In Memory– The Last of The Five Little Peppers –Part 1

For over a year or maybe even two, a good friend in Arizona has been a caring friend for a woman named Dottie. Dottie has been in a senior’s hospice, and I have been following her health for a long time even though I didn’t know her. I had seen pictures of her and heard so much about her I felt like I knew her personally.

Sadly, Dottie died a few months ago, and I felt the same way as if my neighbour had died. Today, I asked my friend when her ashes were going to be scattered, and wondered if  there would be anyone there– as in reality she had no family left.

To my surprise this is what she told me:

“Dottie’s former neighbor, myself, her hospice nurse & pastor will be there. That will be it because Dottie had no family.  However, a woman discovered her on IMDB and would love to attend if she weren’t so ill.

“Dottie was actually Dorothy Ann Seese, a child star with the potential of Shirley Temple, but her parents yanked her movie career after she starred in the Five Little Peppers series of 4 or 5 movies in the late 30’s and early 40’s.  The woman that found her is a huge Peppers fan and owns all the movies.  Dottie was the last of the Peppers.  I have some pictures of her, thanks to her of Dottie when she was 5 & 6 playing Phronzie.  Too bad royalties weren’t available then. She died penniless”.

I stopped typing and almost fell out of my chair as I had watched those movies as a child and felt so bad. If had not been for the kindness of my very dedicated friend visiting her she would have died alone after giving so much joy to others.

In later years Dorothy Ann Seese obtained a liberal arts degree from UCLA in 1955 and became a business systems analyst for fifteen years. She then switched to the legal field and worked the next 25 years as a legal secretary, legal assistant and paralegal. In 1997 she became disabled from a spinal injury, retired, and lived in Sun City, Arizona.

In memory of Dottie-Dorothy Ann Seese– The last of The Five Little Peppers.

READ part 2–

In Memory– The Last of The Five Little Peppers Part 2 — Dorothy Ann “Dottie” Seese

Penny Lane

Watching “Five Little Peppers” right now, for the first time ever. There is a marathon on TCM. That’s what brought me here. May Dottie rest in peace.

James

Thanks for posting that she had passed, I know it was a few years ago, but again I just started watching again.

You are doing a great, great service to this woman and her family that pass on or are still alive. THANK YOU.

Anne Siels

I was working at Ventana Winds in Youngtown, AZ., as a Certified Caregiver helping to take care of her in December 2015. Early Friday morning, Dec. 11, two other caregivers and I were with her when she took her last breathes. We were glad that someone could be with her in her last moments as we knew she had no family. The only picture she had in her room was of her at her desk as a paralegal in the 1970’s.

Louis Gonzales

The recent marathon on TCM led me here and I just wanted to say thank you for this beautifully written remembrance of her. I’m shocked that she doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page given the level of talent that I just saw. Would you happen to know if she has a memorial marker of remembrance present near her ashes? If not, I would most definitely be willing to pay for one. Once again, thank you so much and may God bless you!

David

I watched that marathon as well. I am pretty sure she was the cutest little girl ever in the history of the world. I loved watching the adults interact with her – they just smiled. little moments where you can sense there isn’t very much acting going on, just big smiles of affection for a little tiny precocious girl.

COMPLETE FILMOGRAPHY WITH SYNOPSIS

CAST (feature film)

1.

The Long Gray Line (1955) as
An Irish immigrant becomes one of West Point””s most beloved officers.

2.

The Virginian (1946) as Jane Woods
Best friends become enemies when one signs on with a rustler.

3.

Let’s Have Fun (1943) as Toni Gilbert

4.

Blondie’s Blessed Event (1942) as Little girl

5.

Blondie in Society (1941) as Little girl
Dagwood brings home a pedigreed Great Dane which an important company client wants and which Blondie enters in the big dog show. A highlight of this film is the canine burping display.

6.

Out West with the Peppers (1940) as Phronsie Pepper
A working class family moves West in search of better fortune.

7.

Five Little Peppers in Trouble (1940) as Phronsie Pepper
Five siblings face boarding school when their working mother can””t hold a job and care for them.

8.

Five Little Peppers at Home (1940) as Phronsie Pepper
Five siblings enlist a crusty old businessman to help save their mother from bankruptcy.

9.

The Doctor Takes A Wife (1940) as Girl
A man-hating author and a woman-hating doctor have to pretend they’re married.

10.

Meet the Missus (1940) as Millie Lou

11.

Five Little Peppers and How They Grew (1939) as Phronsie Pepper
A case of measles gets a working class family mixed up with a blustering businessman””s clan.

Update: Dottie was laid rest January, 2015. It was a sparse attendance, and the church secretary, plus the pastor of course was in attendance.  It was a cold, overcast day and rather gloomy, but Pastor Blau gave Dottie a very good send-off.  Her ashes were placed and it was all over in 15 minutes. May she rest in peace!