Shirley Partridge: One of the First
Shirley Partridge was one of the first working moms seen on television during the 1970s. Shirley, played by Shirley Jones, was the manager and band member of her family’s singing group on the show The Partridge Family. The show focused on some of the realities people face in show-business life which was a world the actress herself was very familiar with. Additionally, it faced the issue of a family that had been left widowed by the death of Shirley’s husband and the kid’s father. Shirley herself has claimed that she was the first working mom on TV. However, others say that honor goes to Diahann Carroll on her show Julia.
