Shelley Smith, Model Turned Actress & Game Show Whiz, Dies at 70

Shelley Smith, a stunning blonde model who became an actress and later a marriage-and-fertility specialist, died August 8. She was 70.

Smith's husband of 18 years, Michael Maguire, reported her death on Facebook. “I’m sorry I have not updated everyone sooner,” he wrote of her death, which came three days after a heart attack. “My dear, sweet angel Shelley Smith passed peacefully yesterday at 2:20 PM. Her children, Nicky and Miranda Nathan and I were at her side and holding her hand and kissing her head and singing to her and telling her how much we loved her. Also, with us was Grant Stevens, my great great friend, who gave up himself to help us, understand the process of dying, and guided us through it with so much class and dignity! We owe him a tremendous debt!"

He went on, “Shelley lived an incredible life! We are all heartbroken, but we are also so fortunate to have been touched by this beautiful, intelligent, compassionate and incredible soul. Life is so short. Make every second count and fill every second with love.”

Born October 25, 1952, in Princeton, New Jersey, Smith was a high-profile model throughout the '70s, appearing in Vogue, Mademoiselle, Glamour, and more.

She switched to acting, appearing in the TV  movie "Mirror, Mirror" in 1979, and then as a regular on the short-lived sitcom "The Associates" (1979-1980). The show featured an early performance by Martin Short.

Smith was also a regular on TV's "For Love and Honor" (1983) and appeared on such series as "Angie" (1980), "Hart to Hart" (1980 & 1983), "Fantasy Island" (1981-1984), "The Love Boat" (1980 & 1986), "Diff'rent Strokes" (1986), and "Murder, She Wrote" (1987 & 1991).

In the '80s, Smith was a staple on TV game shows, and is particularly remembered for her mastery of Dick Clark's "Pyramid," on which she is considered to have been one of the best celebrity competitors.

Smith then earned her master's in psychology and segued into marriage-and-family therapy, going on to found the Egg Donor Program (now Hatch Fertility), a fertility business, after giving birth to her twins Nick and Miranda thanks to in vitro fertilization.