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Teri Garr
Acting
Biography
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 …
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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.
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BODY OF WORK
Teri Garr's Filmography
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Mel Brooks: Unwrapped
as Self (archive footage)
Mel Brooks: Make a Noise
as Self (archive footage)
A Better Man: The Making of 'Tootsie'
as Self
Kabluey
as Suze
Expired
as Claire's Mother / Aunt Tilde
Unaccompanied Minors
as Aunt Judy (uncredited)
A Taste Of Jupiter
as Ginnie
Aloha Scooby-Doo!
as Mayor Molly Quinn (voice)
No Poster
The Wiki-Tiki Tail of Aloha Scooby-Doo
as Self
The Dream Studio
as self
Searching for Debra Winger
as Self
Life Without Dick
as Madame Hugonaut
Ghost World
as Maxine (uncredited)
The Sky is Falling
as Mona Hall
The Making of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'
as Self
A Colder Kind of Death
as Tess Malone
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
as Mary McGinnis (voice)
Dick
as Helen Lorenzo
Half a Dozen Babies
as Lee Dilley
Kill the Man
as Mrs. Livingston
Batman Beyond: The Movie
as Mary McGinnis (voice)
Casper Meets Wendy
as Fanny
A Simple Wish
as Rena
The Definite Maybe
as Dionne Waters
Changing Habits
as Connie
NightScream
as Julie Ordwell
Ronnie and Julie
as Elizabeth Monroe
Murder Live!
as JoAnn McGrath
Michael
as Judge Esther Newberg
Double Jeopardy
as Cindy Dubroski
Making Frankensense of Young Frankenstein
as Inga (archive footage)
No Poster
Shining Time Station: One of the Family
as Sister Conductor
Perfect Alibi
as Laney Tolbert
Prêt-à-Porter
as Louise Hamilton
Dumb and Dumber
as Helen Swanson
Aliens for Breakfast
as Mrs. Bickerstaff
Fugitive Nights: Danger in the Desert
as Brita Burrows
Mom and Dad Save the World
as Marge Nelson
The Player
as Teri Garr
Deliver Them from Evil: The Taking of Alta View
as Susan Woolley
Robert Altman's Players
as Self
Stranger in the Family
as Randi Thompson
The Best of Disney: 50 Years of Magic
as Self
A Quiet Little Neighborhood, a Perfect Little Murder
as Marsha Pegler
Waiting for the Light
as Kay
Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme
as Jill (of Jack and Jill)
Short Time
as Carolyn Simpson
Let It Ride
as Pam
Out Cold
as Sunny
Full Moon in Blue Water
as Louise
No Poster
Jackie Gleason: The Great One
as Self
Flapjack Floozie
as Helen Eagles
Paul Reiser: Out on a Whim
as Self
Martin Mull Live from North Ridgeville, Ohio
as Self
Pack of Lies
as Helen Schaefer
Miracles
as Jean
Intimate Strangers
as Sally Bierston
After Hours
as Julie
The History of White People in America
as Self
Night of 100 Stars II
as Self
Firstborn
as Wendy
Steve Martin Live!
as Self
To Catch a King
as Hannah Winter
The Winter of Our Discontent
as Mary Hawley
Mr. Mom
as Caroline
The Black Stallion Returns
as Alec Ramsay's Mother
Do It Debbie's Way
as Self
The Sting II
as Veronica
Tootsie
as Sandy Lester
The Tale of the Frog Prince
as Princess
The Escape Artist
as Arlene
One from the Heart
as Frannie
Prime Suspect
as Amy McCleary
The Making of 'Tootsie'
as Self
Honky Tonk Freeway
as Ericka
Rendez-Vous Video Magazine
as Self (segment "Coppola")
Inside the Coppola Personality
as Self
Witches' Brew
as Margaret Lightman
Doctor Franken
as Kelli Fisher
The Black Stallion
as Alec's Mother
Mr. Mike's Mondo Video
as Self
Java Junkie
as Waitress
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
as Ronnie Neary
Rolling Stone Magazine: The 10th Anniversary
as Self
Once Upon a Brothers Grimm
as Frog Princess
Oh, God!
as Bobbie Landers
The Absent-Minded Waiter
as Susan Cates
Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
as Fluffy Peters
Law and Order
as Rita Wasinski
Young Frankenstein
as Inga
The Conversation
as Amy Fredericks
Summertree
as Bennie's Girlfriend (uncredited)
The Moonshine War
as Young Wife
You Haven't Changed a Bit
as Corinne
Changes
as Waitress
Head
as Testy True
Maryjane
as Teri
Clambake
as Dancer (uncredited)
No Poster
The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Chinese Junk
as Susie
The Cool Ones
as Whiz Girl
For Pete's Sake
as MarJean
Where's the Bus?
as Girl
Red Line 7000
as Nightclub Dancer (uncredited)
John Goldfarb, Please Come Home!
as Harem Girl (uncredited)
The T.A.M.I. Show
as Self - Go-Go Dancer (uncredited)
Pajama Party
as Pajama Girl
Roustabout
as Carnival Dancer (uncredited)
What a Way to Go!
as Shipboard Number Dancer (uncredited)
Kissin' Cousins
as Hillbilly Dancer (uncredited)
Viva Las Vegas
as Dancer (uncredited)
Fun in Acapulco
as Hotel Guest (uncredited)
