Betty Garrett (Irene Lorenzo) Has Died - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Brian Damage · 02-12-2011, 08:54 PM

Just read it on the 'Laverne & Shirley' board

MikeLutton · 02-12-2011, 11:10 PM

damm that sucks wow on sameday we was talking about her o this board what did she die of rip mis Garrett

McGillicuddy · 02-12-2011, 11:29 PM

Best known for Edna Babbish and Irene Lorenzo!

catlover79 · 02-12-2011, 11:47 PM

From the articles I've read, it looks like it was natural causes.

Marvo301 · 02-13-2011, 12:18 AM

Betty Garrett. I loved her work in the movie "My Sister Eileen"! She was a triple threat who could sing, dance, and act. I always thought she should have been a bigger movie star than she was. Loved her TV work on AITF and L&S as well.

Mr. Television · 02-13-2011, 12:25 AM

What a great actress she was. She was a perfect foil for Archie. I loved her on L&S too. R.I.P. Irene. Thanks for all the laughs.

MikeLutton · 02-13-2011, 12:39 AM

the Irene lorenzo episodes start this week thursday with the Lorenzos debut episode we are having a heat wave on tv land

USATVFAN · 02-13-2011, 12:43 AM

Let's not Jump into this yet. I haven't seen ANY RELIABLE SOURCES REPORT THIS!! Let wait for a Reliable Source to report it.

Pavan · 02-13-2011, 01:33 AM

It is true. Betty's friend has a blog and posted this:

http://sitteninthehills64.blogspot.c...1919-2011.html

KABC is also reporting it.

Zoneboy · 02-13-2011, 01:58 AM

The veteran performer was in MGM musicals and a regular on "All in the Family" and "Laverne & Shirley." She also starred on Broadway and in Los Angeles theater productions.

Link

Betty Garrett, a comedic actress who was a fixture in such MGM musicals as "On The Town" and "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," a regular on the television series "All in the Family" and "Laverne & Shirley" and a star on Broadway and in Los Angeles theater productions, has died. She was 91.

Garrett died early Saturday morning at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center of an aortic aneurysm, said her son Garrett Parks.

Just last Wednesday, Garrett went to dinner with friends and afterward taught a weekly musical comedy class at Theatre West, the nonprofit theater she helped found in North Hollywood half a century ago.

"She was a woman of boundless optimism," Miles Kreuger, president of the Los Angeles-based Institute of the American Musical, told The Times on Saturday. "On the screen and on television there was just a wonderful sense of joy."

In a 2009 interview with The Times, Garrett reflected on her long career. "People say, how come you've lasted this long?" she said. "I say I think it's because all of my life I have gotten to do what I love to do."

Born on May 23, 1919, in St. Joseph, Mo., Garrett had a flair for performance that was apparent at an early age.

In 1936, a family friend arranged for her to meet famed dancer Martha Graham. Graham recommended Garrett for a scholarship at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York.

"I graduated from high school at 16 and came right to New York," Garrett later recalled.

Within a few years, she was landing roles on Broadway. She made her first big splash in "Call Me Mister," a sketch comedy revue in which she sang the hit song "South America, Take It Away."

Soon, Hollywood came calling. A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract drew her west in 1947, and she spent the next several years making musicals, including 1949's "Neptune's Daughter" with Red Skelton and "On the Town" with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra.

"I was in on the end of what they called the golden years," she told The Times in 1979. "I met Gable and Tracy and, of course, Gene Kelly and Sinatra. To grow up with Frank being your idol and then suddenly being his leading lady is an extraordinary fantasy lived out."

In 1944, Garrett married actor Larry Parks, who had had success onscreen in "The Jolson Story" but whose film career ended with the Hollywood blacklist. The couple toured Britain with a vaudeville act. Parks died in 1975.

Garrett was best known on TV for her roles on two popular 1970s sitcoms, as landlady Edna Babish on "Laverne & Shirley" and as Archie Bunker's neighbor Irene Lorenzo on "All in the Family."

In recent years, she had performed a one-woman show, "Betty Garrett and Other Songs." She appeared frequently on the Theatre West stage. Her final shows there included "Nunsense," the Los Angeles premiere of Noel Coward's "Waiting in the Wings" and a revue, "Betty Garrett, Closet Songwriter."

In addition to her son Garrett, a composer, she is survived by her son Andrew, an actor, and a granddaughter, Madison.

On Saturday night Madison performed in an opera at her high school.

"She's following in her grandmother's footsteps," Garrett Parks said of his daughter.

TVFactFan · 02-13-2011, 04:17 PM

Wow, I been watching this women all week on Antenna TV and started a thread about her and now I hear she passed. Wow, RIP Betty Garrett

McGillicuddy · 02-13-2011, 05:52 PM

I really wasn't aware of her amazing stage and film career, before she started appearing on television.

catlover79 · 02-13-2011, 06:03 PM

She was great in this musical comedy, which also starred Janet Leigh, Jack Lemmon and Dick York:

old grouch · 02-13-2011, 11:12 PM

RIP

Robert 13 · 02-14-2011, 10:53 AM

I'm a fan of both L&S and AITF so Betty has always been a favorite of mine. She was also on 2 episodes of "Murder, She Wrote". She was a gem. Will always remember her. RIP Irene Lorenzo.

02-12-2011, 08:54 PM	#1
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,108	Betty Garrett (Irene Lorenzo) Has Died Just read it on the 'Laverne & Shirley' board
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02-12-2011, 11:10 PM	#2
MikeLutton Mike Lutton DVD Legend! Forum Veteran Join Date: Jan 05, 2005 Location: usa pennsyvania Posts: 6,871	damm that sucks wow on sameday we was talking about her o this board what did she die of rip mis Garrett
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02-12-2011, 11:47 PM	#4
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	From the articles I've read, it looks like it was natural causes.
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02-13-2011, 12:18 AM	#5
Marvo301 I'm NOT a Blockhead! Forum Celebrity Join Date: May 17, 2002 Location: The Great White North Posts: 21,450	Betty Garrett. I loved her work in the movie "My Sister Eileen"! She was a triple threat who could sing, dance, and act. I always thought she should have been a bigger movie star than she was. Loved her TV work on AITF and L&S as well.
	__________________ Only a life lived for others is worth living. Albert Einstein A life isn't worth living unless it has impact on other lives. Jackie Robinson Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. Benjamin Franklin

02-13-2011, 12:25 AM	#6
Mr. Television 22 Years at Sitcoms Online Forum Icon Join Date: Jun 06, 2003 Location: Somewhere you're Not Posts: 62,125	What a great actress she was. She was a perfect foil for Archie. I loved her on L&S too. R.I.P. Irene. Thanks for all the laughs.
	__________________ Sonny

02-12-2011, 11:29 PM	#3
McGillicuddy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 28, 2002 Posts: 5,179	Best known for Edna Babbish and Irene Lorenzo!

02-13-2011, 12:39 AM	#7
MikeLutton Mike Lutton DVD Legend! Forum Veteran Join Date: Jan 05, 2005 Location: usa pennsyvania Posts: 6,871	the Irene lorenzo episodes start this week thursday with the Lorenzos debut episode we are having a heat wave on tv land

02-13-2011, 12:43 AM	#8
USATVFAN Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 31, 2007 Location: Kalispell, USA Posts: 1,742	Let's not Jump into this yet. I haven't seen ANY RELIABLE SOURCES REPORT THIS!! Let wait for a Reliable Source to report it.
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02-13-2011, 01:33 AM	#9
Pavan SO News/Reviews Director Administrator Forum Superstar Join Date: Feb 17, 2000 Location: Linden, NJ (Where Hal Linden got his last name from!) Posts: 26,814	It is true. Betty's friend has a blog and posted this: http://sitteninthehills64.blogspot.c...1919-2011.html KABC is also reporting it.
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02-13-2011, 01:58 AM	#10
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,338	Betty Garrett, versatile comedic actress, dies at 91 The veteran performer was in MGM musicals and a regular on "All in the Family" and "Laverne & Shirley." She also starred on Broadway and in Los Angeles theater productions. Link Betty Garrett, a comedic actress who was a fixture in such MGM musicals as "On The Town" and "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," a regular on the television series "All in the Family" and "Laverne & Shirley" and a star on Broadway and in Los Angeles theater productions, has died. She was 91. Garrett died early Saturday morning at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center of an aortic aneurysm, said her son Garrett Parks. Just last Wednesday, Garrett went to dinner with friends and afterward taught a weekly musical comedy class at Theatre West, the nonprofit theater she helped found in North Hollywood half a century ago. "She was a woman of boundless optimism," Miles Kreuger, president of the Los Angeles-based Institute of the American Musical, told The Times on Saturday. "On the screen and on television there was just a wonderful sense of joy." In a 2009 interview with The Times, Garrett reflected on her long career. "People say, how come you've lasted this long?" she said. "I say I think it's because all of my life I have gotten to do what I love to do." Born on May 23, 1919, in St. Joseph, Mo., Garrett had a flair for performance that was apparent at an early age. In 1936, a family friend arranged for her to meet famed dancer Martha Graham. Graham recommended Garrett for a scholarship at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. "I graduated from high school at 16 and came right to New York," Garrett later recalled. Within a few years, she was landing roles on Broadway. She made her first big splash in "Call Me Mister," a sketch comedy revue in which she sang the hit song "South America, Take It Away." Soon, Hollywood came calling. A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract drew her west in 1947, and she spent the next several years making musicals, including 1949's "Neptune's Daughter" with Red Skelton and "On the Town" with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra. "I was in on the end of what they called the golden years," she told The Times in 1979. "I met Gable and Tracy and, of course, Gene Kelly and Sinatra. To grow up with Frank being your idol and then suddenly being his leading lady is an extraordinary fantasy lived out." In 1944, Garrett married actor Larry Parks, who had had success onscreen in "The Jolson Story" but whose film career ended with the Hollywood blacklist. The couple toured Britain with a vaudeville act. Parks died in 1975. Garrett was best known on TV for her roles on two popular 1970s sitcoms, as landlady Edna Babish on "Laverne & Shirley" and as Archie Bunker's neighbor Irene Lorenzo on "All in the Family." In recent years, she had performed a one-woman show, "Betty Garrett and Other Songs." She appeared frequently on the Theatre West stage. Her final shows there included "Nunsense," the Los Angeles premiere of Noel Coward's "Waiting in the Wings" and a revue, "Betty Garrett, Closet Songwriter." In addition to her son Garrett, a composer, she is survived by her son Andrew, an actor, and a granddaughter, Madison. On Saturday night Madison performed in an opera at her high school. "She's following in her grandmother's footsteps," Garrett Parks said of his daughter.
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02-13-2011, 04:17 PM	#11
TVFactFan Member Forum Junkie Join Date: Aug 17, 2002 Posts: 98,949	Wow, I been watching this women all week on Antenna TV and started a thread about her and now I hear she passed. Wow, RIP Betty Garrett

02-13-2011, 05:52 PM	#12
McGillicuddy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 28, 2002 Posts: 5,179	I really wasn't aware of her amazing stage and film career, before she started appearing on television.

02-13-2011, 06:03 PM	#13
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	She was great in this musical comedy, which also starred Janet Leigh, Jack Lemmon and Dick York: Attached Images

02-13-2011, 11:12 PM	#14
old grouch Member Senior Member Join Date: May 13, 2010 Location: montana Posts: 1,877	RIP

02-14-2011, 10:53 AM	#15
Robert 13 Member Senior Member Join Date: May 10, 2006 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 1,521	I'm a fan of both L&S and AITF so Betty has always been a favorite of mine. She was also on 2 episodes of "Murder, She Wrote". She was a gem. Will always remember her. RIP Irene Lorenzo.
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