Show business Early in her career, Priest worked as a singer and actress on local television stations, including
WTTG in Washington, D.C. In the late 1950s, she acted in stage productions, including
Bus Stop and
The Tender Trap. Priest replaced actress
Beverley Owen on the television
sitcom The Munsters; Owen departed the series after the first 13 episodes in order to get married. Marilyn's character was a running gag, as she was a beautiful blonde treated as the ugly member of a family composed of a
Frankenstein's monster for an uncle, a
vampire for an aunt, a
vampire for a grandfather, and a
werewolf for a cousin. The studio replaced Priest with
Debbie Watson (12 years Priest's junior) in the role of Marilyn Munster in the 1966 feature
Munster, Go Home! (1966), as Watson was under contract to the studio, which had plans to make her a film star. After the series ended, Priest appeared on episodes of television programs such as
Bewitched,
Perry Mason,
Death Valley Days and
The Mary Tyler Moore Show, in which she played
Sue Ann Nivens's unappreciated younger sister. Priest's film roles included
Looking for Love (1964) with
Connie Francis,
Easy Come, Easy Go (1967) with
Elvis Presley, the horror film
The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant (1971) with
Bruce Dern and
Some Call It Loving (1973) starring
Zalman King.
After acting Priest retired from acting in the 1980s, but continues to attend some of the nostalgia conventions and
Munsters revivals around the country. She had previously restored and sold homes in
Idaho, where she has lived for over two decades, before retiring. ==Personal life==