Actress Pat Colbert, who was best known for her role as Dora Mae, the Oil Baron’s club hostess in the American classic drama Dallas, passed away at 77.
Colbert was born on January 16, 1947, in Los Angeles. According to her sister, Tami Colbert, she passed away peacefully in her home in Compton, California, on June 23, 2024, despite suffering from three different strokes over the past decade.
Although the cause of death remains uncertain, her sister confirmed to the Los Angeles Times and the Hollywood Reporter that Colbert likely passed away as a result of the different strokes.
Her funeral is set to be held on July 20 at Bristol Baptist Church in Compton, with her viewing being set a day earlier at Grace Memorial Chapel and Funeral Home in Inglewood, California.
Pat Colbert appeared in many shows and movies during her career but didn’t have starring roles in any of them!
Colbert first appeared on TV in 1979 as a model in the show Eischiled, starring Joe Don Baker. She went on to join the cast of the popular TV show Flamingo Road (1980), which starred John Beck, Morgan Fairchild, Howard Duff, Kevin McCarthy, and Mark Harmon, amongst others.
Colbert played Cora Mullens in the popular political drama Capitol in 1982. She had a busy run in the 1980s, appearing in fleeting roles in shows like The Fall Guy (1982), Benson (1982), Hysterical (1982), Knots Landing (1983), and A Death in California (1985).
Leonard Part 6 (1987), one of Colbert’s most prominent roles, was also during the 80s. She played the role of Allison Parker alongside actor Bill Cosby in the movie. The movie, however, was a box office flop with only $4.6 million in collections and scored ratings as low as 7% on Rotten Tomatoes and 2.2/10 on IMDB.
Sad news that Pat Colbert has died aged 77 #Dallas fans will remember Pat played Dora Mae, hostess at the Oil Baron's Club for eight years on #Dallas pic.twitter.com/1cDlvnqbRM
— Victoria Principal Fans (@Principal_Fans) July 10, 2024
In 1983, Colbert landed the role of Dora Mae in season 6 of Dallas, one of the most beloved primetime soap operas.
Dallas, a story chronicling the Ewing family and their colossal oil empire, would later become the longest credit of her career and the one she would become most famous!
She played Dora Mae, the hostess of the private Oil Baron’s club that the Ewing family and their associates frequented. Dora Mae was the only recurring Black character throughout the entire run of the show.
After Dallas, she had brief roles in TV shows such as Sisters (1991) and True Colors (1991).
Throughout her multiple roles in various movies and television shows for over a decade, Colbert never landed a leading role in any project.
Colbert mysteriously disappeared from the acting scene for more than 20 years!
After her role in Sisters, Colbert had a huge gap in her acting career from 1991 to 2014, appearing in no roles for almost 23 years!
Finally, in 2014, she returned to the silver screen as Mrs. Jackson in Thom and Dusty Go To Mexico: The Lost Treasure.
Her last credit was in the family drama If Not For His Grace, in which she plays Sister Patterson. She did not appear in any roles until her death in June 2024.
Despite her decade-spanning career, no online sources seem to know her net worth. One can assume, however, that she lived a comfortable life on the payouts she must have received from all her credits.
The Los Angeles Times reports that Colbert is survived by her son Michael Colbert, sisters Tami Colbert and Johnetta Driscoll, brother Aaron Colbert, and nieces and nephews. News about her husband/partner or any other family member remains unknown.
Additional Information
- Pat Colbert was only a stage name for the actress, her real name being Sandra Colbert.
- Dallas, Colbert’s longest credit, still stands as one of the longest-running full-hour primetime dramas in the history of American television, with a total of 357 episodes.
- Before entering show business, Colbert worked as a department store model and fashion consultant.
- Despite having a long career and several famous roles, Pat Colbert has no Wikipedia page!
