Search results
Dec 22, 2021 · Her acting career lasted almost 80 years. But her golden age was middle age. By Rob Hoerburger
- Oscar-Winning Performance
- TV Success
- Mel Brooks Films
- Later Career
- Voice Acting
- Activism
- Leachman on The Role She Was Most Proud of
After consistent work in television throughout the 1960s, Leachman saw her career take off when she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in “The Last Picture Show” (1971). In the drama, she played a homemaker, trapped in an unhappy marriage in a small Texas town, who begins an affair with a teenage boy. The film was selected for preservation in...
While she was receiving acclaim for serious film acting, she was making audiences laugh on TV as Mary Tyler Moore’s (1936–2017) pushy friend and neighbor Phyllis Lindstrom on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.” She won two of her eventual eight prime-time Emmy awards for her performances in the role. The character was popular enough with audiences that sh...
Leachman also worked with director Mel Brooks in three of his classic films: “Young Frankenstein” (1974), “High Anxiety” (1977) and “History of the World: Part I” (1981). She often played sinisterly comic characters such as Frankenstein’s housekeeper Frau Blücher, whose name inspired loud whinnying from horses every time it was mentioned.
Her versatility served Leachman well, and she worked continuously as she aged, balancing dramatic and comic roles with equal aplomb. In 2006, at 80, she won her second Emmy for playing Grandma Ida on the sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle,” and she was nominated for a dramatic TV role in the movie “Mrs. Harris.” In 2008, she became the oldest contestant...
In addition to appearing on screen, Leachman lent her distinctive voice to animated characters in “The Simpsons,” “The Iron Giant,” “Adventure Time,” and the English versions of Japanese films “Castle in the Sky” and “Ponyo.”
A vegetarian since she was 35, Leachman used her celebrity to promote vegetarianism and to improve the treatment of animals. In 2009, she posed for a PETA ad wearing only lettuce.
“There’s always one. And this one was ‘The Woman Who Willed A Miracle’ (1983). It was beautifully written. It was going to be on nighttime television but some executive from ABC said, ‘Who wants to see this on nighttime TV?’ So he put it on during the day instead. But we all won Emmys anyway. It was wonderful! That’s the thing I’m most proud of.” —...
Jan 28, 2021 · FILE - Actress Cloris Leachman poses at her California home Oct. 18, 1984. Leachman, a character actor whose depth of talent brought her an Oscar for the “The Last Picture Show” and Emmys for her comedic work in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and other TV series, has died. She was 94.
Jan 28, 2021 · Cloris Leachman, an Oscar-winner for her portrayal of a lonely housewife in "The Last Picture Show" and a comedic delight as the fearsome Frau Blücher in "Young Frankenstein" and neighbor Phyllis...
Feb 15, 2021 · We're going to remember actress Cloris Leachman. She died last month at the age of 94. She co-starred in two Mel Brooks films, "High Anxiety" and "Young Frankenstein."
- Terry Gross
People also ask
Who was Cloris Leachman?
Is Cloris Leachman dead or still alive?
How did Cloris Leachman die?
Did Cloris Leachman win an Oscar?
Jan 27, 2021 · Carol Memmott. USA TODAY. 0:00. 1:04. Cloris Leachman, best known for her role as Phyllis Lindstrom on the 1970s sitcoms "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and its spin-off "Phyllis," died Wednesday...
Jan 28, 2021 · US actress Cloris Leachman, who won an Oscar for The Last Picture Show and brought her comedic talents to numerous US sitcoms, has died at the age of 94. Leachman died of natural causes at...
