Smith Boucher
Quick Facts
Biography
Savannah Smith Boucher (born October 28, 1943), known professionally as Savannah Smith prior to 1985, is an American actress originally from Springhill in Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana. Her younger sister, Sherry Boucher, is a former actress who was the third wife of actor George Peppard.
Early life
Janice Elaine Boucher (pronounced "butcher") named after her aunt, Elaine Herrington Lynd, was born to Jesse L. Boucher (1912–2004) and the former Eloise Herrington (born November 21, 1923). Her father co-owned Boucher and Slack Insurance Agency, served as mayor of Springhill from 1958–1962, and later became a successful developer. She graduated in 1961 from Springhill High School.
Career
Though she is two years older than her sister, Boucher’s film debut did not occur until 1979, when she was thirty-six. By then a life member of The Actors Studio, she and her sister appeared together that year with Peppard in the film Five Days from Home. Thereafter, Sherry's roles receded, as Savannah’s increased. That same year, Savannah appeared in the role of Joanne Rodney in Nick Nolte's North Dallas Forty.
In 1980, she appeared as Tanya Sinclair in an episode of the ABC detective series Vega$, with the late Robert Urich. That same year, she played "Zee" (for Zerelda) in the western film The Long Riders, based loosely on the bandit Jesse James. In 1982, she appeared as Addie Burnett in "A Night at the Red Ox" in the NBC western series Bret Maverick, which returned James Garner in his original role but aired only for nineteen episodes. In 1984, Boucher appeared as Eadie Wright in the episode "The Two Faces of Betsy Morgan" of ABC’s T.J. Hooker with William Shatner and in the television movie Sweet Revenge, one of several films of that same title, in the role of Anne Haggarty Cheever.
In 1985, she starred as Molly Bloom in the episode "Sanctuary" of St. Elsewhere. In 1986, she played in the television film Odd Jobs. In 1989, she appeared as Dr. St. John in the episode "Nemesis" of the Fox Network's 21 Jump Street. In 1991, she played in the television film The Whereabouts of Jenny. In 1993, she co-starred as Marianne in the television film Relentless 3.
In 2004, she appeared as Ada and also produced the film Nursie, about a deranged nurse. Sister Sherry also played a minor part in the same film, which later bankrupted as a corporation, after not finding distribution. That year she co-produced Sunset Tuxedo and was listed in her father's obituary as a resident of Los Angeles. In 2009, she was associate producer of the film Which Way Home. The film company later changed its name to Tre Boucher, Inc.
Extended Family
Boucher is descended from a line of Louisiana Democratic politicians. Her mayor-father’s first cousin, Drayton Boucher, was a member of both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature, having served from 1936-1952. Her maternal uncle, John D. Herrington, also served as Springhill mayor — from 1978–86, and again from 1995-2006. as of 2004.02:19, 14 August 2015 (UTC)
Another sister of Sherry's and Savannah's, Jessica Boucher, was a session musician in the 1980s, most famous for being a duet partner of Merrill Osmond.
Partial filmography
- Five Days from Home (1978) as 'Georgie' Haskin
- North Dallas Forty (1979) as Joanne Rodney
- The Long Riders (1980) as Zee
- The Oklahoma City Dolls (TV Movie - 1981) as Darla Guthrie
- Waltz Across Texas (1982) as Molesta Davis
- Sweet Revenge (TV Movie - 1984) as Anne Haggarty Cheever
- Love on the Run (TV Movie - 1985) as Martha
- Odd Jobs (1986) as Loretta & Lynette
- Everybody's All-American (1988) as Darlene Kiely
- Meet the Applegates (1990) as Dottie
- Eating (1990) as Eloise
- The Whereabouts of Jenny (TV Movie - !991)
- Fatal Instinct (1993) as Woman Juror
- Last Summer in the Hamptons (1995) as Suzanne
- Graduation Night (2003) as Mrs. Quigley
- Nursie (2004) as Ada