Georgia Engel: 1948-2019

Born in Washington on July 28, 1948, 

Georgia Bright Engel 

played Ado Annie in her high school's production of "Oklahoma!"

A television writer would describe her voice like

"an angel who'd just sniffed some helium."

 After graduating from ballet school in 1967, 

she earned a theater degree at the University of Hawaii.

In 1969, near the end of Hello Dolly's Broadway run,

Georgia became Minnie Fay, above right,

while Ethel Merman and Russell Nype played the leads.

...but before Dolly and right after all that ballet school,

 she  landed a part in a Milos Forman movie, “Taking Off,” 

whose screenwriters included John Guare. 

Once “Dolly” ended its run in 1970, Georgia ran into John...

“I was walking down the street one day after ‘Dolly’ closed

 to cash my unemployment check for $75, 

when I ran into John and he told me I had to be in his play 

‘The House of Blue Leaves.’ 

I was so thrilled, until I got my first paycheck.

 I was making $74, one dollar less than unemployment.”

In 1972, Georgia joined the cast of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

It was only going to be one episode,” she told The Toronto Star in 2007, 

“and I was just supposed to have a few lines in a party scene,

 but they kept giving me more and more to do.”

(Above with Betty White, Ted Night, Gavin MacLeod, 

Mary Tyler Moore, and Ed Asner.)

 The role of Georgette would win her 2 Emmy nominations. 

When that sitcom wrapped, she went on to The Betty White Show, 

Goodtime Girls and Jennifer Slept Here.

 All the reunions of the MTM show,

above with Betty, Mary, and Cloris Leachman.

She was also part of "Hot L Baltimore"

with Betty.

...and with Fred Willard in “Everybody Loves Raymond" (2003 to 2005). 

She was nominated for an Emmy for each season.

 In the 1990s she toured with versions of “Nunsense” 

 and in 2003 she joined an all-star 20th-anniversary “Nunsense” 

touring production that also featured 

Kaye Ballard, Mimi Hines, Darlene Love and Lee Meriwether.

 That's Georgia on the top left...you can find the rest! :)

In 2006, Georgia became Mrs. Tottendale

 in the original Broadway cast of The Drowsy Chaperone.

The role required her to aim spit takes at her character’s butler, Underling.

She ended up doing a lot of spitting:

“At first, I was getting more on me than on the other person.

It was just dribbling right down me. 

You have to learn how to direct it. 

It works better as a mist, but sometimes it comes out as Niagara Falls.”

After originating the role on Broadway, she joined the tour and stayed with it
for more than a year.

 A close up on that "Fancy Dress"

and below with the original Underling, 

Edward Hibbert.

 Georgia, center, showing off all that dance training!

That's Sutton Foster on the left.

 In 2016, Georgia joined “Half Time,”
which was all about 60-and-older dancers who perform at half time of professional basketball games (above).

The book was written by the same folks who did "Drowsy"...

Bob Martin and Don McKellar. 

Georgia became a hip-hop dancing kindergarten teacher,

and supposedly killed it!

"I don’t consider myself any great shakes as an actor at all,” 

is what Georgia told the NYTimes back in 2015. 

The airhead roles she was known for seemed to mask 

all the craft and hard work that went into her performances. 

One of the producers of "Raymond" recalled the following scenario,

from an episode called “Pat’s Secret” 

in which her character, Pat MacDougall, was revealed, 

against all expectations, to be a smoker. 

Ms. Engel was no smoker, but she sold the bit.

“The way she handled her lighter was like a Mafia boss."