Teri Garr, an Oscar-nominated actress known for her work in films like \u201cYoung Frankenstein,\u201d \u201cTootsie\u201d and \u201cMr. Mom,\u201d has died, according to her manager.<\/p>\n
She was 79.<\/p>\n
Garr died Tuesday in Los Angeles, more than twenty years after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, her manger Marc Gurvitz told CNN.<\/p>\n
She first shared her diagnosis publicly in a 2002 interview with CNN in an effort raise awareness for others living with MS.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think everybody is scared and frightened when they hear something like that,\u201d Garr recalled of first learning her diagnosis, after visiting 11 doctors and experiencing years of symptoms they couldn\u2019t explain. \u201cThat\u2019s because there\u2019s so much \u2013 you know, there\u2019s not a lot of information out there about it. And a lot of people don\u2019t know that it\u2019s not that bad. I mean, I\u2019m going on with my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
The daughter of a Broadway performer and a Rockette, Garr studied dance growing up and began auditioning soon after she graduated from high school in Los Angeles. Her earliest credits include dancing and appearing as an extra in films like Elvis Presley\u2019s \u201cViva Las Vegas.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI finally asked myself, Why am I not in the front?\u201d Garr later reflected. \u201cI didn\u2019t study all those years to be in the back and get no money.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 1970s proved to be a prolific time for Garr, who apppeared on several episodes of the sketch comedy series \u201cThe Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour,\u201d \u201cThe New Dick Van Dyke Show,\u201d \u201cThe Odd Couple\u201d and \u201cThe Bob Newhart Show,\u201d among many others.
\nHer big break came in 1974, when she starred as Inga in the Mel Brooks-directed comedy hit \u201cYoung Frankenstein\u201d alongside Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn and Marty Feldman.
\nTwo years later, Garr played Ronnie Neary, a wife trying to understand her husband\u2019s (Richard Dreyfuss) inexplicable obsession as the result of an alien encounter, in Steven Spielberg\u2019s 1977 sci-fi epic \u201cClose Encounters of the Third Kind.\u201d<\/p>\n
In \u201cTootsie,\u201d Garr played a put-upon struggling actress who was dating Dustin Hoffman\u2018s protagonist who in turn goes on to great fame pretending to be a woman on a soap opera. The role scored Garr a nomination for best supporting actress at the 1983 Academy Awards.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was proud,\u201d Garr wrote of the nomination in her 2005 memoir, \u201cSpeedbumps: Flooring it Through Hollywood.\u201d \u201cThe Academy not only knew I existed, they thought I was good!\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement sent to CNN on Tuesday, Hoffman remembered Garr as \u201cbrilliant and singular in all she did, and had a heart of gold.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWorking with her was one of the great highs. There was no one like her,\u201d added Hoffman.<\/p>\n
Also in 1983, she played advertising executive Caroline Butler in the rousing family comedy \u201cMr. Mom\u201d alongside Michael Keaton. The movie follows a couple who navigate switching their parental roles, when Keaton\u2019s character is suddenly laid off and Garr\u2019s Caroline returns to the workforce.<\/p>\n
In a 2012 interview, Garr said she was not surprised two of her most memorable roles dealt with breaking stereotypes about gender norms.<\/p>\n
\u201cI resent it when they write the part of a woman who\u2019s just a sexy femme fatale who seduces people to ger her way, perpetrating the myth that that\u2019s how woman have to operate, instead of using their brains or their wit,\u201d Garr reflected.<\/p>\n
Later on Tuesday, Keaton honored Garr on Instagram, writing, \u201cthis is a day i feared and knew was coming.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cForget about how great she was as an actress and comedienne,\u201d he added, continuing to say that \u201cshe was a wonderful woman. Not just great to work with but great to be around.\u201d
\nGarr\u2019s career continued with more film and television work. Throughout the \u201990s, she appeared in 1991\u2019s \u201cGood & Evil,\u201d 1994\u2019s \u201cGood Advice\u201d and \u201cWomen of the House\u201d in 1995.
\nGarr was known for her slightly addled and zany comic timing, which naturally made her the perfect candidate to play mother to Lisa Kudrow\u2019s Phoebe Buffay on \u201cFriends.\u201d Garr appeared in three episodes total over the third and fourth seasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cTeri Garr was a comedic acting genius who was and is a huge influence on me and I know I\u2019m not alone in that,\u201d Kudrow told CNN in a statement on Tuesday, adding that she feels \u201cso lucky and grateful\u201d that she got to work with the late actress.<\/p>\n
Throughout the 2000s, Garr made guest appearances on \u201cFelicity,\u201d \u201cER\u201d and \u201cLive with Bonnie.\u201d She also delved into voice acting work in the early aughts, voicing the character of Mary McGinnis in the animated \u201cBatman Beyond\u201d TV series, as well as voicing Sandy Gordon in 2003\u2019s \u201cWhat\u2019s New, Scooby Doo?\u201d animated series.<\/p>\n
Garr\u2019s final credit came in 2011 when she appeared on the TV series \u201cHow to Marry a Billionaire.\u201d<\/p>\n
Through it all, Garr was a vocal advocate for people living with MS.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think some people want you to be upset. Not only am I not upset, but I\u2019m okay. I don\u2019t see any profit in being down, I don\u2019t see that it gets you anywhere,\u201d Garr reflected in an interview about the sense of optimism she maintained. \u201cMaybe it has to do with my show-business background. You\u2019re always being told that you\u2019re not right for something, not tall enough, not pretty enough, whatever. I would say, \u2018But I\u2019m smart, I\u2019m talented, I\u2019m this, I\u2019m that!!\u2019 I\u2019ve always been able to do that, and I do it now with MS.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always been a feisty person,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Teri Garr, an Oscar-nominated actress known for her work in films like \u201cYoung Frankenstein,\u201d \u201cTootsie\u201d and \u201cMr. Mom,\u201d has died, according to her manager. She was 79. Garr died Tuesday in Los Angeles, more than twenty years after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, her manger Marc Gurvitz told CNN. She first shared her diagnosis […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2778,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-memorial"],"yoast_head":"\n