(Courtesy of Les Adams)

(Courtesy of Jack Tillmany) (Courtesy of Jack Tillmany) (Courtesy of Jack Tillmany)

In the late 1930s at Republic, and billed initially as Mary Hart and then Lynn Roberts, this lovely lady was the frequent co-star of Roy Rogers and was the heroine in several of the Three Mesquiteers adventures. She was also the female lead in THE LONE RANGER (Republic, 1938) and DICK TRACY RETURNS (Republic, 1938) cliffhangers and played the daughter in the THE HIGGINS FAMILY (Republic, 1938) film and ongoing series which was Republic's low budget competition to MGM's Hardy Family.

These appearances occurred during her first term players contract(s) at Republic which ran from January, 1938 through June, 1939. That contract provided her with some security and a regular paycheck but Republic could utilize her as much as they wanted.

Note her 1922 birth year, which means that she was about sixteen years old when working in those 1938 serials and other releases. She was even younger when she did her first movie work, a bit part in BULLDOG EDITION (Republic, 1936). To avoid this age issue, her birth year was changed to 1919.

She left Republic and went to other studios looking for star status, but didn't find it.

One of the films that was shown often on on the old AMC movie channel was the 1941 SUN VALLEY SERENADE which stars Sonja Henie and John Payne, but is generally remembered as a showcase for Glenn Miller and his Orchestra. Keep on eye out for "pretty ladies doing bit parts", and you will spot Sheila Ryan and Lynne Roberts as both were under contract to 20th Century Fox at the time. Hint: office receptionist and telephone operator.

She returned to Republic in the mid 1940s and was under a term player contract(s) from September, 1944 through March, 1948. A typical, solid Roberts performance can be seen in the Gene Autry western SIOUX CITY SUE (Republic, 1946) which was Gene's first after returning from World War II service. Lynne did two more with Autry, ROBIN HOOD OF TEXAS (Republic, 1947) and SADDLE PALS (Republic, 1947), as well as single films with Roy and Monte Hale.

After exiting Republic for the second time, Lynne free-lanced and can be seen in outdoor adventures with Gene Autry (at Columbia), Kirby Grant (Monogram mountie series) and with Tim Holt at RKO. Lynne also worked in various early TV shows. In her early thirties, Lynne retired around 1955 to devote time to her family and personal activities.

Lynne was married four times and had two children: son Bill was born in 1943 from her first marriage to William Englebert, Jr. Husband number two was Louis John Gardella. Peri Margaret Samuels was born in 1955 when Lynne was married to Hyman B. Samuels. Her fourth marriage was to pro wrestler Don Sebastian.

Les Adams has Hart/Roberts identified in 64 films. Of that number, 21 are westerns and 2 are serials.

On December 16, 1977, Lynne Roberts struck her head when she fell in the bathroom of her home. She lapsed into a coma and passed away on April 1, 1978 in Los Angeles. You may want to go to the In Search Of ... page on the Old Corral, and then check the California Death Records database. There you will find a record for: Lynne Sebastian, born 11/22/1922 in Texas, and passed away on 4/1/1978.

  Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) has information on Mary Hart / Lynne Roberts: http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0731376/

There's an article in Classic Images which highlights Lynne Roberts' career, along with her marriage woes and untimely death: http://www.classicimages.com/1999/august99/roberts.html

(Courtesy of Scott Groll) Above is the marker of Lynne Roberts at Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills. At the time of her passing, Lynne was separated from her husband, former pro wrestler Don Sebastian.

Lynne ... in the movies Above, heroine Lynn Roberts points the way for Chief Thunder Cloud/Victor Daniels (Tonto) and Lee Powell (the Lone Ranger) in the 1938 THE LONE RANGER serial. Above, from L-to-R are Stanley Andrews, George Cleveland, Lynn Roberts and John Merton in a scene from the cliffhanger, THE LONE RANGER (Republic, 1938) Above from L-to-R are Sterling Holloway, Lynne Roberts and Gene Autry in ROBIN HOOD OF TEXAS (Republic, 1947). Lynne did two other post-WW2 films with Autry, SADDLE PALS (Republic, 1947) and SIOUX CITY SUE (Republic, 1946). L-to-R in the above lobby card: Richard "Chito" Martin has his gun on the crowd while Tim Holt and Lynne Roberts give a helping hand to veteran actor Regis Toomey in DYNAMITE PASS (RKO, 1950).

Lynne ... at home (Courtesy of Lynne's grandson, Paul Samuels) One of Lynne's hobbies was raising, breeding and showing Kerry blue terriers. The above photo appears to be late 1940s - early 1950s and this is probably the backyard of Lynne's home in Van Nuys, California. For more info on the Kerry blue terrier, go to: http://www.uskbtc.com/ and http://www.kerryblues.info/ (Courtesy of Lynne's grandson, Paul Samuels) Lynne loved dogs of all types, and her son Bill Samuels adds: "The cocker spaniel's name was "Buddy". The picture was taken in early 40's when I was around 1 - 1 1/2 yrs old. We lived on Kilkea St. in L.A." (Courtesy of Lynne's grandson, Paul Samuels) Above are Lynne and daughter Peri Margaret Samuels (who was born in 1955). Lynne retired from movie and TV work in the mid 1950s. (Courtesy of Lynne's grandson, Paul Samuels) The above photos are probably from the early 1960s and Lynne would have been in her early forties.