Actress and author Christina Crawford, daughter of actress Joan Crawford and author of the book "Mommie Dearest," has been appointed to the Benewah County Commission by Gov. Butch Otter.

Otter named Crawford, who now operates the Seven Springs Country Inn near Tensed and who has served on the Benewah County Soil and Water Conservation Board, to fill the county commission vacancy created by the death of Commissioner Terry Doupe of DeSmet on Nov. 22. Like Doupe, Crawford is a Democrat; she joins commissioners Jack Buell and N.L. "Bud" McCall on the three-member commission.

Crawford, whose best-selling 1978 memoir told of abuse by her adoptive mother, has a master's degree in communication management from the University of Southern California. She is a former executive for the Coeur d'Alene Hotel & Casino, has written several other books and is a former television show host.