Whatever Happened to ‘Vega$’ Star Phyllis Davis? Why the Actress Chose a Private Life

Phyllis Elizabeth Davis, actress, May 8, 1971. — Chip Donchin / TV Guide / Courtesy Everett Collection

What To Know

Phyllis Davis was a notable film and television actress best known for her roles in the series Vega$.
Davis found success in Hollywood through connections and perseverance.
Davis retired from acting in the mid-1990s to live a private life in Nevada.

Although her name may not immediately ring a bell, Phyllis Davis was a fairly prominent actor who worked in film and television from the late ‘60s until the early ‘90s. If you do recognize her, it’s probably because of her role in the late ‘70s crime drama Vega$, or maybe it was from one of her numerous appearances on The Love Boat and Fantasy Island.

Growing up in Texas, Davis knew at a very young age that she did not want to make the same career choice as most of her family, where her father, mother, and two brothers all worked as morticians.

Recalling her youth, Davis told journalist Alisa Stingley in 1982 that growing up in a mortuary “was not much fun”. She went on to tell her about late-night ambulance calls to pick up bodies and confessed that she “kept running away and they (her family) kept bringing her back.”

Ultimately, Davis’s wandering spirit and a bit of impatience caused her to drop out of college, where she had been studying drama, and move to Los Angeles. After a few months of unsuccessful auditions, she recognized that she needed to earn enough money to pay the rent, keep the lights on, and put food on the table, so she joined Continental Airlines’ flight attendant school. Although she graduated from her class with “flying colors”, pun completely intended, it did not take long for her to realize that she absolutely hated being confined to an airplane for long periods of time.

Fortunately for her, Davis’s roommate at the time was choreographer Toni Basil. Because of that connection, she was able to secure work on a handful of variety shows as well as a couple of minor roles in Elvis Presley movies. And, as time went on, Davis found herself finally getting enough offers that she could say farewell to Continental Airlines once and for all.

Some of her more notable big-screen credits include Russ Meyer’s Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, written by future film critic Roger Ebert, as well as Sweet Sugar and The Day of the Dolphin. On television, she had a recurring role on Love, American Style and made guest appearances on shows such as Adam-12 and The Wild Wild West.

VEGA$, (aka VEGAS), Robert Urich, Phyllis Davis, Bart Braverman, TV-Series 1978-1981

Everett Collection

However, it was on Vega$, where Davis truly stood out. Her character, Beatrice Travis, was private investigator Dan Tanna’s “Girl Friday.” It was a fun role, and her character, along with the rest of the stellar cast led by Robert Urich and Tony Curtis, kept audiences coming back week after week.

When Vega$ ended, Davis found a home as a guest on game shows like The Hollywood Squares and Family Feud. Those appearances kept her in the public eye as she continued to audition for other roles, both on TV and in the movies. A couple of notable big-screen appearances were in Beverly Hills Cop III and Under Siege 2: Dark Territory. Neither of them gave her a great deal of screen time, but, as usual, Davis did a lot with the material that she had been given.

With all that said, the truth is that Davis didn’t really need to work much. Speaking about her finances to journalist Steve Reich in 1982, Davis told him that she was “too lazy to go job hunting” and added, “I’m set for life because I made wise stock investments, not because of Vega$.”

Midway through the ‘90s, Davis made the decision to step away from Hollywood entirely. She’d been playing the game for almost 30 years, and it just felt right to slow things down a bit. So, she moved to Henderson, Nevada, and made a very purposeful decision to live a much more private life.

Perhaps it is for that reason that when Davis passed away from cancer in 2013, her passing went largely unnoticed. More than six months after her death, her name was eventually found buried in a list of deceased actors in the obituary section of a Spring 2014 Screen Actors Guild newsletter, where she simply appeared alongside many others in a relatively non-descript list, offering little recognition for her career.

It is entirely possible the Davis family chose not to prepare a public statement. The aftermath of losing a loved one can be a deeply emotional and complicated time, and a decision to forgo a public announcement is completely understandable. Whatever the case, there is immense value in remembering the life and achievements of Phyllis Davis. Whether it was on the big or small screen, she was a talented entertainer whose career richly deserves to be celebrated, even to this day.