'Tootise' Oscar Winner Teri Garr Dies at 79

Teri Garr, who starred in Mel Brooks' movie Young Frankenstein and won an Oscar TootsieHe died Tuesday at the age of 79 after a long battle with multiple sclerosis. Diversity reported.

Garr, one of the most well-known actors from the 1970s to the 1990s, starred opposite Gene Wilder in the film Young Frankenstein (1974) and won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Dustin Hoffman's confidant. Tootsie (1982). He also starred opposite Richard Dreyfuss in Steven Spielberg's film. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), starring a young mother searching for her son.

Garr began her career as a dancer in six Elvis Presley films. The Sonny and Cher Show. He continued to take on one-off roles in TV shows that girl, BatmanAnd The Andy Griffith Show. Garr's first speaking role in a motion picture came in the salacious film Monkees HEADIt was written by Jack Nicholson, Garr's friend from acting class. He continued to work with Francis Ford Coppola. Speech (1974) and One from the Heart (1982), with Martin Scorsese After Hours (1985) and Robert Altman Actor (1992). Garr also portrayed Phoebe Abbott in three episodes. Friends Hosted between 1997-1998 Saturday Night Live She performed three times and starred opposite Michael Keaton in the classic comedy. Mr. Mom (1983).

Garr worked less in the new millennium and announced in 2002 that he had been diagnosed with MS. He announced that he had an aneurysm in 2006. Garr's most notable appearance in the final film was an uncredited transformation. bridesmaids directed by Paul Feig Unaccompanied Children (2006), it's the only bright spot here. (Garr improvises the immortal line: “These M&Ms are misprinted. Mine has a W on them!”) There were smaller roles in independent film. Kabluey (2007) and TV series How to Marry a Billionaire? (2011), this was his last screen appearance. He also published a memoir titled Garr in 2006. Speed ​​Bumps: Driving Through Hollywood.

In an interview in 2008 AV ClubGarr was honest about why, despite being an Oscar winner and one of the best-known stars of a generation, he was snubbed for big leading roles. “If there is a woman who is smart, funny or witty, people are afraid of that, so they don't write about her. “They just write pieces for women, where they let everything wash over them, where they let people wipe their feet on them,” she explained. “These are the kind of roles I play and the kind of roles there are for me in this world. “In this life.”

Garr is survived by his daughter, Molly O'Neil, and his grandson, Tyryn.

Comments

No comments yet. Why don’t you start the discussion?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *