If you close your eyes and think back to 1960s television, you probably see a little girl with blonde pigtails clutching a doll named Mrs. Beasley. That image defined an era. But for the person behind the character, the reality was anything but a sitcom. Anissa Jones is the answer to who played Buffy in Family Affair, and while she became a household name alongside Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot, her story is one of the most heartbreaking chapters in Hollywood history.
She wasn't just some child actor. Anissa was a phenomenon.
When Family Affair premiered on CBS in 1966, it filled a specific niche in the American psyche. We wanted wholesome. We wanted a story about a high-society bachelor suddenly thrust into fatherhood. Buffy Patterson-Davis was the heart of that show. Anissa Jones took on the role when she was just eight years old, beating out hundreds of other girls because she had this specific, quiet charm that didn't feel "stagey."
Why Anissa Jones Was the Perfect Buffy
It’s hard to overstate how much people loved her. Honestly, the chemistry between Buffy and her twin brother Jody, played by Johnny Whitaker, felt real because they actually became close friends. They weren't just coworkers. They were kids navigating a massive television set together.
Anissa had this way of looking at "Uncle Bill" (Brian Keith) or "Mr. French" (Sebastian Cabot) that made the audience melt. It wasn't just acting; she had a natural vulnerability. Producers noticed it immediately. The show ran for five seasons, totaling 138 episodes, and for every single one of those, Anissa was the golden girl of CBS.
But there was a catch.
The industry is a machine. By the time the show ended in 1971, Anissa was 13. She had spent her entire childhood in front of cameras, often working grueling hours that would make a modern labor lawyer’s head spin. She wanted out. She was tired of being "Buffy." Imagine being a teenager and having strangers come up to you in the street expecting you to be a six-year-old with a doll. It’s a recipe for an identity crisis.
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The Mrs. Beasley Connection
You can't talk about who played Buffy in Family Affair without mentioning the doll. Mrs. Beasley was as much a character as the humans were. Mattel sold millions of them. For Anissa, however, the doll became a symbol of her stagnation. She was growing up, but the brand required her to stay small.
She eventually tried to break away from the "cute kid" image. She auditioned for the role of Regan MacNeil in The Exorcist. Think about that for a second. The girl who played Buffy wanted to play the possessed child in the most terrifying horror movie of the 70s. William Friedkin ultimately passed on her, fearing her "Buffy" image was too strong and would distract the audience. It was a massive blow.
The Hard Transition After Family Affair
Life after a hit show is notoriously difficult for child stars. For Anissa, the end of Family Affair coincided with a messy divorce between her parents. She moved in with her father, but he died shortly after. This left her in a tailspin.
By the time she turned 18 in March 1976, she received her trust fund—a payout from her years on the show totaling about $70,000. In 1970s money, that was a small fortune. Unfortunately, without a solid support system or a career path she felt passionate about, that money became a tool for self-destruction.
She moved into an apartment with her brother Paul and started hanging out with a crowd that didn't have her best interests at heart. She dropped out of high school. She was looking for a freedom she never had on the set of a soundstage, but she found it in the wrong places.
A Summer Night in Oceanside
The end came way too soon. On August 28, 1976, less than five months after her 18th birthday, Anissa Jones was found dead in a friend's house in Oceanside, California.
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The cause was a massive drug overdose.
It shocked the world. The girl who played Buffy—the sweet, innocent child everyone invited into their living rooms every week—was gone. The contrast between her TV persona and her reality was too much for the public to process. It remains one of the most cited examples of the "child star curse," though that's a bit of a reductive way to look at a complex human life.
The Legacy of the Girl with the Pigtails
Despite the tragedy, people still watch Family Affair today. It lives on in syndication and on streaming services. When people ask who played Buffy in Family Affair, they are usually looking for a bit of nostalgia, but the answer carries a lot of weight.
Anissa's performance holds up. She wasn't just a prop. She had timing, she had emotional range, and she helped create a character that defined a generation of television.
- Cultural Impact: The "Buffy" look—the pigtails and the short dresses—influenced children's fashion for years.
- Collectibles: Original Mrs. Beasley dolls from the era when Anissa was filming are now high-value collector's items.
- TV History: The show was a pioneer in the "non-traditional family" genre that would later give us shows like Full House.
Brian Keith and the "Father" Bond
Interestingly, Brian Keith, who played her uncle on the show, was deeply affected by her death. They had a genuine bond. Keith was a rugged "man's man" in Hollywood, but he had a soft spot for the kids. When Anissa died, it hit the cast hard. It’s a reminder that even in the artificial world of Hollywood, the connections formed on set can be deeply personal.
Johnny Whitaker, who played Jody, has since spent much of his life advocating for better protections for child actors. He saw firsthand what the pressure did to his "sister." He’s been very vocal about the fact that child stars aren't just tiny employees; they are developing humans who need specialized care and a life outside the studio gates.
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Lessons from the Life of Anissa Jones
What can we take away from the story of the girl who played Buffy? It's more than just a "Where Are They Now" trivia bit.
First, the Coogan Law—the California law designed to protect child actors' earnings—is vital, but money isn't everything. Anissa had her money, but she didn't have a plan. Modern child stars often have entire teams dedicated to their mental health and education, something that was largely absent in the 1960s.
Second, the "typecasting" trap is real. If you’re looking to get into the industry or you're supporting someone who is, diversification is key. Anissa was so tied to Buffy that she couldn't find work as a young adult.
What you can do now:
If you’re a fan of classic TV, the best way to honor Anissa’s memory is to watch the show for what it was: a bright spot in a complicated time. You can find episodes of Family Affair on various classic TV networks or DVD sets.
For those interested in the history of Hollywood, researching the Coogan Act or the work of organizations like A Minor Consideration (founded by Paul Petersen) provides a deeper look into how the industry has changed to prevent tragedies like this from happening again.
Understanding the person behind the character makes the show more poignant. Anissa Jones was a talented, bright girl who gave a lot to the world in a very short amount of time. Buffy Patterson-Davis might be a fictional character, but the impact Anissa had on television history is very, very real.