-lot hipster "Kookie" completed the ensemble.[8](https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/shows/77-sunset-strip) • [7](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html) The Museum of Broadcast Communications' *Encyclopedia of Television* credited the show with reviving the crime drama and calling it "the epicenter of hipness on television, a sun-drenched world of cocktails, cool jazz and convertibles."[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) Smith told the *Los Angeles Times* the series aimed to show private investigators as well-trained, serious men rather than the stereotype with "dangling cigarettes and large chips on their shoulders," and said he was cast because "I don't look like a detective."[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) He also wrote several episodes of the series and repeated the Spencer character in the spin-offs *Hawaiian Eye* and *Surfside 6*.[6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/) • [1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/roger-smith/)
## The 1960 illness and the end of the series
While the show ran, Smith collapsed at home and lost consciousness; he was diagnosed with a blood clot on the brain two days after hospitalization. *Look* magazine's March 1960 account blamed medical mistakes for the delayed diagnosis and quoted a doctor saying "This boy came too close to being buried, needlessly."[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) He recovered, rejoined the show, and played Spencer until 1963, when the entire cast except Zimbalist was dropped in an attempt to revitalize the program; it lasted one more year.[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) • [5](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/08/news/roger-smith-77-sunset-strip-star-and-ann-margrets-husband-dies-at-84/)
## Mister Roberts and the retreat from acting
Smith returned in 1964 with a tour of the play *Sunday in New York*, guest spots on *The Farmer's Daughter* and *Kraft Suspense Theatre*, and an uncredited part in *For Those Who Think Young*.[9](https://deadinadecade.blogspot.com/2017/06/roger-smith-obit.html) In 1965 he took the title role of Lieutenant Douglas Roberts in NBC's comedy series based on the World War II Navy story, which lasted one season, 1965 to 1966.[3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith) His final acting appearances came in 1968, as private eye John Rogue in *Rogue's Gallery* and in *Criminal Affair*, an Italian caper comedy starring Ann-Margret.[9](https://deadinadecade.blogspot.com/2017/06/roger-smith-obit.html)
## Managing Ann-Margret
In 1967 Smith and Ann-Margret married quietly in Las Vegas; he had divorced his first wife, the Australian-born actress Victoria Shaw, in 1965, and the couple had three children, daughter Tracey and sons Jordan and Dallas. Smith and Ann-Margret had no children together.[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) • [3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith)
**Behind the camera.** With his manager [Allan Carr](https://www.edgepedia.org/allan-carr), Smith formed Rogallan Productions, which produced *The First Time* (1969), starring [Jacqueline Bisset](https://www.edgepedia.org/jacqueline-bisset), and *C.C. & Company* (1970), starring Ann-Margret and [Joe Namath](https://www.edgepedia.org/joe-namath); Smith wrote the screenplays for both.[9](https://deadinadecade.blogspot.com/2017/06/roger-smith-obit.html) He then devoted the lion's share of his work to Ann-Margret's career, producing her 1970s Las Vegas stage shows and television specials including *Ann-Margret: From Hollywood With Love* (1969), *Ann-Margret: When You're Smiling* (1973), and *Ann-Margret ... Rhinestone Cowgirl* (1977), and co-producing the 1994 telefilm *Nobody's Children*.[9](https://deadinadecade.blogspot.com/2017/06/roger-smith-obit.html) • [3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith) He steered her toward the Oscar-nominated dramatic roles in *Carnal Knowledge* (1971) and *Tommy* (1975) that helped break her "sex kitten" image.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/roger-smith/) • [9](https://deadinadecade.blogspot.com/2017/06/roger-smith-obit.html) Smith later told *New York* magazine in 1976 that he calculated Ann-Margret had greater "raw talent" than he did, and that being with her mattered more than his childhood dreams of acting fame.[7](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html)
## Illness and death
Smith was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune neuromuscular disease that causes extreme weakness, and left performing as it worsened; sources disagree on the timing, with the *Boston Globe* reporting a 1965 diagnosis while obituaries from Legacy.com and the Associated Press report he retired after a 1980 diagnosis.[10](https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/obituaries/2017/06/05/roger-smith-played-private-eye-sunset-strip/6X6Q8n5LfCY4zDB85ODYiK/story.html) • [3](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith) • [5](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/08/news/roger-smith-77-sunset-strip-star-and-ann-margrets-husband-dies-at-84/) Ann-Margret later cared for him as the disease progressed.[7](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html)
He died on June 4, 2017, at a Los Angeles hospital (reported as Sherman Oaks), at age 84. Obituaries attribute the death differently: Legacy.com and the *Dallas Morning News* obituary, citing multiple news sources, report complications from [Parkinson's disease](https://www.edgepedia.org/parkinsons-disease), while the Associated Press reported a terminal illness after years fighting myasthenia gravis, and IMDb reported complications from a long-term illness without naming it.[4](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html) • [11](https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/roger-smith-obituary?pid=185721880) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/) He and Ann-Margret had marked their 50th wedding anniversary that May.[5](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/08/news/roger-smith-77-sunset-strip-star-and-ann-margrets-husband-dies-at-84/)
## References
1. [Roger Smith – Actor, Producer, Writer, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/roger-smith/)
2. [Roger Smith, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/roger-smith)
3. [Roger Smith Obituary, Legacy.com](https://www.legacy.com/legacy/notable-deaths/roger-smith)
4. [Roger Smith, '77 Sunset Strip' detective and husband of Ann-Margret, dies at 84, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-roger-smith-20170605-story.html)
5. [Roger Smith, '77 Sunset Strip' Star and Ann-Margret's Husband, Dies at 84, Bangor Daily News (AP)](https://www.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/08/news/roger-smith-77-sunset-strip-star-and-ann-margrets-husband-dies-at-84/)
6. [Roger Smith, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809783/)
7. [Roger Smith, a star of TV's '77 Sunset Strip,' dies at 84, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/roger-smith-a-star-of-tvs-77-sunset-strip-dies-at-84/2017/06/05/65a2ad04-4a4f-11e7-9669-250d0b15f83b_story.html)
8. [77 Sunset Strip, Television Academy Interviews](https://interviews.televisionacademy.com/shows/77-sunset-strip)
9. [Dead in a Decade: Roger Smith obit](https://deadinadecade.blogspot.com/2017/06/roger-smith-obit.html)
10. [Roger Smith, 84; played private eye on '77 Sunset Strip', The Boston Globe](https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/obituaries/2017/06/05/roger-smith-played-private-eye-sunset-strip/6X6Q8n5LfCY4zDB85ODYiK/story.html)
11. [Roger Smith Obituary, Legacy.com](https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/roger-smith-obituary?pid=185721880)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1940s to 1960s › Surnames Q to St*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license