Marion Ross
Marion Ross | |
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Ross in 1961 | |
Born | Marian Ellen Ross[1] October 25, 1928 Watertown, Minnesota, U.S. |
Education | Point Loma High School |
Alma mater | San Diego State University |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1953–2021, 2024 |
Known for | |
Spouses |
|
Children | 2, including Jim Meskimen |
Marion Ross (born Marian Ellen Ross; October 25, 1928) is an American actress. Her best-known role is that of
Since the 1990s, Ross has been known for voice-over work on animated television series, including King of the Hill and SpongeBob SquarePants, among others, and recurring roles on The Drew Carey Show, Gilmore Girls, and Brothers & Sisters and guest appearances.
Early life
Marian Ellen Ross was born on October 25, 1928 in Watertown, Carver County, Minnesota, the middle child of Gordon and Ellen Alicia (née Hamilton) Ross, natives of Saskatchewan, Canada. She had an elder sister, Alicia, and a younger brother, Gordon.[2][3] She lived in Waconia, then moved to Willmar, and eventually to Albert Lea, Minnesota.[4]
At the age of 13, she changed the spelling of her name from "Marian" to "Marion", as she thought it had a "more pleasing appearance" and would look better on a theatrical program and a theater's marquee.
Career
This section needs additional citations for verification. (May 2024) |
Early film and television roles: 1953–1973
Ross made her 1953 film debut in Forever Female, starring Ginger Rogers and William Holden. She found steady work in film, appearing in The Glenn Miller Story (1954), Sabrina (1954), Lust for Life (1956), Lizzie (1957), Teacher's Pet (1958), Some Came Running (1958), and Operation Petticoat (1959). She also appeared in Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970), Honky (1971), and Grand Theft Auto (1977).
Ross' career on television also began in 1953, when she played the Irish maid on the series
In the 1961–62 television season, she played Gertrude Berg's daughter on the CBS sitcom Mrs. G. Goes to College as well as starred as a mail order bride on Rawhide. Ross had an uncredited and non-speaking role as one of the hapless passengers on board Trans Global Flight #2 in Airport (1970). In 1970, she also played a computer scientist in the sci-fi thriller Colossus: The Forbin Project.
Happy Days success and roles thereafter: 1974–1995
Ross' best known role is on the sitcom
Recent roles: 1996–2021
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Marion_Ross_at_the_1992_Emmy_Awards_cropped.jpg/220px-Marion_Ross_at_the_1992_Emmy_Awards_cropped.jpg)
In 1996, Ross starred as housekeeper Rosie Dunlop (played originally by Betty R. King in the preceding 1983 film), opposite
Ross had a recurring role on
In 2007, Ross appeared in Music Within. In 2007 and 2010, she played Ida Holden on ABC's Brothers & Sisters. In June 2008, the Albert Lea Civic Theater in Albert Lea, Minnesota, changed its name to the Marion Ross Performing Arts Center.[10] That year, Ross played Aunt Lucille in the film Superhero Movie,[11] and in 2009 she appeared in a guest spot on The New Adventures of Old Christine.
In 2010, Ross guest-starred on Nurse Jackie and Grey's Anatomy, and appeared in the Cartoon Network television film Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster as Mrs. Trowburg. In 2013, she guest-starred on both Major Crimes and The Middle, and in 2014 on Two and a Half Men. In September 2015, she began making brief appearances on MeTV to share her memories of her Happy Days co-stars. In 2020, Ross played Mrs. Genzinger in the Hallmark Christmas television movie Signed Sealed Delivered For Christmas. In 2021, Ross announced that she had officially retired from acting but continued to make several small appearances in various online projects. In 2024, she returned to SpongeBob SquarePants, reprising her role as Grandma SquarePants in the season 13 episode "Don’t Make Me Laugh".
Personal life
![]() | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. (December 2021) |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/MarionRossAlbertLeaMN.jpg/220px-MarionRossAlbertLeaMN.jpg)
Ross lives in
Ross's two children also work in entertainment. Son
Happy Days lawsuit
On April 19, 2011, Ross and four of her Happy Days co-stars, Erin Moran, Don Most, Anson Williams, and the estate of Tom Bosley filed a $10 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against CBS, which owns the show, claiming they had not been paid for merchandising revenue owed under their contracts. The cast members claimed they had not received revenue from show-related items, including comic books, T-shirts, scrapbooks, trading cards, games, lunch boxes, dolls, toy cars, magnets, greeting cards, and DVDs where their images appear on the box covers. Under their contracts, they were supposed to be paid five percent from the net proceeds of merchandising if their sole images were used, and half that amount if they were in a group. CBS said it owed the actors $8,500 and $9,000 each, most of it from slot machine revenue, but the group said they were owed millions. The lawsuit was initiated after Ross was informed, by a friend playing slots at a casino, of a Happy Days-themed machine on which players win the jackpot when five Marion Rosses are rolled.[12]
In October 2011, a judge rejected the group's fraud claim, which rejects their claim to millions of dollars in potential damages.[13] On June 5, 2012, a judge denied a motion filed by CBS to have the case thrown out, which meant it would go to trial on July 17 if the matter was not settled by then.[14] In July 2012, the actors settled their lawsuit with CBS. Each received a payment of $65,000 and a promise by CBS to continue honoring the terms of their contracts.[15][16]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1953 | Forever Female | Patty | |
1954 | The Glenn Miller Story | Polly Haynes | Uncredited |
Secret of the Incas | Miss Morris | ||
Pushover | Mrs. Crockett | ||
Sabrina | Spiller's Girlfriend | ||
1956 | The Proud and Profane | Joan | |
Lust for Life | Sister Clothilde | Uncredited | |
The Best Things in Life Are Free | Nita Naldi-type | ||
Around the World in 80 Days | Unknown | ||
1957 | Lizzie | Ruth Seaton | |
God Is My Partner | Frances Denning | ||
1958 | Teacher's Pet | Katy Fuller | |
Operation Zero Launch | Rita Bradshaw | ||
Some Came Running | Sister Mary Joseph | Uncredited | |
1959 | The Big Circus | Unknown | |
It Started with a Kiss | Diane | ||
Operation Petticoat | Lt. Colfax RN | ||
1961 | Blueprint for Robbery | Young Woman | |
1970 | Airport | Joan Myers - Passenger | Uncredited |
Colossus: The Forbin Project | Angela Fields | ||
1971 | Honky | Mrs. Divine | |
1977 | Grand Theft Auto | Vivian Hedgeworth | |
1981 | Midnight Offerings | Emily Moore | Television film |
1996 | The Evening Star | Rosie Dunlop | |
1998 | The Lake | Maggie | |
1999 | The Last Best Sunday | Mrs. Larksmont | |
2003 | Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star | Marion Ross | |
2006 | Where There's a Will | Leslie Clyde Onstott | |
2007 | Music Within | Grandma | |
Smiley Face | Shirley | ||
2008 | Superhero Movie | Aunt Lucille | |
2010 | Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster | Hilda Trowburg | |
2012 | Dear Dracula | Grandma | Voice[17] |
2014 | A Reason | Aunt Irene Hilgrim | |
A Perfect Christmas List | Evie | ||
2018 | Angels on Tap | Waitress | |
2021 | Senior Entourage | Marion | Final film role before retirement |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1958 | Perry Mason | Helen Harvey | Episode: "The Case of the Romantic Rogue" |
1959 | The Untouchables | Vera Schultz | Episode: "The Dutch Schultz Story" |
1960 | ’’Father Knows Best’’ | Miss Abrams | Episode: “Jim’s Big Surprise” |
1962 | Rawhide | Priscilla Brewer | |
1963 | Route 66 | Nora Belden | Episode: "The Stone Guest" |
1964 | The Outer Limits | Agnes Benjamin | Episode: "The Special One" |
1968 | Ironside | Shirley Petrizzi | Episode: “Barbara Who” |
1969 | The Brady Bunch | Dr. Porter | Episode: "Is There A Doctor In The House" |
1971 | Mission: Impossible | Mrs. Foster | Episode: "A Ghost Story" |
1974–1984 | Happy Days | Marion Cunningham ("Mrs. C") | |
1989 | Night Court | Mrs. Daley | Episode: "The Trouble Is Not in Your Set" |
Living Dolls | Marion Carlin | Guest star role. Episode: "Beauty and the Beat" | |
1990 | MacGyver | Sister Robin | Episode: "Harry's Will" |
1991–1993 | Brooklyn Bridge | Sophie Berger | 35 episodes |
1995–2004 | The Drew Carey Show | Beulah Carey | |
1997 | The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries | Flavia | Voice, episode: "Yelp/Jeepers Creepers"[17] |
Superman: The Animated Series | General Richter | Voice, episode: "Speed Demons"[17] | |
1998–1999 | That '70s Show | Bernice Forman | 2 episodes |
2001–2005 | Gilmore Girls | Lorelai "Trix" Gilmore, Marilyn Gilmore | |
2001–2024 | SpongeBob SquarePants | Grandma SquarePants | Voice, 5 episodes[17] |
2004 | King of the Hill | Ms. Wakefield | Voice, episode: "Ms. Wakefield" |
2005 | Family Guy | Marion Cunningham | Voice, episode: "The Father, the Son, and the Holy Fonz" |
2006–2011 | Handy Manny | Mrs. Lopart | Voice, 10 episodes[17] |
2010 | Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated | Grandma Moonbeam | Voice, episode: "When the Cicada Calls" |
Grey's Anatomy | Betty Donahue (née Flynn) | Episode: "Shiny Happy People" | |
2011 | Generator Rex | Determined Grandmother, Carmen, Grandma | Voice, 2 episodes[17] |
2016 | The Odd Couple | Edna | Episode: “Taffy Days” |
2017–2020 | Please Tell Me I'm Adopted | Mrs. Grant | 3 episodes |
2018 | Guardians of the Galaxy | Doctor Minerva | Voice, episode: "Gotta Get Outta This Place" |
Video games
Year | Title | Voice | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2002 | SpongeBob SquarePants: Employee of the Month | Grandma SquarePants | [17] |
2008 | Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa | Nana | [17] |
Book
- Ross, Marion (with David Laurell) (March 27, 2018). My Days: Happy and Otherwise. Kensington Books. ISBN 978-1-496-71515-9.
References
- ISBN 9781496715173.
- ISBN 9781480867864.
- ^ Francisco, Mollee (January 5, 2012). "'Happy Days' in Carver County". Chanhassen Villager. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
- ^ King, Susan (October 7, 2009). "Marion Ross on 'Happy Days' and today". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
- ISBN 978-1-4967-1515-9.
- ^ "Marion Ross - Wilbert Brummett - Cast". Archived from the original on February 11, 2007.
- ^ "About Our School". Point Loma High School.
- ^ "History of SDSU". San Diego State University. Archived from the original on May 4, 2012.
- ^ "She's Back, Still Coping, Still Crying", nytimes.com. Accessed May 14, 2024.
- ^ "The Albert Lea Civic Theater name change is official". Albert Lea Tribune. June 9, 2008.
- ^ Marion Ross profile, FutureMovies.co.uk. Accessed May 14, 2024.
- ^ Zamost, Scott (April 20, 2011). "'Happy Days' actors claim fraud, money owed for merchandising". CNNMoney.
- ^ Gardner, Eriq (June 5, 2012). "'Happy Days' Actors Win Key Ruling in CBS Lawsuit". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ Scott, Zamost (June 5, 2012). "'Happy Days' cast members' lawsuit heading for trial". CNN.
- ^ Daley, Sean (August 6, 2012). "Chachi done with broke Joanie". New York Post.
- ^ Zamost, Scott (July 7, 2012). "'Happy Days' actors settle lawsuit with CBS". CNN.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Marion Ross (visual voices guide) - Behind The Voice Actors". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved December 4, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
External links
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