Marybeth Kaminsky (Ghost Whisperer)

Redeemed and remorseful villainess Marybeth Kaminsky

Marybeth Kaminsky (Cindy Pickett) is a redeemed villainess from "The Woman of His Dreams," episode 2.06 of Ghost Whisperer (airdate October 27, 2006). She is the mother of models Eva and Linda Kaminsky, the former of the two siblings having passed on.

In the episode, Eva Kaminsky (who went by Eva Turner in her modeling career) appeared to Jim Conrad while Melinda Gordon was out of town visiting her mother. With Melinda's help, Jim learned Eva's identity and went to her funeral service, where Marybeth's eulogy was interrupted by Eva's presence. Prior to the interruption, it was revealed that Jim knew the Kaminsky family, especially Eva--as they danced at their school prom.

During Marybeth's encounter with Jim, she expressed pride of Eva being a model and seeing her pictures on magazines, though she stated that she always thought that Linda would be the one in the spotlight. After Melinda returned, she and Jim visited Marybeth together after their suspicion that Eva's appearance during the service was due to being angry at her mother--a suspicion that was confirmed by Eva when her ghost appeared during the meeting.

The flashbacks to Jim and Eva's prom revealed that Eva was awkward in appearance and demeanor before becoming a model, and as Eva revealed, Marybeth was harshly critical of Eva's looks during her career as a model. She often made comparisons between both of her daughters, and according to Eva, Marybeth once told her not to expect too much in live because "homely girls had it hard, and also told Eva that her nose looked too big in pictures. Marybeth's comments led to Eva changing everything about herself to please her, and after the reveal, the grieving but callous mother referred to her criticism as just "words," while claiming that she pushed Eva to never be satisfied.

The encounter also led to the reveal that Eva died while undergoing plastic surgery, not an appendectomy as originally told, with her agent, Diana Lassiter, revealing the full details to Jim and Melinda. However, Marybeth and Linda were present when Diana repeated the details, including the fact that Eva was on diet pills on the day in question, and a bad reaction to the anesthesia killed her. Eva's spirit revealed the whole truth: Diana told Eva to cover up the fact that she was on the pills, as the doctor wouldn't perform the surgery if he had known. Regarding Marybeth, Jim stated to Eva that she saw how much Marybeth loved her at the memorial service, confirming Marybeth's redemption and remorse for her harsh treatment of Eva.

Trivia

• Cindy Pickett later played villainous eco-terrorist Rachel Sulkin on The Mentalist.