Eddi-Rue McClanahan was an American actress and comedian best known for her roles on television sitcoms, including Vivian Harmon on Maude, Aunt Fran Crowley on Mama's Family, and Blanche Devereaux on The Golden Girls, and its spin-off series The Golden Palace.
32 Facts About Rue McClanahan
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Eddi-Rue McClanahan was born in Healdton, Oklahoma, on February 21,1934.
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Rue McClanahan was the daughter of Dreda Rheua-Nell, a beautician, and William Edwin "Bill" McClanahan, a building contractor.
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Rue McClanahan was raised Methodist and was of Irish and Choctaw ancestry.
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Rue McClanahan grew up in Ardmore, Oklahoma; she graduated from Ardmore High School, where she acted in school plays and won the gold medal in oration.
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Rue McClanahan began acting off-Broadway in New York City in 1957, but did not make her Broadway debut until 1969, when she portrayed Sally Weber in the original production of John Sebastian and Murray Schisgal's play with music, Jimmy Shine, with Dustin Hoffman in the title role.
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Once her role on Another World ended, Rue McClanahan joined the cast of the CBS soap opera Where the Heart Is, in which she played Margaret Jardin.
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Rue McClanahan first worked with actress Bea Arthur on the sitcom Maude.
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Arthur played Maude Findlay, and Rue McClanahan played Maude's best friend Vivian Cavender, who eventually married Maude's next-door neighbor Dr Arthur Harmon.
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On Mama's Family, Rue McClanahan portrayed an uptight spinster sister to Mama Thelma Harper.
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Rue McClanahan received four Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for her work on the show, winning the award in 1987.
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Rue McClanahan appeared as a leader of Al-Anon in a 1970s informational film called Slight Drinking Problem, in which Patty Duke played the enabling and eventually self-empowered wife of an alcoholic.
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Rue McClanahan appeared as Ruth Rempley, the wife of a swinger couple in an episode of All in the Family in 1972.
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Rue McClanahan appeared in the Walter Matthau-Jack Lemmon comedy Out to Sea.
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Rue McClanahan made guest appearances on Murder, Rue McClanahan Wrote and Newhart.
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Rue McClanahan voice-acted in cartoons, voicing Scarlett in the 1997 Fox Christmas special Annabelle's Wish.
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Rue McClanahan played the role of Steve's grandmother in the Blue's Clues video Blue's Big Treasure Hunt.
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Rue McClanahan played a biology teacher in 1997's Starship Troopers.
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Rue McClanahan voiced the role of Bunny in a 2007 episode of King of the Hill, "Hair Today, Gone Today".
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On Broadway, Rue McClanahan replaced Tammy Grimes as "The Visitor from New York" in the Neil Simon comedy California Suite from April 4,1977, until the show closed on July 2 of that same year.
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Rue McClanahan chose not to continue with the production and was replaced by Polly Bergen for the Broadway performances.
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Rue McClanahan played the role for eight months until January 8,2006.
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Rue McClanahan was replaced by Carol Kane on January 10,2006.
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Rue McClanahan accepted the award with co-stars Bea Arthur and Betty White.
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Rue McClanahan's final acting role was in the cable series Sordid Lives on the Logo network, which premiered July 23,2008, playing Peggy Ingram.
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An animal rights advocate and vegetarian, Rue McClanahan was one of the first celebrity supporters of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
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Rue McClanahan supported Alley Cat Allies, a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to transforming communities to protect and improve the lives of cats, and appeared in a public service announcement for the organization in early 2010.
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Rue McClanahan was a supporter of gay rights, including advocating for same-sex marriage in the United States.
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In June 1997, Rue McClanahan was diagnosed with breast cancer, for which she was treated successfully.
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In March 2010, fellow Golden Girls cast member Betty White reported on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that Rue McClanahan was doing well and that her speech had returned to normal.
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Co-star Betty White told Entertainment Tonight that Rue McClanahan was a "close and dear friend".
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Rue McClanahan was survived by her sixth husband, Morrow Wilson ; her son from her first marriage, Mark Bish ; her sister, Melinda Lou Rue McClanahan ; and other family including her niece, actress and author Amelia.