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Margaret Anita Hunter
1919-2016
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Margaret Anita Hunter was born in Oakland, CA to Robert Sr. & Vada (Hughes) Prusso on December 30, 1919.  A beautiful child, she was “discovered” at age 3 while playing on the beach and then signed to act in “Our Gang” shorts, the predecessor to “The Little Rascals”.  As a child, she lived briefly in Oklahoma where she survived a tornado and later, in 1933, the Long Beach CA. earthquake. 

Margaret graduated from Fairfax High School in West Hollywood in 1938.  The high school, being a breeding ground for future figures in the entertainment industry, fueled her love of singing and playing the piano.  She also modeled professionally.  Her graduation gift was a cruise to the Hawaiian Islands and then a foreign nation.

In 1953 she entertained our troops in Korea with the USO Camp Shows, enduring a plane crash and a jeep roll-over.  That same year, she also sang at the Academy Awards held at the RKO Pantages Theater.  Later in her career, she sang at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas where she met, and was befriended by, Nat King Cole.  She auditioned for and was accepted to sing in the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies, but was unable to do so due to health issues.

Margaret had many adventures and lived in Santa Monica, Catalina, Santa Barbara, San Jose, a cabin in Felton, a home in Mexico and her beloved Casa Margarita in Stevinson.  She also loved spending time in Capitola. 

Her other love in life was her family.  She was preceded in death by 3 husbands: Bob Jenks, Harrison “Gene” Hall and James D. Hunter.  Also passing prior were her unborn daughter in 1955 and her son Randy Jenks Sr. in 2013.  Margaret went home to God on December 15, 2016 at Modesto, CA.  She leaves her brother, Robert Prusso Jr., two sons Dennis (Sally) Jenks and Lance (Lydia) Hunter, and one daughter Laurie (Lyle) Anderson.  She has 10 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren and 6 great-great-grandchildren.  She was greatly loved and will be sorely missed. 

Visitation will be held from 5pm to 8pm on Friday, January 13th at Allen Mortuary, 247 N. Broadway, Turlock.  A graveside service will be held at 2pm on Saturday, January 14th at Sunnyside Cemetery, 20085 3rd Ave, Stevinson. 

She was preceded in death by her unborn daughter in 1955, by her husband, Jim Hunter in 2006 and her son Randy Jenks in 2013.

She leaves 2 sons and a daughter and numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren and great, great grandchildren.

Services are pending.