THEATER : Wyatt’s a Class Act in La Mirada’s ‘Miss Daisy’ : A solid and economical performance by the ‘Father Knows Best’ mom anchors this satisfying show.

The most lasting memory of Jane Wyatt has to be as Margaret Anderson, the mom of America’s first family during the 1950s, at least when it came to TV. In her “Father Knows Best” role, she was always genteel and classy, no matter how much axle grease Bud brought to the dinner table, or how often Betty fretted over the prom.

Wyatt remains classy in the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts’ production of Alfred Uhry’s broadly popular “Driving Miss Daisy,” but you couldn’t call her genteel.

As Daisy Werthan, the elderly Jewish woman who reluctantly allows an aging black chauffeur into her car and into her life, she’s a bit of a crank; she’s a “doodle” (that’s what her son, Boolie, affectionately calls her when she has exasperated him) with a vengeance.

It’s Wyatt’s solid and economical performance that anchors this satisfying show. Miss Daisy is at the center of everything, and Wyatt, even when she lets the Southern accent slip, lets us know that that’s just where she’s suppose to be. Miss Daisy has been left dried and depleted by age, but still has small reservoirs of spirit to draw from. She’s formidable now, and you wonder what a pistol she must have been as a young woman.

“Driving Miss Daisy,” a giant stage hit before becoming an Oscar-winning movie starring Jessica Tandy and Morgan Freeman, is designed to be sentimental, the kind of piece that wants you to root for the principals in unabashed ways. Director Glenn Casale is fully aware of this, but he’s pretty careful about not letting the relationship between Miss Daisy and Hoke become cheaply emotional.

With its somewhat arch scenes and feel-good undercurrents, the play is manipulative, but it’s the kind of manipulation you don’t mind giving in to.

It’s sweetly entertaining watching the connection grow between these two, from the first intense distrust Miss Daisy has for Hoke (mainly, she’s terrified of losing control of her life, but there’s also a hint of Deep South bigotry in her doubts) to a time when he becomes her best friend, maybe even the love of her life.

Ted Lange, probably best known for his role as the genial bartender Isaac on TV’s “The Love Boat,” has a rapport with Wyatt that helps build a closeness, but there are flaws in his approach. His Hoke is funny and noble but also tinged with cliche. Call it the Uncle Remus syndrome: Lange can get a little too country, a little too shuffling.

On the other hand, Lange does have adept turns, such as when Hoke first sees Miss Daisy in a moment of senile hysteria. He’s terrified, standing away from her as if she had an infectious disease. The moment says something about the character’s simplicity and isolation.

As Boolie, Patrick Mickler is terrific, an actor with great timing and amusing ease with the Southern dialect. On the technical side, Joanne Trunick McMaster’s set is uncluttered, just a couple of small rooms that roll off and on the stage. Miss Daisy’s car is rendered by a little platform with two raised stools; nothing gets in the way of our taking in their private turns on the road to intimacy.

‘DRIVING MISS DAISY’

A La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts production of Alfred Uhry’s play. Directed by Glenn Casale. With Jane Wyatt, Ted Lange and Patrick Mickler. Artistic Director Scott Rogers. Sets by Joanne Trunick McMaster. Lighting by Raun Yankovich. Sound by Chuck McCarroll. Costumes by Kit McCall. Plays tonight through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 7:30 p.m. with 2:30 p.m. matinees Saturday and Sunday at 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada. Tickets: $20 to $24. (714) 994-6310.