Jean Stapleton
Jean Stapleton was born Jeanne Murray in Manhattan, New York City, to Marie A. (Stapleton), an opera singer, and Joseph Edward Murray, a billboard advertising salesman. Her paternal grandparents were Irish. She was a cousin of actress Betty Jane Watson. Other relatives in show business were her uncle, Joseph E. Deming, a vaudevillian; and her brother Jack Stapleton, a stage actor. She graduated from Wadleigh High School, NYC, in 1939, and attended Hunter College. She worked as a secretary before becoming an actress. Stapleton made her stage debut at the Greenwood Playhouse, Peaks Island, Maine, in the summer of 1941, and her New York stage debut in "The Corn Is Green" (1948). She appeared on Broadway in the musicals "Damn Yankees" (1955) and "Bells Are Ringing" (1956), and later repeated her roles in the movie versions (Damn Yankees (1958) and Bells Are Ringing (1960)). Her other Broadway roles included the original companies of "Rhinoceros" (1961) and "Funny Girl" (1964). Stapleton also played Abby Brewster in the 1986-87 revival of "Arsenic and Old Lace".
Filmography (89 titles)
7.0MovieThe Last Laugh
Self (archive footage) (uncredited) · 2016
MovieThe Television Revolution Begins: "All in the Family" Is On the Air
Self · 2009
MovieThose Were the Days: The Birth of "All in the Family"
Self · 2009
TV Land Top 10
2004
TV Land Awards: A Celebration of Classic TV
2003
7.3MovieLike Mother Like Son: The Strange Story of Sante and Kenny Kimes
Irene Silverman · 2001
5.4MoviePursuit of Happiness
Lorraine · 2001
8.0MovieBaby
Byrd · 2000
6.7MovieYou've Got Mail
Birdie Conrad · 1998
5.6MoviePocahontas II: Journey to a New World
Mrs. Jenkins (voice) · 1998
7.7MovieChance of a Lifetime
Mrs. Dunbar · 1998
8.0ShowStyle & Substance
Gloria Utley · 1998
5.7MovieMichael
Pansy Milbank · 1996
6.8ShowEverybody Loves Raymond
Aunt Alda · 1996
8.2ShowE! True Hollywood Story
1996
4.1ShowThe Rosie O'Donnell Show
Self · 1996
3.7MovieLily Dale
Mrs. Coons · 1996
6.6ShowCaroline in the City
Aunt Mary Kosky · 1995
7.2ShowTouched by an Angel
Emma · 1994
Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle
Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle · 1994
4.5ShowIntimate Portrait
Self · 1993
6.5MovieBury Me in Niagara
Mildred · 1993
5.6ShowGrace Under Fire
1993
6.0MovieThe Trial
Landlady (uncredited) · 1993
8.4ShowBeakman's World
Beakman's Mom · 1992
6.0MovieThe Habitation of Dragons
Lenora Tolliver · 1992
9.5ShowShelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories
Narrator (voice) · 1992
9.0MovieFire in the Dark
Henry Dutton · 1991
9.0MovieFunny Ladies: A Portrait of Women Cartoonists
Narrator · 1991
9.0MovieAll in the Family: 20th Anniversary Special
1991