Cloris Leachman
Cloris Leachman, May 2007
Born	April 30, 1926 (1926-04-30) (age 82) Des Moines, Iowa
Years active	1949-present
Spouse(s)	George Englund (1953-1979)

Cloris Leachman (born April 30, 1926) is an American Academy Award-, nine-time Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning actress of stage, film and television. Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Year 1926 ( MCMXXVI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Year 1926 ( MCMXXVI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works In Theatre, the stage (sometimes referred to as the deck in Stagecraft) is a designated space for the Performance of theatrical productions Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic She has won eight primetime Emmy Awards—more than any other female performer—and one Daytime Emmy Award. Prime Time is the major News analysis current affairs and Politics programme broadcast on Radio Telefís Éireann in Ireland

Biography

Early life

Leachman, the eldest of three sisters, was born in Des Moines, Iowa, the daughter of Cloris and Buck Leachman, who owned a lumber company. Lumber or timber is Wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural Material for Construction, or ^[1] She graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1944. See also Theodore Roosevelt High School for schools of the same name Theodore Roosevelt High School, usually referred to simply as She later majored in drama at Northwestern University, where she was a member of Gamma Phi Beta and a classmate of future comic actor Paul Lynde. Gamma Phi Beta ( ΓΦΒ) is an international Sorority that was founded on November 11 1874 at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New Paul Edward Lynde ( June 13 1927 &ndash January 10 1982) was an American Comedian and Actor. Leachman began appearing on television and in films shortly after competing in Miss America as Miss Chicago 1946. The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia and the US Virgin Islands Before that she was very active at the Des Moines Playhouse starring in many productions.

Early career

After winning a scholarship in the beauty pageant, Leachman studied acting in New York City at the Actors Studio with Elia Kazan. The City of New York The Actors Studio is a membership Organization for Professional Actors theatre directors and Playwrights at 432 West 44th Street in Elia Mother, ( Greek: Ηλίας Καζάν September 7 1909 &ndash September 28 2003) was a Greek - American She appeared in the Broadway production of William Inge's Come Back, Little Sheba. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located William Motter Inge (ˈɪndʒ "inj" –) was an American playwright and novelist whose works typically feature solitary protagonists encumbered with ^[2]

She appeared in many live television broadcasts in the 1950s, including such programs as Suspense and Studio One. She was also one of the Raisonette Girls in the 1960s. She made her feature film debut in Robert Aldrich's film noir classic Kiss Me Deadly, released in 1955. Robert Aldrich (August 9 1918 – December 5 1983 was an American Film director, writer and producer, notable for such films as Kiss Me Deadly Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize moral ambiguity and sexual motivation Kiss Me Deadly ( 1955) is a Film noir drama produced and directed by Robert Aldrich starring Ralph Meeker. Leachman was several months pregnant during the filming, and appears in one scene running down a darkened highway barefoot and wearing only a trenchcoat. A year later she appeared opposite Paul Newman and Lee Marvin in The Rack (1956). Paul Leonard Newman (January 26 1925 &ndash September 26 2008 was an Academy Award Lee Marvin ( February 19, 1924 &ndash August 29, 1987) was an American Film actor She appeared with Newman again, in a brief role as a prostitute in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a American Western film that tells the story of bank robbers Butch Cassidy (played by Paul Newman) and

Leachman as Ruth Martin in "Transition", her debut episode (1957) on Lassie. Not to be confused with Ruth Martin (Neighbours Ruth Martin is a dramatic character on the long running Television series The fourth season of the television series Lassie began airing on CBS in the United States on September 8, 1957 and contained 22 episodes Lassie is an Emmy Award -winning American Television series that follows the adventures of a female rough collie named Lassie Jon Shepodd as Paul Martin. Jon Shepodd (born in Birmingham Alabama, December 19, 1925) is an American actor The Martins have just learned Timmy has run away.

She continued to mainly work on television, with appearances including the classic It's a Good Life episode of The Twilight Zone, in which she played Billy Mumy's mother; Rawhide; and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. "It's a Good Life" is a Short story by Jerome Bixby, written in 1953. The Twilight Zone is an American Television series created by Rod Serling. Charles William Mumy Jr (ˈmuːmi born February 1, 1954) is an American Actor, Musician, pitchman Instrumentalist, Rawhide was a television western series that aired on the US network CBS from 1959 to 1966. Alfred Hitchcock Presents is an Anthology Television series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock. Leachman appeared as Ruth Martin, Timmy's adoptive mom, in the last half of season four (1957) of Lassie. Not to be confused with Ruth Martin (Neighbours Ruth Martin is a dramatic character on the long running Television series Lassie is an Emmy Award -winning American Television series that follows the adventures of a female rough collie named Lassie She was replaced by June Lockhart in 1958. June Lockhart (born on June 25, 1925, in New York City, New York) is an American Television and Film Actress In 1959,she appeared in an episode of One Step Beyond entitled The Dark Room, where she portrayed an American photographer living in Paris. Alcoa Presents One Step Beyond is an American Television series created by Merwin Gerard The Dark Room is a novel written by RKNarayan, the well known English-language novelist from India.

Recognition and acclaim

Leachman has won numerous awards during her lengthy career. She won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in The Last Picture Show (1971), based on the bestselling book by Larry McMurtry. "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. Best Supporting Actor or Best Supporting Actress is an accolade given by a group of Film or Theatre professionals in recognition of the work The Last Picture Show is a 1971 film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, adapted from a 1966 novel by Larry McMurtry. Larry Jeff McMurtry (born June 3, 1936) is an American Novelist, Screenwriter, Essayist and Bookseller. She played the high school gym teacher's wife, with whom Timothy Bottoms' character has an affair. Timothy James Bottoms (born August 30, 1951) is an American Actor and producer Director Peter Bogdanovich had predicted to Leachman during production that she would win an Academy Award for her performance. Peter Bogdanovich ( Serbian Cyrillic: Петар Богдановић Latin: Petar Bogdanović (born July 30, 1939, is an American The part was originally offered to Ellen Burstyn, who wanted another role in the film. Ellen Burstyn (born December 7, 1932) is an American Academy Award -winning actress ^[3]

Leachman has also won a record-setting eight primetime and one daytime Emmy Awards and been nominated over 20 times for her work in television over the years, most notably as the character of neighbor/landlady/nosy friend Phyllis Lindstrom on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American Television sitcom created by James L The character was a fixture on the program for five years and was subsequently featured in a spinoff series, Phyllis (1975-1977), for which Leachman garnered a Golden Globe award. Phyllis is an American television sitcom and the second spin-off of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (the first being The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner In 1978 she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre. The Sarah Siddons Society is an American Non-profit organization founded in 1952 by prominent Chicago Theatre patrons with the goal Note on spelling While most Americans use "er" (as per American spelling conventions the majority of venues performers and trade groups for live theatre use "re During the mid and late 1970s, she was featured in several Schoolhouse Rock episodes. Schoolhouse Rock! is a series of animated musical educational short films that aired during Saturday morning children's programming on U ^[4]

In 1986, Leachman returned to television, replacing Charlotte Rae's character Edna Garrett as the den mother on The Facts of Life. Charlotte Rae (born April 22 1926) is an American actress and singer known for her portrayal of Edna Garrett in the Sitcoms The Facts of Life is an American Sitcom that originally ran on the NBC television network from August 24, 1979 Leachman's role, as Edna's sister, Beverly Ann Stickle, could not save the long-running series, and it was canceled two years later. This is a list of characters from the NBC sitcom The Facts of Life.

She has voice acted in numerous animated films, including My Little Pony: The Movie, The Iron Giant, and most notably as the voice of the cantankerous sky pirate Dola in Hayao Miyazaki's 1986 feature Castle in the Sky. My Little Pony The Movie is an animated feature film based on the popular My Little Pony toy line The Iron Giant is a 1999 Animated Science fiction film produced by Warner Bros is a (re-titled Castle in the Sky for release in the United States) is a Film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, released in 1986 Dubbed by Disney in 1998, Leachman's performance in this film received nearly unanimous praise.

Leachman played embittered, greedy, Slavic “Grandma Ida” on the Fox sitcom Malcolm in the Middle, for which she won two Emmy Awards, both for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series (once in 2002, then again in 2006). Malcolm in the Middle was a seven-time Emmy Award -winning one-time Grammy -winning He had run off and married a good-natured Canadian woman She was nominated for playing that same character for six consecutive years.

Later television credits include the successful Lifetime Television miniseries Beach Girls with Rob Lowe and Julia Ormond. Lifetime Television is an American Television network devoted to movies, sitcoms and Dramas all of which are either geared toward A miniseries (also mini-series) in a serial Storytelling medium is a production which tells a story in a pre-planned limited number of episodes Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American Actor. Julia Karin Ormond (born 4 January 1965) is a British Actress who like her fellow thespian Britons Helena Bonham Carter and Leachman was nominated for a SAG Award for her role as the wine-soaked, former jazz singer and grandmother Evelyn in the Sony feature Spanglish opposite Adam Sandler and Tea Leoni. is a multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato Tokyo, Japan, and one of the world's largest Media conglomerates with Spanglish is a 2004 American Film written and directed by James L Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9 1966 is an American Comedian, Téa Leoni (born February 25 1966 is an American actress. She is best known for roles in Bad Boys, The Naked Truth, and She had replaced an ailing Anne Bancroft in the role. Anne Bancroft ( September 17 1931 – June 6 2005) was an American method Actress. The film reunited her with her Mary Tyler Moore Show writer-producer-director James L. Brooks. James L Brooks (born May 9, 1940) is an American producer, Screenwriter and director. That same year she appeared with Sandler again, in the remake of The Longest Yard. She also appeared in Kurt Russell comedy Sky High. Kurt Vogel Russell (born March 17 1951 is an Emmy Award - and Golden Globe -nominated American Actor.

In 2006, Leachman's performance alongside Sir Ben Kingsley and Annette Bening in the HBO special Mrs. Harris earned her an Emmy nomination for outstanding supporting actress in a miniseries or TV movie as well as an SAG Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries. Sir Ben Kingsley, CBE (born 31 December, 1943) is an English Actor. Annette Francine Bening (born May 29, 1958) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - BAFTA - and Screen Actors Guild Mrs Harris is a 2006 Television film, starring Annette Bening and Ben Kingsley, directed by Phyllis Nagy.

On May 14, 2006, she was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts from Drake University. Events 1264 - Battle of Lewes: Henry III of England is captured in France making Simon de Montfort the Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa ( Latin: 'for the sake of the honour' is an Academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding Drake University is a private co-educational University located in the city of Des Moines Iowa, USA.

Mel Brooks films

Leachman has appeared in three Mel Brooks films. Mel Brooks (born Melvin Kaminsky; June 28, 1926) is an American director, Writer, Composer, Lyricist She played Frau Blücher in Young Frankenstein (1974), in which the mere mention of her character's name frightens all horses within earshot (merely a silly joke: Blücher is rumored to be German for "glue," although the actual word for glue is Klebstoff). Young Frankenstein is a 1974 Comedy film directed by Mel Brooks, starring Gene Wilder as the title character She also appeared in High Anxiety (1977), as demented psychiatric nurse Charlotte Diesel, and as Madame Defarge in the segment of History of the World: Part I (1981) which parodied Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. High Anxiety is a 1977 Comedy film produced by directed by and starring Mel Brooks. Madame Thérèse Defarge is a fictional character in the book A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. History of the World Part I is a 1981 Film written produced and directed by Mel Brooks. A Tale of Two Cities (1859 is the second Historical novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the

She auditioned for a chance in reviving her role from Young Frankenstein in the 2007 Broadway production opposite Megan Mullally (replacing formerly cast Kristin Chenoweth) and Roger Bart. Megan Mullally (born November 12, 1958) is a four- time Golden Globe nominee a four-time SAG - and two-time Emmy Award -winning Kristin Chenoweth (born July 24, 1968) is an American Singer and Musical theatre, Film and Television Actress Roger Bart (born September 29 1962) is an American Actor. Biography Bart was born in Norwalk Connecticut and grew However, Andrea Martin was cast in the role. Andrea Louise Martin (born January 15 1947) is an American - Canadian Actress and comedienne. Mel Brooks was quoted as saying that Leachman, at 81, was too old for the role. "We don't want her to die on stage," he told columnist Army Archerd. Armand "Army" Archerd (b January 13, 1922 in Bronx, NY) was a Gossip Columnist for Variety World Entertainment News Network (14 June 2007). Cloris Leachman Challenges Mel Brooks To A Duel To Win 'Young Frankenstein' Role. Starpulse Entertainment News. Retrieved on 2008-04-04. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1581 - Francis Drake completes a circumnavigation of the world and is knighted by Elizabeth I.

Personal life

From 1953 to 1979, Leachman was married to Hollywood impresario George Englund. The marriage produced five children, most of whom are in show business. A son George Englund, Jr. , was once married to actress Sharon Stone. Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American Golden Globe - and Emmy -winning Actress, producer, and former ^[5] Leachman was predeceased by her son, Bryan, who died from a drug overdose in 1986. Some reports state that it was an overdose of ulcer medication, while others, such as in the Lifetime television program Intimate Portrait: Cloris Leachman (in which Leachman participated), state that it was from cocaine. ^[6][7]

Leachman's former mother-in-law was character actress Mabel Albertson, best known for playing Samantha's mother-in-law on the ABC sitcom Bewitched. Mabel Albertson ( July 24, 1901 - September 28 1982) was An American actress The American Broadcasting Company ( ABC) is an American Television network. Bewitched is an American Situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972. Mabel's brother, actor Jack Albertson, won his Academy Award three years before Leachman did. Jack Albertson ( June 16, 1907 – November 25, 1981) was an American award-winning Character actor dating to "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film.

Cloris posed "au naturel" on the cover of "Alternative Medicine Digest" (issue 15, 1997) body-painted with images of fruit. This was a parody, or imitation, of the famous Demi Moore Vanity Fair magazine cover photo. Demi Moore (born Demetria Gene Guynes on November 11 1962 is an American Actress. Vanity Fair is an American magazine of Culture, Fashion, and Politics published by Condé Nast Publications.

Leachman was a friend of Marlon Brando, whom she met while studying under Elia Kazan in the 1950s. Marlon Brando Jr (April 3 1924 – July 1 2004 was an Academy Award -winning American Actor, whose body of work spanned over half a century Elia Mother, ( Greek: Ηλίας Καζάν September 7 1909 &ndash September 28 2003) was a Greek - American She introduced him to her husband, who became close to Brando as well, directing him in The Ugly American and writing a memoir about their friendship called Marlon Brando: The Way It's Never Been Done Before (2005). The Ugly American is the title of a 1958 political novel by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer. ^[8]

Leachman is a long-time vegetarian. Vegetarianism is the practice of a diet that excludes Meat (including game and slaughter by-products Fish (including Shellfish and other sea Currently, she is at work on a one-woman show about her life and career.

Filmography

Television work

References

External links

• Cloris Leachman at the Internet Movie Database
• Cloris Leachman at TV.com