Veronica Whyte

Veronica Whyte
Birth name	Veronica Elanis Smithington
Born	April 6, 1945
Died	December 17, 2012 (aged 67)
Cause of death	Brief illness
Years active	1966-2012
Spouse(s)	David DeMetrio (1969-1985) Lionel McLindsay (1985-1995) Josh Duffington (1996) John Whyte (1996-2012)
Nickname(s)	"V-Whyte"

Veronica Whyte, born Veronica Elanis Smithington, (April 6, 1945 − December 17, 2012) was an actress best known for her role as Ms. Meadinwold in Nightmare in Grays' Flats.

Early life and family

Whyte was one of three daughters of the late movie veteran Douglas Smithington and Harrah Bathurst Smithington. Her parents divorced when she was five years old. In 1952, her mother married actor Lou Whyte, who forced everyone in the family to take his last name. Whyte graduated from high school in 1963.

Career

Veronica Whyte as Sandra Childress in Sanira.

Whyte was discovered by director James Sheblin in 1964. Sheblin had heard that Whyte was talented and was able to act very well. In 1965, Whyte was cast to play the character of Hilda Gretchen in the film X-Town. The role gained her fame. In 1968, she starred in The Joan Madette Show alongside Joan Madette. Whyte was on Madette's show from 1968 to 1977. She was cast as the wife of Lionel McLindsay in the 1978 film Nightmare in Grays' Flats Whyte and McLindsay seemed to fall in love on the set. When asked if she wanted to marry him, she refused because she was already married to David DeMetrio at the time. In 1979, Whyte starred in the film Uselessville along with the late Julia Rafall and actors Dave Gelmon and Ryan Hardwin. In 1985, she was cast as the lead actress in the film Four Roads, and McLindsay once again starred with her. In 1991, Whyte played the title character in Have You Seen Edna?. After the film, she took a short break from acting. She returned in 1997, making guest appearances on TV shows. Whyte went on to appear in other films and TV series from 1997 to 2006; she played the wife of Mark Chratton's Ernest Childress in the film Sanira in 2006. She lent her voice to the character Charlotte Amaugh in an episode of the TV series The Year 7000 in 2007.

Death

Veronica Whyte's grave

Whyte died on December 17, 2012 at 2:30 a.m. She was 67. An autopsy was performed in December. The official cause of her death was ruled as an illness; it was recently revealed by her son Thomas that she had suffered from a brief illness shortly before she died.

A private funeral was held Friday, December 28, 2012 at 12:00 p.m. Only family members, friends, and co-stars were invited to attend the funeral. Whyte was buried after the ceremony.

Personal life

Whyte was happily married to actor/director John Whyte. They had two daughters, Amelia and Kelly, and two sons, Thomas and Joseph.

Marriages

Whyte with ex-husband David DeMetrio

Whyte has been married to four people in her life. She married actor David DeMetrio in 1969. The marriage began falling apart in 1983, when DeMetrio was caught performing illegal actions with his friend, the late rock singer Jimmie Baner Gusch. The divorce was made final in 1985.

In 1985, Whyte married actor Lionel McLindsay; the two were married until 1995, when McLindsay decided that he wanted to end the marriage.

The next year, she met Josh Duffington, and decided that she wanted to marry him because he was not a celebrity like her previous husbands. The marriage never worked out, and they divorced the same year. Whyte then decided that she'd be better off with a famous man, and married John Whyte, who was her husband until her death in 2012.

Trivia

• She was born on the same day as her second husband, Lionel McLindsay.

• She was a cancer survivor.

• She did not smoke cigarettes or drink alcohol; they were against her policy.

• Whyte was almost two decades older than Mark Chratton, who played her husband in Sanira.