Doris Roberts | |
|---|---|
 Roberts in 2011 | |
| Born | Doris May Green (1925-11-04)November 4, 1925 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | April 17, 2016(2016-04-17) (aged 90) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Occupations | Actress, Comedian |
| Years active | 1948–2016 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
Doris May Roberts (néeGreen; November 4, 1925 – April 17, 2016[1]) was an American actress and comedian whose career spanned seven decades of television and film. She received fiveEmmy Awards and aScreen Actors Guild award during her acting career, which began in 1948.
Roberts studied acting atThe Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City and started in films in 1961. She had several prominent film roles, including playing oppositeShirley Stoler inThe Honeymoon Killers (1970),Elliott Gould inLittle Murders (1971),Steven Keats inHester Street (1975),Billy Crystal inRabbit Test (1978),Robert Carradine inNumber One with a Bullet (1987),Cady McClain inSimple Justice (1989), among many others.
Roberts achieved continuing success in television, becoming known for her role as Mildred Krebs inNBC'sRemington Steele from 1983 to 1987 and achieved worldwide recognition for her co-starring role as the matriarch,Marie Barone, on theCBS sitcomEverybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005). Towards the end of her acting career, Roberts also had a prominent role oppositeTyler Perry inMadea's Witness Protection (2012), andThe Middle.
Roberts appeared as a guest on many talk and variety shows, as well as a panelist on several game shows. She was an advocate ofanimal rights andanimal rights activism, supporting groups such as theUnited Activists for Animal Rights.
Doris May Green was born inSt. Louis,Missouri, to a family ofRussian-Jewish immigrants. She was raised by her mother, Ann (née Meltzer),[citation needed] and her maternal grandparents inThe Bronx, New York, after her father, Larry Green, deserted the family.[2] Roberts' stepfather, whose surname she took as her own, was Chester H. Roberts. Chester and Roberts' mother operated the Z. L. Rosenfield Agency, a stenographic service catering to playwrights and actors.[3] By her teens, Roberts was renowned for her skill as atypist and would assist with the family business.Ruth Finley was one such client who recalls her typing up final copies ofThe Fashion Calendar for print.
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Roberts' acting career began in 1948 with a role on the TV seriesStudio One. She appeared in episodes ofThe Naked City (1958-1963),Way Out (1961),Ben Casey (1963), andThe Defenders (1962-1963). In 1961, Roberts made her film debut inSomething Wild (1961).
Roberts appeared in such 1960s/1970s films asA Lovely Way to Die,No Way to Treat a Lady,The Honeymoon Killers,Such Good Friends,Little Murders,A New Leaf,The Heartbreak Kid,The Taking of Pelham One Two Three,Hester Street, andRabbit Test. In 1978, she appeared in a film aboutJohn F. Kennedy's assassination,Ruby and Oswald, in which Roberts playedJack Ruby's sister. She also appeared briefly inThe Rose, as the mother of the title character (Bette Midler). Roberts had a very memorable, but uncredited role as the maid in "Barefoot in the Park" in 1967, with Robert Redford.
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In an interview with theArchive of American Television,Rue McClanahan confirmed that in 1972, Roberts was approached byNorman Lear during the taping of anAll in the Family episode to be a late replacement for Roberts, who was originally intended for the role of Vivian onMaude.[4] Roberts later guest starred in a 1976All in the Family episode, "Edith's Night Out" as a bar patron who befriended Edith.
Roberts also appeared onAlice, playing the mother of the title character (played by her former Broadway co-starLinda Lavin); onBarney Miller in two different roles, as the wife of a man who secretly visits a sex surrogate, and (in three episodes) as the harried wife of a middle-aged man who occasionally makes erratic decisions to give his life meaning. Roberts played the unhinged Flo Flotsky on four episodes ofSoap, and Dorelda Doremus, a faith healer, onMary Hartman, Mary Hartman. Roberts played Theresa Falco onAngie, and later appeared as Mildred Krebs onNBC'sRemington Steele from 1983-1987.
AfterRemington Steele ended, Roberts starred in several films including the TV film remake ofIf It's Tuesday, It Still Must Be Belgium (1987),Number One with a Bullet (1987),Simple Justice (1989),National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989), andUsed People (1992). She also appeared onFull House as Danny Tanner's mother, Claire, as well as two episodes ofMurder, She Wrote, and as lonely Aunt Edna onStep by Step among others.
Roberts achieved much of her fame for her role asMarie Barone onEverybody Loves Raymond, which ran onCBS from 1996 to 2005. Roberts was reportedly one of 100 actresses considered for the role.[5] For her work on the series, Roberts was nominated for sevenEmmy Awards (and won four times) for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She had previously won an Emmy for a guest appearance onSt. Elsewhere, playing a homeless woman, and was also once nominated for her role onRemington Steele.[6] Roberts was nominated for appearances onPerfect Strangers and aPBS special calledThe Sunset Gang.
In 2003, Roberts made a guest appearance as Gordo's grandmother inLizzie McGuire. That same year, she received a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame. In 2006, Roberts starred inOur House as a wealthy woman who took in homeless people into her own house, and inGrandma's Boy.
In 2007, Roberts made a guest appearance onLaw & Order: Criminal Intent.[6] Two years later, she appeared in the romantic comedyPlay the Game alongsideAndy Griffith, who plays a lonely widowed grandfather re-entering the dating world after a 60-year hiatus, and in the science fiction comedyAliens in the Attic, which was filmed inAuckland, New Zealand. Roberts starred as Emily Merkle (Mrs. Miracle) in theHallmark television filmMrs. Miracle (2009)[7] and its sequel,Call Me Mrs. Miracle (2010).[8]
On September 23, 2010, Roberts played Ms. Rinsky,Brick Heck's teacher in the second-season premiere episode ofThe Middle. This appearance reunited her withPatricia Heaton, her co-star fromEverybody Loves Raymond. Roberts returned in two other episodes that season, "The Math Class" and thefinale, "Back to Summer". In 2012, she played George Needleman's mother inTyler Perry'sMadea's Witness Protection. In 2013, Roberts was a special guest star in theMajor Crimes episode "There’s No Place Like Home".
Roberts' stage career began in the 1950s onBroadway. She appeared in numerousBroadway shows includingWilliam Saroyan'sThe Time of Your Life,William Marchant'sThe Desk Set (withShirley Booth),Neil Simon'sThe Last of the Red Hot Lovers (withJames Coco andLinda Lavin) andTerrence McNally'sBad Habits. Roberts starred in McNally'sUnusual Acts of Devotion at the LaJolla Playhouse in June 2009.[9]
In May 2005, Roberts received an honorary doctorate of fine arts from theUniversity of South Carolina.[10] She was awarded theEllis Island Medal of Honor on May 7, 2011.[11] Roberts was awarded a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame in February 2003, at 7021 Hollywood Blvd.[12]
On September 4, 2002, Roberts testified before a U.S. Congressional panel thatage discrimination was prevalent inHollywood.[13] She was a registeredDemocrat.[14]
An animal rights advocate, Roberts worked with the group Puppies Behind Bars, which works with inmates in trainingguide dogs and assistance dogs for the physically disabled and elderly, as well as dogs trained in explosives detection to be used by law enforcement agencies.[15] She was also active with the Children with AIDS Foundation, where she served as chairwoman.[15]
With Danelle Morton, Roberts wroteAre You Hungry, Dear? Life, Laughs, and Lasagna. The book was published bySt. Martin's Press in 2003, and serves as a memoir as well as a collection of some of Roberts' recipes.[16][17]
Roberts married Michael Cannata in 1956; they divorced in 1962. They had a son. She had three grandchildren. Roberts' second husband was writerWilliam Goyen and they were married from 1963 until his death from leukemia in 1983.[18]
Roberts died in her sleep on April 17, 2016, at her home in Los Angeles following astroke, at age 90.[19][20] Roberts also suffered frompulmonary hypertension for many years before her death. Just a month after her death, Roberts was memorialized in New York City, where a public tribute was held at the Ambassador Theatre, where she appeared in 1972 inThe Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild withMaureen Stapleton. Among the stars attending the service wereRay Romano andPatricia Heaton (her co-stars fromEverybody Loves Raymond) and actorDavid Hyde Pierce. Romano said of Roberts:
Doris Roberts had an energy and a spirit that amazed me. She never stopped. Whether working professionally or with her many charities, or just nurturing and mentoring a green young comic trying to make it as an actor, she did everything with such a grand love for life and people and I will miss her dearly.[21]
In another interview, Romano jokingly referred to the kissing thing that Roberts would do off camera: "You know how great she was then!" He also added: "We had a little get together for her. She was one of a kind. She can outwork it, outdrink it, good kisser, I was joking! I appreciated her."[22] Just a month after her death, Romano said:
Here's how good she was: She played the most intrusive, overbearing, nosy woman—always starting fights and whatnot and meddling in our business—and yet when I asked the fans who their favorite character was, all the time it was her. She was so good at portraying the love that was underneath.[23]
Roberts was interred atPierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary in Los Angeles, California.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Something Wild | Mary Ann's Co-Worker | [24] | |
| 1964 | Dear Heart | Desk Clerk | Uncredited | |
| 1967 | Barefoot in the Park | Hotel Maid | [25] | |
| Divorce American Style | Hypnotic Subject | [26] | ||
| 1968 | No Way to Treat a Lady | Sylvia Poppie | [27] | |
| A Lovely Way to Die | Feeney | Uncredited | [28] | |
| 1970 | The Honeymoon Killers | Bunny | [29] | |
| 1971 | Little Murders | Mrs. Chamberlain | [30] | |
| A New Leaf | Mrs. Traggert | [31] | ||
| Such Good Friends | Mrs. Gold | [32] | ||
| 1972 | The Heartbreak Kid | Mrs. Cantrow | [33] | |
| 1974 | The Taking of Pelham One Two Three | Jessie, Mayor's Wife | [34] | |
| 1975 | Hester Street | Mrs. Kavarsky | [35] | |
| Blood Bath | Mrs. Lambert | |||
| 1978 | Rabbit Test | Mrs. Carpenter | [36] | |
| Once in Paris... | Brady's ex-Wife | |||
| 1979 | Good Luck, Miss Wyckoff | Marie | [37] | |
| The Rose | Mrs. Foster | Loosely based on the life of singerJanis Joplin | [38] | |
| 1987 | Number One with a Bullet | Mrs. Barzak | [39] | |
| 1989 | National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation | Frances Smith | [40] | |
| Simple Justice | Anna DiLorenzo | |||
| 1990 | The Ladies on Sweet Street | Bea | ||
| 1992 | Used People | Aunt Lonnie | [41] | |
| 1993 | The Night We Never Met | Lion's Den Nosy Neighbor | ||
| 1994 | Taffy | [42] | ||
| 1995 | The Grass Harp | Mrs. Richards | [43] | |
| 1997 | Walking to Waldheim | Mina Goldblatt | Short drama film | |
| Sea World and Busch Gardens Adventures: Alien Vacation! | Marie | |||
| 1998 | My Giant | Rose Kaminski | [44] | |
| A Fish in the Bathtub | Frieda | [45] | ||
| The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue | Auntie Shrew | Voice | [46] | |
| 2001 | All Over the Guy | Esther | [47] | |
| 2003 | Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star | Peggy Roberts | [48] | |
| 2006 | Grandma's Boy | Grandma Lilly | [49] | |
| I-See-You.Com | Doris Bellinger | |||
| Keeping Up with the Steins | Rose Fielder | [50] | ||
| 2009 | Play the Game | Rose Sherman | [51] | |
| Aliens in the Attic | Nana Rose Pearson | [52] | ||
| 2010 | Another Harvest Moon | Alice | [53] | |
| 2012 | Margarine Wars | Grandma Betty Johansson | [54] | |
| Madea's Witness Protection | Barbara | [55] | ||
| 2014 | The Little Rascals Save the Day | Grandma | ||
| 2015 | No Deposit | Kat Nugent | ||
| The Secret of Joy | Grandma | Short | ||
| 2016 | The Red Maple Leaf | Mrs. Samantha Adams | Posthumous release | |
| The Escort | Margaret | Short; posthumous release | ||
| Job's Daughter | Ruth Morrison | Posthumous release (final feature film role) | ||
| 2018 | Zizi and Honeyboy | Zizi | Short; posthumous release (final role) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Starlight Theatre | Operator | Episode: "Act of God Notwithstanding" |
| 1952 | Studio One in Hollywood | The Madwoman | Episode: "Jane Eyre" |
| Suspense | Woman | Episode: "A Time on Innocence" | |
| 1954 | Look Up and Live | Minnah | Episode: "Rider Number Six" |
| 1961 | 'Way Out | Edna | Episode: "Side Show" |
| 1962 | Naked City | Miss Tresant | Episode: "One of the Most Important Men in the Whole World" |
| 1963 | Ben Casey | Claire Forest | Episode: "Father Was an Intern" |
| 1969 | CBS Playhouse | Shimmy | Episode: "Shadow Game" |
| 1975 | The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Helen Ferrell | Episode: "Phyllis Whips Inflation" |
| Medical Center | Gladys Callahan | Episode: "Two Against Death" | |
| Baretta | Mrs. Asher | Episode: "Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth" | |
| 1976 | All in the Family | Marge | Episode: "Edith's Night Out" |
| Viva Valdez | Gladys | Episode: "The Nurse's Pipes" | |
| Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman | Dorelda Doremus | 3 episodes | |
| The Streets of San Francisco | Mrs. Strauss | "The Thrill Killers" (Parts I and II) | |
| Family | Etta | Episode: "Home Movie" | |
| Rhoda | Sylvia Levy | Episode: "Meet the Levys" | |
| 1977 | It Happened One Christmas | Ma Bailey | TV movie |
| 1978–1980 | Barney Miller | Louise Kaufmann, Harriet Brauer | 4 episodes |
| 1978 | Soap | Flo Flotsky | 4 episodes |
| 1979–1980 | Angie | Theresa Falco | 36 episodes (actress); 1 episode (director) |
| 1979 | Fantasy Island | Marjorie Gibbs | Episode: "Goose for the Gander/The Stuntman" |
| 1980 | The Diary of Anne Frank | Mrs. Van Daan | TV movie |
| Fantasy Island | Madam Clooney | Episode: "Delphine/The Unkillable" | |
| The Love Boat | Rose | Episode: "Sergeant Bull" | |
| 1981–1982 | Maggie | Loretta | 8 episodes |
| Alice | Mona Spivak | 2 episodes | |
| 1982 | St. Elsewhere | Cora | Episode: "Cora and Arnie" |
| 1983 | Romance Theatre | Maggie | 5 episodes |
| Cagney & Lacey | Helen Freitas | Episode: "Jane Doe #37" | |
| 1983–1987 | Remington Steele | Mildred Krebs | Recurring: season 2, main role: seasons 3-5 (71 episodes) |
| 1985 | California Girls | Mrs. Bowzer | Television film |
| 1985 | Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre | Mother Pig | Episode: "The Three Little Pigs" season 4: episode 1 |
| 1986 | Mr. Belvedere | Judge Westphall | Episode: "Deportation: Part 2" |
| 1989 | Perfect Strangers | Mrs. Bailey | Episode: "Maid to Order" |
| 1990 | Full House | Claire Tanner | Episode: "Granny Tanny" |
| Murder, She Wrote | Helen Owens | Episode: "Shear Madness" | |
| Blind Faith | Tessie McBride | Miniseries | |
| A Mom for Christmas | Philomena | TV movie[56] | |
| 1991 | Empty Nest | Aunt Retha | Episode: "The Last Temptation of Laverne" |
| American Playhouse | Mimi Finkelstein | Episode: "The Sunset Gang" | |
| 1993 | The Boys | Doris Greenblat | 6 episodes |
| The John Larroquette Show | Mrs. Shenker | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 1993–1995 | Dream On | Angie Pedalbee | 6 episodes |
| 1994 | Murder, She Wrote | Mrs. Leah Colfax | Episode: "The Murder Channel" |
| Step by Step | Aunt Edna | Episode: "I'll Be Home for Christmas" | |
| A Time to Heal | Maddy | TV movie[57] | |
| 1995 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Elaine Portugal | Episode: "The Big Bingo Bamboozle" |
| 1996–2005 | Everybody Loves Raymond | Marie Barone | Main role (210 episodes) |
| 1997 | A Thousand Men and a Baby | Sister Philomena | TV movie[58] |
| Aaahh!!! Real Monsters | Eunice, Doris | Voice, episode: "Watch the Watch/She Likes Me?"[46] | |
| 1999 | The King of Queens | Marie Barone | Episode: "Rayny Day" |
| 2000 | The Wild Thornberrys | Cow #1 | Voice, episode: "Critical Masai"[46] |
| One True Love | Lillian | TV movie[59] | |
| 2001 | The Sons of Mistletoe | Margie | TV movie[60] |
| 2002 | Touched by an Angel | Rose | Episode: "The Bells of St. Peters" |
| 2003 | Lizzie McGuire | Grandma Ruth | Episode: "Grand Ole' Grandma" |
| A Time to Remember | Maggie Calhoun | TV movie | |
| 2004 | Raising Waylon | Great Aunt Marie | TV movie[61] |
| Sesame Street | Herself | Episode: "The Street We Live On" | |
| 2006 | Our House | Ruth | TV movie[62] |
| Me, Eloise | (voice) | Episode: "Eloise Goes to School Part 1" | |
| 2007 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Virginia Harrington | Episode: "Privilege" |
| 2009 | Mrs. Miracle | Emily Merkle/Mrs. Miracle | TV movie[63] |
| 2010 | Mrs. Miracle 2: Miracle In Manhattan | Emily Merkle/Mrs. Miracle | TV movie[64] |
| 2010–2011 | The Middle | Mrs. Rinsky | 3 episodes |
| 2011 | Special Agent Oso | Lena's Grandma | Voice, episode: "A View to the Truth" |
| Grey's Anatomy | Gladys Polcher | Episode: "It's a Long Way Back" | |
| Hot in Cleveland | Lydia | Episode: "Dancing Queens" | |
| Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension | Mrs. Thompson | Voice, television film[46] | |
| 2012 | Desperate Housewives | Doris Hammond | Episode: "Lost My Power" |
| 2013 | Major Crimes | Vera Walker | Episode: "There's No Place Like Home" |
| 2013–2014 | Melissa & Joey | Sofia | 3 episodes |
| 2014 | Touched by Romance | Norma | TV movie |
| The Birthday Boys | Mrs. Steenburg | Episode: "Freshy's" | |
| 2015 | Merry Kissmas | Mrs. Billing | TV movie |
| 2016 | Adam Astra Casting | Dame Daisy Phillips, Lois Willard, Lana delPeno, Carla Lockwood, Cleo Benington |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Dates | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | The Time of Your Life | The Streetwalker's Sidekick | CityCenter | January 19 - January 30 | [65] |
| The Desk Set | Miss Rumple | Broadhurst Theatre | October 24, 1955 - July 7, 1956[66] | [66] | |
| 1963 | Marathon '33 | Rae Wilson | ANTA Playhouse | December 22, 1963 - February 1, 1964 | [67] |
| 1966 | Malcolm | Standby for:
| Shubert Theatre | January 11 - January 15 | [68] |
| The Office | Miss Punk | Henry Miller's Theatre | Never officially opened - April 30, 1966 | [69] | |
| Under the Weather | Standby for:Shelley Winters as Flora Sharkey / Marcella Vankuchen / Hilda | Cort Theatre | October 27 - November 5 | [70] | |
| 1967 | The Natural Look | Edna | Longacre Theatre | March 11 - March 11 | [71] |
| 1969 | Last of the Red Hot Lovers | Jeanette Fisher | Eugene O'Neill Theater Center | December 28, 1969 - September 4, 1971 | [72] [73] |
| 1972 | The Secret Affairs of Mildred Wild |
| Ambassador Theatre | November 14 - December 2 | [74] |
| 1974 | Bad Habits | Dolly Scupp | Booth Theatre | May 5 - October 5 | [75] |
| 1978 | Cheaters | Grace | Biltmore Theatre | January 15 - February 11 | [76] |
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