Teri Garr
Acting
Teri Ann Garr (December 11, 1944 – October 29, 2024) was an American actress, dancer and singer. She frequently appeared in comedic roles throughout her career, which spanned four decades and includes over 140 credits in film and television. Her accolades include one Academy Award nomination, a BAFTA Award nomination, and one National Board of Review Award. Born in Lakewood, Ohio, Garr was raised in North Hollywood. She was the third child of a comedic-actor father and a studio costumer mother. In her youth, Garr trained in ballet and other forms of dance. She began her career as a teenager with small roles in television and film in the early 1960s, including appearances as a dancer in six Elvis Presley musicals. After spending two years attending college, Garr left Los Angeles and studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Institute in New York City. Her self-described "big break" as an actress was landing a role in the Star Trek episode "Assignment: Earth," after which she said, "I finally started to get real acting work." Garr had a supporting role in Francis Ford Coppola's thriller "The Conversation" (1974) before having her film breakthrough as Inga in "Young Frankenstein" (1974). In 1977, she was cast in a high-profile role in Steven Spielberg's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Garr continued to appear in various high-profile roles throughout the 1980s, including supporting parts in the comedies "Tootsie" (1982), for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role of Sandra Lester, and then appearing opposite Michael Keaton the next year in "Mr. Mom" (1983). She reunited with Coppola the same year, appearing in his musical "One from the Heart" (1982), followed by a supporting part in Martin Scorsese's black comedy "After Hours" (1985). Her quick banter led to Garr being a regular guest on "The Tonight Show" starring Johnny Carson and "Late Night with David Letterman." In the 1990s, she appeared in two films by Robert Altman: "The Player" (1992) and "Prêt-à-Porter" (1994), followed by supporting roles in "Michael" (1996) and "Ghost World" (2001). She also appeared on television as Phoebe Abbott in three episodes of the sitcom "Friends" (1997–98). In 2002, Garr announced that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, the symptoms of which had negatively affected her ability to perform beginning in the 1990s. After years of declining health, she passed away on October 29, 2024.
Mel Brooks: Unwrapped
Self (archive footage)
Mel Brooks: Make a Noise
Self (archive footage)
A Better Man: The Making of 'Tootsie'
Self
Kabluey
Suze
Expired
Claire's Mother / Aunt Tilde
Unaccompanied Minors
Aunt Judy (uncredited)
A Taste Of Jupiter
Ginnie
Aloha Scooby-Doo!
Mayor Molly Quinn (voice)
The Wiki-Tiki Tail of Aloha Scooby-Doo
Self
The Dream Studio
self
Searching for Debra Winger
Self
Life Without Dick
Madame Hugonaut
Ghost World
Maxine (uncredited)
The Sky is Falling
Mona Hall
The Making of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'
Self
A Colder Kind of Death
Tess Malone
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
Mary McGinnis (voice)
Dick
Helen Lorenzo
Half a Dozen Babies
Lee Dilley
Kill the Man
Mrs. Livingston
Batman Beyond: The Movie
Mary McGinnis (voice)
Casper Meets Wendy
Fanny
A Simple Wish
Rena
The Definite Maybe
Dionne Waters
Changing Habits
Connie
NightScream
Julie Ordwell
Ronnie and Julie
Elizabeth Monroe
Murder Live!
JoAnn McGrath
Michael
Judge Esther Newberg
Double Jeopardy
Cindy Dubroski
Making Frankensense of Young Frankenstein
Inga (archive footage)
Shining Time Station: One of the Family
Sister Conductor
Perfect Alibi
Laney Tolbert
Prêt-à-Porter
Louise Hamilton
Dumb and Dumber
Helen Swanson
Aliens for Breakfast
Mrs. Bickerstaff
Fugitive Nights: Danger in the Desert
Brita Burrows
Mom and Dad Save the World
Marge Nelson
The Player
Teri Garr
Deliver Them from Evil: The Taking of Alta View
Susan Woolley
Robert Altman's Players
Self
Stranger in the Family
Randi Thompson
The Best of Disney: 50 Years of Magic
Self
A Quiet Little Neighborhood, a Perfect Little Murder
Marsha Pegler
Waiting for the Light
Kay
Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme
Jill (of Jack and Jill)
Short Time
Carolyn Simpson
Let It Ride
Pam
Out Cold
Sunny
Full Moon in Blue Water
Louise
Jackie Gleason: The Great One
Self
Flapjack Floozie
Helen Eagles
Paul Reiser: Out on a Whim
Self
Pack of Lies
Helen Schaefer
Miracles
Jean
Intimate Strangers
Sally Bierston
After Hours
Julie
The History of White People in America
Self
Night of 100 Stars II
Self
Firstborn
Wendy
Steve Martin Live!
Self
To Catch a King
Hannah Winter
The Winter of Our Discontent
Mary Hawley
Mr. Mom
Caroline
The Black Stallion Returns
Alec Ramsay's Mother
Do It Debbie's Way
Self
The Sting II
Veronica
Tootsie
Sandy Lester
The Tale of the Frog Prince
Princess
The Escape Artist
Arlene
One from the Heart
Frannie
Prime Suspect
Amy McCleary
Honky Tonk Freeway
Ericka
Rendez-Vous Video Magazine
Self (segment "Coppola")
Inside the Coppola Personality
Self
Witches' Brew
Margaret Lightman
Doctor Franken
Kelli Fisher
The Black Stallion
Alec's Mother
Mr. Mike's Mondo Video
Self
Java Junkie
Waitress
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Ronnie Neary
Rolling Stone Magazine: The 10th Anniversary
Self
Once Upon a Brothers Grimm
Frog Princess
Oh, God!
Bobbie Landers
The Absent-Minded Waiter
Susan Cates
Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
Fluffy Peters
Law and Order
Rita Wasinski
Young Frankenstein
Inga
The Conversation
Amy Fredericks
Summertree
Bennie's Girlfriend (uncredited)
The Moonshine War
Young Wife
You Haven't Changed a Bit
Corinne
Changes
Waitress
Head
Testy True
Maryjane
Teri
Clambake
Dancer (uncredited)
The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Chinese Junk
Susie
The Cool Ones
Whiz Girl
For Pete's Sake
MarJean
Where's the Bus?
Girl
Red Line 7000
Nightclub Dancer (uncredited)
John Goldfarb, Please Come Home!
Harem Girl (uncredited)
The T.A.M.I. Show
Self - Go-Go Dancer (uncredited)
Roustabout
Carnival Dancer (uncredited)
Pajama Party
Pajama Girl
What a Way to Go!
Shipboard Number Dancer (uncredited)
Kissin' Cousins
Hillbilly Dancer (uncredited)
Viva Las Vegas
Dancer (uncredited)
Fun in Acapulco
Hotel Guest (uncredited)
A Swingin' Affair