Ruth Ann Buzzi was born on July 24 1936 in Westerly, Rhode Island. She grew up in Stonington, Connecticut. She was 18 when she moved from the East Coast to the West Coast to attend the Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts. Her classmates included the late Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman. She appeared in a San Francisco production of Jenny Kissed Me with Rudy Vallee and later the Broadway revue Misguided Tour. In 1961 in Pennsylvania, she played Agnes Gooch in a production of Auntie Mame. It was her portrayal of Agnes in the play that would lead Ruth Buzzi to create her character Gladys Ormphby, made famous by appearances on Laugh-In.
In the Sixties she was the voice of Granny Goodwitch on the Saturday morning cartoon Linus the Lionhearted. She was part of the cast of the television special Laugh-In that aired on September 9 1967. The special proved successful enough that it led to the TV series Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, which debuted on January 22 1968. Ruth Buzzi remained on the show for its entire run. In many sketches she played Gladys Ormphby opposite Tyrone F. Horneigh, played by Arte Johnson. She was a regular on both The Entertainers and The Steve Allen Comedy Hour (the latter of which led to her being cast on Laugh-In). For one season she played a recurring character on That Girl. She also guest starred on the talk shows and variety shows The Garry Moore Show, The Steve Allen Show., The John Davidson Show, The Leslie Uggams Show, Life with Linkletter, The Bob Hope Show, The Glen Campbell Gootime Hour, and This is Your Life. She also guest starred on the scripted shows The Monkees, That's Life, In Name Only,. and The Wonderful World of Disney. She was the singing voice of Frou-Frou in the Disney animated feature film The AristoCats. She appeared in Broadway as part of the original cast of Sweet Charity.
In the Seventies Ruth Buzzi continued to appear on Laugh-In. She was the only cast member to appear in the entire run of the show besides Dan Rowan, Dick Martin, and Gary Owens. She voiced Gladys and Arte Johnson voiced Tyrone on the Saturday morning cartoon Baggy Pants & the Nitwits later in the decade. She also starred on the Saturday morning, live-action sitcom The Lost Saucer opposite Jim Nabors. She played various roles on Whatever Turns You On and provided additional voices on The Plastic Man Comedy Adventure Show. She guest starred on The Dean Martin Show, Night Gallery; Here's Lucy; Love, American Style; Losta Luck!; ABC Afternoon Specials; Emergency!; Medical Center; You Can't Do That on Television; and CHiPs. She appeared in the movies Freaky Friday (1976), Record City (1977), The North Avenue Irregulars (1979), The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again (1979), The Villain (1979), and Skatetown USA (1979). She provided for the animated feature films The Rescuers (1977) and I Go Pogo (1980).
In the Eighties she provided voices for the animated TV shows Alvin & the Chipmunks, Paw Paws, The Berenstain Bears, and Pound Puppies. She guest starred on the shows Alice; Aloha Paradise; Trapper John, M.D.; Gun Shy; Days of Our Lives; Masquerade; George Burns Comedy Week; Down to Earth; Check It Out; Life with Lucy; The Love Boat; Kids Incorporated; Saved by the Bell; and The Munsters Today. She appeared in the movies The Being (1981), Chu Chu and the Philly Flash (1981), Surf II (1983), Bad Guys (1986), Dixie Lanes (1988), Up Your Alley (1989), My Mom's a Werewolf (1989), Wishful Thinking (1990), and Diggin' Up Business (1990).
In 1993 Ruth Buzzi began appearing on Sesame Street as Ruthie the shopkeeper. She was a regular voice on the animated series Cro, The Pink Panther, and The Savage Dragon. She provided additional voices on the animated show The Addams Family. She guest starred on the shows They Came from Outer Space, The New Adam-12, Out of This World, Lucky Luke, Major Dad, The Jamie Foxx Show, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Diagnosis Murder, and 7th Heaven. She appeared in the movies Botte di Natale (1994), The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland (1999), and Nothing But the Truth (2000).
In the Naughts she continued to appear on Sesame Street. She guest starred on the shows Passions and Come on Over. She appeared in the movie Fallen Angels (2006). She would later appear in the movies Glenn's Gotta Go (2020) and One Month Out (2021).
Ruth Buzzi was very funny woman who possessed an incredible amount of talent. On Laugh-In alone she played a wide array of character. In addition to the frumpy, old lady Gladys, she also played silent film star Laverne Blossom, gossip columnist Busy Buzzi, the overly friendly prostitute Kim Hither, and drunkard Doris Swizzle (the wife of drunkard Leonard Swizzle, played by Dick Martin). As much of an impact as she had on the show, Ruth Buzzi's career went much further than Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. In The Monkees episode "A Coffin Too Frequent"she played the wealthy, elderly Mrs. Weatherspoon. On That Girl she played Pete Peterson, a friend of main character Ann Marie (Marlo Thomas) who was also trying to break into show business. Over the years she was a voice on many animated series, both as a regular and as a guest. On Linus the Lionhearted she voiced the occasional opponent of Sugar Bear, Granny Goodwitch. She was Mama Bear on The Bearenstain Bears. Ruth Buzzi brought joy to her many fans, playing a wide variety of roles throughout her careers. She will not be forgotten.
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