Jun 17, 2016 2 min read

LOS ANGELES – Ronnie Claire Edwards, who played grocer Ike Godsey’s prickly wife, Corabeth, on “The Waltons,” died. She was 83.

Edwards died at her Dallas home, said her longtime friend and business partner, Marty Van Kleeck, who was at her side.

The cause of death was chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Van Kleeck said Thursday.

“Corabeth was a character and Ronnie Claire was an even bigger character,” said Mary McDonough, who starred as Erin Walton on the 1972-81 family drama. “She was larger than life and so whip-smart and funny.”

Edwards joined “The Waltons” in 1974 as high-strung Corabeth Walton, cousin to John Walton Sr. (Ralph Waite). She married Ike (Joe Conley) and proved a formidable and snooty force.

Edwards, a native of Oklahoma City, had guest roles in shows including “Dallas,” “Falcon Crest” and “Designing Women.”

She appeared in films including “The Dead Pool” and “Nobody’s Fool” and regularly on stage.

She also wrote plays, including “Wedding Belles” and “The Mystery of Miz Arnette” (both with Alan Bailey), and books including a 2000 memoir, “The Knife Thrower’s Assistant: Memoirs of a Human Target.”

Van Kleeck said Edwards’ personal life had a consistent theatrical flair, including her choice of home in Dallas, a former Catholic Church.

“She was incredibly creative and imaginative,” Van Kleeck said. “She was one of a kind, the kind of person you hope you meet in your lifetime and rarely get the opportunity to.”

Edwards, who was divorced, is survived by family members including a brother and sister, Van Kleeck said.