Maggie Peterson

Maggie Peterson was an American actress.

Peterson was perhaps best known for her recurring role on The Andy Griffith Show as Charlene Darling, the only daughter of a bluegrass-loving mountain family,

Peterson first appeared on The Andy Griffith Show as Charlene in 1963 near the end of the show's third season when she leads her family in a bouncy rendition of "Salty Dog."

She appeared on four other episodes of the show through 1966, then played another character on the 1968 episode "A Girl for Goober" in the final season.

As a young woman, she formed a musical act called the Ja-Da Quartet with her brother and two of his friends. They were spotted by Griffith's manager and invited to New York, and they eventually made it on variety programs hosted by Perry Como and Pat Boone and recorded an album, It's the Most Happy Sound.

In 1964, Peterson joined NBC's The Bill Dana Show as Susie the coffee shop waitress for that sitcom's second and final season. In 1969, she appeared in the Griffith-starring feature Angel in My Pocket and in The Love God?, starring Knotts.

She returned as Charlene in the 1986 special Return to Mayberry and also appeared on shows including Green Acres, Gomer Pyle: USMC, The Odd Couple and Love, American Style.

Peterson died May 15, 2022 in Colorado. She was 81.