In 1969, Hershey co-starred in the Glenn Ford Western "Heaven with a Gun". On the set, she met and began a romantic relationship with actor David Carradine, who later starred in the television series "Kung Fu" (see Personal life). In the same year, she acted in the controversial drama "Last Summer", which was based on Evan Hunter's eponymous novel. In this film, Hershey played Sandy, the "heavy" who influences two young men (played by Bruce Davison and Richard Thomas) to rape another girl, Rhoda (played by Catherine Burns). Though the film, directed by Frank Perry, received an X rating for the graphic rape scene, Burns earned a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her performance.