Where is Jeannie Russell now? Career after playing Margaret in Dennis the Menace, explored

Jeannie Russell and her late co-star Jay North were two of the iconic child actors of the late ‘50s and early ‘60s.

Russell and North garnered nationwide fame for their appearance on CBS’ Dennis the Menace. North played the titular role, while Russell portrayed Margaret Wade and appeared in 38 episodes of the show, according to IMDb.

After Dennis the Menace, Jay moved on to work on multiple other projects, while Jeannie supposedly stepped away from show business. After attending Valley College, the former child actress briefly served as assistant treasurer at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, a music hall in Los Angeles, California.

She left her job at the music center to practice as a chiropractor, a profession that helped her recover from injuries during her childhood when she used to dance. Jeannie Russell also revealed in her 2023 interview with Vegas Voice TV that being a chiropractor was something she could control, unlike her previous jobs.

Jeannie has reportedly continued practicing as a chiropractor in North Hollywood, California, for years now while staying away from showbiz, barring a role in the 1993 film Dennis the Menace. She portrayed the role of the titular character’s neighbor in the movie adaptation of her ‘60s CBS TV series.

Russell's last on-screen appearance was in 2024 in On Location: The Birds with Jeannie Russell, a short documentary directed by Kevin MacLean. She recollected her experience of working with Alfred Hitchcock in The Birds.

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Jeannie Russell left acting after having a “bad experience” with a “nasty casting director” at 13

After garnering nationwide recognition for playing Margaret Wade in Dennis the Menace and appearing in Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, the promising child actress dropped out of showbiz. Jeannie Russell’s unexpected exit resulted from a bad experience with a casting director at 13.

The former actress talked about her leaving show business during a chat with Dan Roberts and Beverly Washburn on Vegas Voice TV’s Hollywood Memories. Jeannie Russell said,

“Well, I had a bad experience with a nasty casting director. I won’t mention his name, but the door slammed shut on professional show business for me at a point, okay? [...] I was 13 at the time and I maybe did one or two other things and then it just… it was just over, I was in a no man's land and depressed…”

She mentioned the “work ethic” at her home and how it led her to other career paths. Russell added,

“After I graduated from high school. I slept walked through Valley College and got my AAA. And I was selling tickets at the time to keep busy. It was a good gig. I was at the Music Center… Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and we were assistant treasurers.”

Jeannie Russell opened up about having an unpleasant encounter with a customer on her second job. It triggered her to seek a career in another profession she could control. She recounted how her mother helped her at that time,

“My mother had saved a significant amount of my money [from her acting days], you know, for those days even though she didn't have to, I found out later. And she said to me, ‘Honey your career in Show Business may be over but look what it did for you.’ And she handed me my bank account.”

After thinking it over, Jeannie Russell chose to become a chiropractor. She told the hosts,

“I'd been treated as a child, and it turned my health around at that time. And I looked into it and it was wide open for women and all you needed to do was get your diploma, pass a board, and you can set up a shop.”

During the interview, Russell also reflected upon dropping out of show business and facing depression after gaining nationwide fame in her previous job as a child artist.

Jeannie Russell confirmed the news of her Dennis the Menace co-star Jay North’s passing

On April 6, 2025, Laurie Jacobson, author-producer friend of Jay North, penned a post announcing the death of the former child actor. In her Facebook post, Jacobson mentioned that Jeannie had told her about the passing of Dennis the Menace star. Russell also spoke to The Hollywood Reporter, describing Jay North as her “otherworldly brother.”

She also told the outlet that Jay, 73, had passed away at his Florida home following a long battle with colorectal cancer.