Teri Garr, star of “Tootsie,” “Young Frankenstein,” dies at 79

Teri Garr, the Oscar-nominated actress, is best known for her work in hit comedies like… Tootsie And Young FrankensteinShe died on Tuesday, October 29, at her home in Los Angeles. The New York Times Reports. She was 79.

Garr's publicist confirmed her death, saying it was due to complications from multiple sclerosis. Garr was diagnosed with MS in 1999 and made it public in 2002. In 2006, she suffered a brain aneurysm that left her in a coma for several days, although she was eventually able to speak again.

Over four decades, Garr enjoyed a prolific and diverse career, excelling as a comedian as well as memorable roles in dramas, thrillers and science fiction epics. In the same year she made her breakthrough in Mel Brooks' Young Frankensteinshe had a supporting role in Francis Ford Coppola's The conversation. A few years later she starred alongside George Burns and John Denver in ” Oh God!as well as Richard Dreyfus in Steven Spielberg's Close encounters of the third kind.

Garr's performance as Sandy Lester – the frustrated girlfriend of Dustin Hoffman's Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels – in 1982 earned her an Oscar nomination, but ultimately lost to her co-star Jessica Lange. In her 2006 memoir Speed ​​bumps: It goes through HollywoodGarr revealed that she almost turned down the role of Sandy because she was so determined to play the lead. And while she called the character “one of the most rewarding roles of my life,” she also wasn't afraid to point out her flaws.

Description of the film in an interview with The AV ClubGarr joked, “You put a man in a dress and you want him to know what it feels like to be a woman.” But of course he doesn't. I think what Dustin (Hoffman) says: 'I now realize how important it is for a woman to be pretty.' And I wasn't pretty.' God! Is that all you noticed? Jesus Christ. Well, yes. Don't quote me. Actually, I’m quoting myself.”

Garr was born and raised in Los Angeles, the daughter of an actor/vaudevillian and a former Rockette (her father, Edward, died when she was 11, and her mother, Phyllis, later became a costume designer to support the family). Garr began her career with small roles in commercials and as an uncredited dancer in various films (including several starring Elvis Presley).

In the mid-1960s she finally began to secure speaking roles in film and television, for example in a 1968 episode Star Trek and the Monkeyes film Headwhich arrived the same year. In the early 1970s, just before her film career took off, she played a regular recurring role on the series The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour. In addition to giving her the opportunity to hone her comedic skills, Garr was able to get a German accent from Cher's wig stylist for her performance as Inga – the assistant to Gene Wilder's Dr. Frederick Frankenstein – borrow Young Frankenstein.

“That’s what really put me on the map to be in this movie,” Garr said The AV Club. “I had no idea it would be such a big hit and it's still hot. People still watch it all the time. I had no idea. It was really the first time I had my name on the poster, in the lead roles and all that stuff. So I’m really grateful that I was there at all.”

Other highlights of Garr's run in the '70s and '80s included major box office hits like the drama The black stallion and the comedy Mr. Momas well as cult favorites like Martin Scorsese's After hours. She later collaborated twice with Robert Altman – The player And Ready-to-wear – and at the same time delivers unforgettable side effects in films like Dumb and dumber, ThickAnd Spirit world.

On television, Garr appeared for guest appearances on shows such as M*A*S*H, HE, blissAnd Friendswhere she appeared in several episodes as Lisa Kudrow's Phoebe's biological mother. But probably her most memorable TV appearances came late at night: she hosted Saturday Night Live three times and was a regular at Johnny Carson Tonight's showbut she was probably best known for her many appearances alongside David Letterman.

Garr and Letterman's fantastic repartee often veered between flirty and argumentative, which inevitably led to parts that didn't age well (like when Letterman persuaded Garr to shower in his office). While Garr enjoyed the sparring, he said in an interview with Roger Ebert on the release of their 1988 film: Full moon in blue waterShe talked about how her appearances on Letterman seemed to reinforce the perception of her as a “ditz” and an actress capable only of comedy.

“I started out in the 1970s with 'The Wife,' 'Bimbo' and 'The Ditz,' and when I somehow get a serious role, they all want to know the same thing: When are you going to get back into comedy?” she said .

She added: “I'm doing a serious film, it doesn't work, it's back to the comedy, darling. I'll hang in there and keep patting them on the back. Maybe I'll get the chance to do other things, maybe not. You have to want to be an actor and not just a movie star. You have to be content just playing roles and getting as far as you can, because becoming a movie star is like winning the lottery. It's a big joke. You have to be in the right place at the right time.”