Cloris Leachman

Leachman, born on April 30, 1926 in Des Moines, Iowa, was the eldest of three sisters. She was bit by the acting bug at a young age – appearing in children’s plays at Drake University and the Des Moines Little Theater when she was just 8. By age 15, Leachman appeared on local radio stations and even received a radio scholarship to Northwestern University. It was there as a college student that she decided to enter the 1946 Miss America pageant as Miss Chicago.

While she didn’t win the crown, Leachman used the money she did earn from the competition to move to New York, where her acting career would take off. Leachman made her debut on Broadway in 1947 as an understudy for the farce, John Loves Mary. For the next 12 years, Leachman worked on the Great White Way, where she sometimes landed leading roles, like 1950’s, As You Like It, opposite Katharine Hepburn. She was also in the original run of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific, taking over the leading role of Nellie Forbush after understudying it from original star Mary Martin.

At the same time, Leachman’s television career kicked off with 1948’s, Night Must Fall on The Ford Theatre Hour. Live anthology shows, like Suspense, Kraft Theatre, Danger and Matinee Theatre, became a staple of her career.

Leachman also landed gigs on Lassie, Rawhide, Gunsmoke, The Twilight Zone, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Perry Mason during the 1970s. Her breakout came in 1971 when she won an Oscar for her performance in The Last Picture Show, which was an unexpected win for Leachman.

While the big screen was her breakout, television was where she became an icon, most notably as Phyllis Lindstrom on 1970’s The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Leachman earned two consecutive supporting actress Emmys for playing the role, in 1974 and 1975. Her character was so popular, CBS developed a spinoff series titled Phyllis from 1975-1977. She then earned a leading comedy actress Golden Globe award for the show.

The decorated actress had a Hollywood career that spanned over seven decades, garnering an Oscar, a Golden Globe and over 20 Emmy nominations with nine wins – more trophies than any other television performer in history. Leachman was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 2011.

She is survived by her sons Adam, George Jr. and Morgan and daughter, Dinah.