Anne Ramsey
Encyclopedia
Anne Ramsey was an American stage, television, and film actress
. She is probably most famous for her roles as Mama Fratelli in The Goonies
and as Mrs. Lift, Danny DeVito
's mother, in Throw Momma from the Train
.
, the daughter of Eleanor (née Smith), the former national treasurer of the Girl Scouts of America
, and Nathan Mobley, an insurance executive. Her mother was a descendant of the Pilgrims (William Brewster
), and a sister of U.S. Ambassador David S. Smith
. Ramsey was raised in Great Neck, New York
and Greenwich, Connecticut
. She attended Bennington College
where she became interested in theatre
. She performed in several Broadway productions in the 1950s and married actor Logan Ramsey
in 1954. They moved to Philadelphia, where they formed the Theatre of the Living Arts.
and appeared in such television programs as Little House on the Prairie
, Wonder Woman
and Ironside
. She appeared with her husband in seven films, including her first, The Sporting Club
(1971), and her last, Meet the Hollowheads
(1989).
In 1988, for her performance in Throw Momma from the Train
(1987) with Billy Crystal
and Danny DeVito
, Ramsey was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture. She won her second Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first being for The Goonies
.
In February 1988, she guest-starred on an episode of ALF
that aired six months before her death. She also appeared in six films released in the two years after her death.
in 1984. In 1988, Ramsey's cancer returned. She died in August at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital
in Woodland Hills, California
.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
. She is probably most famous for her roles as Mama Fratelli in The Goonies
The Goonies
The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
and as Mrs. Lift, Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito
Daniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...
's mother, in Throw Momma from the Train
Throw Momma from the Train
Throw Momma from the Train is a 1987 American black comedy film. It was inspired by the 1951 Alfred Hitchcock thriller Strangers on a Train, which also plays a role in the film...
.
Early life
Anne Ramsey was born Anne Mobley in Omaha, NebraskaOmaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
, the daughter of Eleanor (née Smith), the former national treasurer of the Girl Scouts of America
Girl Scouts of the USA
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It describes itself as "the world's preeminent organization dedicated solely to girls". It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912 and was organized after Low...
, and Nathan Mobley, an insurance executive. Her mother was a descendant of the Pilgrims (William Brewster
William Brewster (Pilgrim)
Elder William Brewster was a Mayflower passenger and a Pilgrim colonist leader and preacher.-Origins:Brewster was probably born at Doncaster, Yorkshire, England, circa 1566/1567, although no birth records have been found, and died at Plymouth, Massachusetts on April 10, 1644 around 9- or 10pm...
), and a sister of U.S. Ambassador David S. Smith
David S. Smith
David Shiverick Smith is a former U.S. ambassador to Sweden.Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, the son of Anna and Floyd Monroe Smith. He was appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower as a Trustee of the National Cultural Center. Smith is a Board member of the Council of American Ambassadors...
. Ramsey was raised in Great Neck, New York
Great Neck, New York
The term Great Neck is commonly applied to a peninsula on the North Shore of Long Island, which includes the village of Great Neck, the village of Great Neck Estates, the village of Great Neck Plaza, and others, as well as an area south of the peninsula near Lake Success and the border of Queens...
and Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 61,171. It is home to many hedge funds and other financial service companies. Greenwich is the southernmost and westernmost municipality in Connecticut and is 38+ minutes ...
. She attended Bennington College
Bennington College
Bennington College is a liberal arts college located in Bennington, Vermont, USA. The college was founded in 1932 as a women's college and became co-educational in 1969.-History:-Early years:...
where she became interested in theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
. She performed in several Broadway productions in the 1950s and married actor Logan Ramsey
Logan Ramsey
Logan Carlisle Ramsey, Jr. was an American character actor of television and film for nearly 50 years. Largely a TV actor, he appeared on, among others: The Edge of Night, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, Hawaii Five-O, M*A*S*H, Charlie's Angels, Mork and Mindy, Knight Rider and Night...
in 1954. They moved to Philadelphia, where they formed the Theatre of the Living Arts.
Career
In the 1970s, Anne Ramsey began successful Hollywood career in character rolesCharacter actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
and appeared in such television programs as Little House on the Prairie
Little House on the Prairie
Little House is a series of children's books by Laura Ingalls Wilder that was published originally between 1932 and 1943, with four additional books published posthumously, in 1962, 1971, 1974 and 2006.-History:...
, Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
and Ironside
Ironside (TV series)
Ironside is a Universal television series which ran on NBC from September 14, 1967 to January 16, 1975. The show starred Raymond Burr as the wheelchair-using Chief of Detectives, Robert T. Ironside. The character's debut was in a TV-movie on March 28, 1967. The original title of the show in the...
. She appeared with her husband in seven films, including her first, The Sporting Club
The Sporting Club
The Sporting Club is the 1969 debut novel of author Thomas McGuane.-Plot summary:The Sporting Club chronicles the friendship and rivalry of Vernor Stanton, an unstable patrician iconoclast, and the protagonist, Stanton's lifelong friend, James Quinn...
(1971), and her last, Meet the Hollowheads
Meet the Hollowheads
Meet the Hollowheads is a 1989 movie written and directed by special-effects makeup artist Thomas R. Burman. It stars Juliette Lewis, John Glover, Richard Portnow, and Joshua John Miller...
(1989).
In 1988, for her performance in Throw Momma from the Train
Throw Momma from the Train
Throw Momma from the Train is a 1987 American black comedy film. It was inspired by the 1951 Alfred Hitchcock thriller Strangers on a Train, which also plays a role in the film...
(1987) with Billy Crystal
Billy Crystal
William Edward "Billy" Crystal is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian and film director. He gained prominence in the 1970s for playing Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom Soap and became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in the critical and box office successes...
and Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito
Daniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...
, Ramsey was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture. She won her second Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress, the first being for The Goonies
The Goonies
The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
.
In February 1988, she guest-starred on an episode of ALF
ALF (TV series)
ALF is an American science fiction sitcom that originally aired on NBC from 1986 to 1990, created by Paul Fusco. The title character was Gordon Shumway, a friendly extraterrestrial nicknamed ALF , who crash lands in the garage of the suburban middle-class Tanner family.The series starred Max...
that aired six months before her death. She also appeared in six films released in the two years after her death.
Death
Ramsey's somewhat slurred speech, a trademark of her later performances, was caused in part from having had some of her tongue and her jaw removed during surgery for esophageal cancerEsophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma . Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus...
in 1984. In 1988, Ramsey's cancer returned. She died in August at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital
Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital
The Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital is a retirement community, with individual cottages, and a fully licensed, acute-care hospital, located at 23388 Mulholland Drive in Woodland Hills, California...
in Woodland Hills, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Filmography
- Meet the HollowheadsMeet the HollowheadsMeet the Hollowheads is a 1989 movie written and directed by special-effects makeup artist Thomas R. Burman. It stars Juliette Lewis, John Glover, Richard Portnow, and Joshua John Miller...
(1989) - Homer & Eddie (1989)
- Another ChanceAnother Chance (film)-Plot:A womanizing soap opera star John Ripley meets the beautiful Jackie. She is a client of his agent and best friend Russ Wilder. After enjoying a great relationship with her, he cheats and then realizes that he hits rock bottom. He then tries to get back what he lost.-Principal cast:...
(1989) - ScroogedScroogedScrooged is a 1988 American comedy film, a modernization of Charles Dickens' novella, A Christmas Carol. The film was produced and directed by Richard Donner, and the cinematography was by Michael Chapman. The screenplay was written by Mitch Glazer and Michael O'Donoghue...
(1988) - Good Old Boy: A Delta Boyhood (1988)
- Dr. HackensteinDr. HackensteinDr. Hackenstein is a 1988 comedy horror film written and directed by Richard Clark and distributed by Troma Entertainment. After the death of his wife, Dr...
(1988) - Throw Momma from the TrainThrow Momma from the TrainThrow Momma from the Train is a 1987 American black comedy film. It was inspired by the 1951 Alfred Hitchcock thriller Strangers on a Train, which also plays a role in the film...
- Momma (1987) - WeedsWeeds (film)Weeds is a 1987 American drama film about a prison inmate who writes a play that catches the attention of a visiting reporter. The film was directed by John D...
(1987) - Love at StakeLove at StakeLove at Stake is a 1987 comedy film, directed by the creator of the TV series The Ed Sullivan Show and director of The Werewolf of Woodstock John C. Moffitt, based on a screenplay by Lanier Laney and Terry Sweeny. It stars Patrick Cassidy and Kelly Preston, with Barbara Carrera, Bud Cort, Dave...
(1987) - Deadly FriendDeadly FriendDeadly Friend is a 1986 science fiction horror film directed by Wes Craven. It is based on the novel entitled Friend by Diana Henstell, which was adapted for the screen by Bruce Joel Rubin.-Plot:...
(1986) - Say Yes (1986)
- The GooniesThe GooniesThe Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
(1985) - The Murder of Sherlock Holmes (1984)
- Getting Physical (1984)
- The Seduction of Gina (1984)
- The Killers (1984)
- Herndon (1983)
- I Want to Live! (1983)
- National Lampoon's Class ReunionNational Lampoon's Class ReunionNational Lampoon's Class Reunion is a 1982 comedy film, directed by Michael Miller and written by John Hughes...
- Mrs Tabazooski (1982) - Marian Rose White (1982)
- A Small Killing (1981)
- Any Which Way You CanAny Which Way You Can* Beers To You** Written by Steve Dorff , John Durrill , Sandy Pinkard and Snuff Garrett ** Sung by Ray Charles and Clint Eastwood* Any Which Way You Can...
(1980) - White MamaWhite MamaWhite Mama is a 1980 television film drama directed by Jackie Cooper and adapted from the novel of the same name by Robert C. S. Downs.It stars Bette Davis in the title role, with Ernest Harden Jr., Eileen Heckart, Virginia Capers, Anne Ramsey, Lurene Tuttle and Vincent Schiavelli.Davis portrays...
(1980) - The Black Marble (1980)
- When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder? is a play by Mark Medoff.The setting is Foster's Diner, a New Mexico rest stop that lost most of its clientele when a new highway bypass opened. Employees include restless cook Stephen , mousy waitress Angel, and their no-nonsense boss Clark...
(1979) - The Gift of Love (1978)
- Goin' SouthGoin' SouthGoin' South is an American western-comedy film, directed by and starring Jack Nicholson. The 1978 film also starred Mary Steenburgen in her movie debut and included Christopher Lloyd, John Belushi , Richard Bradford, Veronica Cartwright, Danny DeVito and Ed Begley, Jr.At the beginning, the...
(1978) - Fun with Dick and JaneFun with Dick and Jane (1977 film)Fun with Dick and Jane is a 1977 American film starring George Segal and Jane Fonda as an upper-middle-class couple who lose their jobs, fall through the cracks of society in the United States and then become high-class thieves to get back all they lost. The comedy was directed by Ted Kotcheff and...
(1977) - Wonder WomanWonder Woman (TV series)Wonder Woman is an American television series based on the DC Comics comic book superhero of the same name. Starring Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince and Lyle Waggoner as Steve Trevor, the show originally aired from 1975 to 1979....
episode (1977) - The Boy in the Plastic BubbleThe Boy in the Plastic BubbleThe Boy in the Plastic Bubble is a 1976 made-for-TV movie inspired by the lives of David Vetter and Ted DeVita, who lacked effective immune systems. It stars John Travolta, Glynnis O'Connor, Diana Hyland, Robert Reed, and P.J. Soles...
(1976) - Dawn: Portrait of a Teenage RunawayDawn: Portrait of a Teenage RunawayDawn: Portrait of a Teenage Runaway is an NBC made-for-television movie. It premiered on September 27, 1976. The movie is about a 15-year-old girl named Dawn Wetherby who runs away from home to Hollywood, California and becomes a prostitute to support herself. Dawn finds herself taken under the...
(1976) - From Noon till ThreeFrom Noon Till ThreeFrom Noon Till Three is an American film released in 1976 by United Artists. It stars Charles Bronson and Jill Ireland . It was written and directed by Frank D. Gilroy, based on his novel.-Plot:...
(1976) - The Law (1974)
- For Pete's SakeFor Pete's Sake (film)For Pete's Sake is a 1974 American screwball comedy film directed by Peter Yates. The screenplay by Stanley Shapiro and Maurice Richlin chronicles the misadventures of a Brooklyn housewife...
(1974) - Rhinoceros (1974)
- The Third Girl from the Left (1973)
- Up the SandboxUp the SandboxUp The Sandbox is a 1972 American comedy film directed by Irvin Kershner.Paul Zindel's screenplay, based on the novel by Anne Roiphe, focuses on Margaret Reynolds, a young New York City wife and mother who, neglected by her husband and bored with her daily existence, slips into increasingly bizarre...
(1972) - The New CenturionsThe New CenturionsThe New Centurions is a 1972 crime drama film based on the novel by policeman turned author Joseph Wambaugh.It stars George C. Scott, Stacy Keach, Scott Wilson, Jane Alexander, Erik Estrada and James Sikking and was directed by Richard Fleischer....
(Uncredited, 1972) - The Sporting Club (1971)