American actress and singer, a centenarian and big screen veteran, her film appearances spanned 100 years. She starred in silent films as a child, and then sound films as an adult, but perhaps is best known for her leading roles opposite Gene Autry in the early 1940s in five horse opera features. She was also known for her collaborations with director Blake Edwards on five occasions. She also appeared on Broadway, radio and television, having appeared on screen at ten weeks old in 1918. She was still appearing on screen at the time of her death, with her latest project opposite her son Tom Waldman Jr. in the comedy Kill a Better Mousetrap, filmed in the summer of 2018 and not yet released at the time of her death. She was briefly billed as Fay Shannon. Her brother-in-law was the actor and comedian Billy Gilbert.
McKenzie was married twice. Her first marriage to the American actor Steve Cochran in Acapulco, Mexico, in January 1946, ended in divorce in 1948, although they had separated nine months into the marriage. Her second marriage to the screenwriter Tom Waldman lasted from 1948 to his death on 23 July 1985. They had two children: the actor Tom Waldman Jr. and the writer Madora McKenzie. McKenzie was a Christian Scientist. Fay McKenzie died peacefully of natural causes in her sleep in Highland Park, Los Angeles on 16 April 2019. She was 101.
Link to Wikipedia biography