Lisa Gerritsen is an American former child actor, later a computer systems consultant/networking specialist, and more recently, possibly, as an independent relocation coordinator and facilities project manager. She currently lives with her husband John Rustan (married 2000) and son in Northern California. She is most famous for her role as Bess, the independent-minded daughter of Phyllis Lindstrom on The Mary Tyler Moore Show

The Mary Tyler Moore Show

The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977...

; she later carried the role over into the spinoff Phyllis

Phyllis (TV series)

Phyllis is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from September 11, 1975 to March 13, 1977.Created by Ed Weinberger and Stan Daniels. it was the second spin-off series from The Mary Tyler Moore Show . The show starred Cloris Leachman as Phyllis Lindstrom, who was previously Mary Richards'...

.
She was born Lisa Orszag, and is the granddaughter of child actor and screenwriter True Boardman, and the great-granddaughter of silent film

Silent film

A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...

 actors True Boardman

True Boardman

True Boardman was an American film actor of the silent era. He appeared in 137 films between 1911 and 1919 before falling victim to the 1918 flu pandemic.-True Boardman:...

 and Virginia True Boardman

Virginia True Boardman

Virginia True Boardman was an American actress of the silent era.Born Margaret Shields in Fort Davis, Texas, she began her theatrical career in 1906, as Virginia Eames and went on to appear in 52 films between 1911 and 1936...

. Her acting career began when she was eight years old. Encouraged by her mother and grandfather, and after running the gauntlet of numerous casting calls, she landed her first professional role in an episode of The Doris Day Show

The Doris Day Show

The Doris Day Show is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS network from September 1968 until September 1973. In addition to showcasing Doris Day, the show is remembered for its many abrupt format changes over the course of its five-year run...

in 1968. After The Doris Day Show, Gerritsen had guest-star or cameo appearances in several television shows including The Odd Couple

The Odd Couple

The Odd Couple is a 1965 Broadway play by Neil Simon, followed by a successful film and television series, as well as other derivative works and spin offs, many featuring one or more of the same actors. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates, one neat and uptight, the other more easygoing and...

, Bonanza

Bonanza

Bonanza is an American western television series that both ran on and was a production of NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series and still continues to air in syndication. It centers on the...

, The Courtship of Eddie's Father

The Courtship of Eddie's Father

The Courtship of Eddie's Father is an American television sitcom based on the 1963 movie of the same name, which was based on the book written by Mark Toby...

, The Virginian

The Virginian (TV series)

The Virginian is an American Western television series starring James Drury and Doug McClure, which aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971 for a total of 249 episodes. Filmed in color, The Virginian became television's first 90-minute western series...

and Family Affair

Family Affair

Family Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to September 9, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do civil engineer and bachelor Bill Davis as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis' traditional...

.

She was also cast in several episodes of Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....

, one of which helped her to land a regular role in the 1969 NBC comedy series My World and Welcome to It

My World and Welcome to It

My World and Welcome to It was a US-made half-hour sitcom based on the humor and cartoons of James Thurber. It starred William Windom as John Monroe, a Thurber-like writer and cartoonist who works for a magazine that closely resembles The New Yorker, called The Manhattanite...

, which starred William Windom

William Windom (actor)

William Windom is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his work on television, including several episodes of The Twilight Zone; playing the character of Glen Morley, a congressman from Minnesota like his own great-grandfather and namesake in The Farmer's Daughter; the character of John...

 and Joan Hotchkis

Joan Hotchkis

Joan Hotchkis is an American stage, screen and television actress, writer and performance artist....

. The show was based on the cartoons and comedy of author James Thurber

James Thurber

James Grover Thurber was an American author, cartoonist and celebrated wit. Thurber was best known for his cartoons and short stories published in The New Yorker magazine.-Life:...

.

On the December 28, 1970, Gunsmoke episode entitled "Jenny," Lisa played a 10-year-old who leaves St. Louis

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

 after the death of her mother to find her outlaw father, Lucas Pritchard, portrayed by Steve Ihnat

Steve Ihnat

Steve Ihnat was a Czechoslovakian-born actor and director. He immigrated to Canada when he was five years old, and later became a United States citizen.-Early life:...

, in Dodge City

Dodge City, Kansas

Dodge City is a city in, and the county seat of, Ford County, Kansas, United States. Named after nearby Fort Dodge, the city is famous in American culture for its history as a wild frontier town of the Old West. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,340.-History:The first settlement of...

. Though reconciled with the father, she must leave for boarding school while he serves a prison sentence. "Why do people make mistakes," she asks her father in the script. "So they can be forgiven," he replies.

In 1970, she was cast in as Bess Lindstrom, daughter of landlord Phyllis Lindstrom (Cloris Leachman

Cloris Leachman

Cloris Leachman is an American actress of stage, film and television. She has won eight Primetime Emmy Awards—more than any other performer—and one Daytime Emmy Award...

) in The Mary Tyler Moore Show

The Mary Tyler Moore Show

The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977...

, for which she received critical acclaim. Bess was a precocious child whose mother believed in progressive parenting (Bess always called Phyllis by her first name, read Phyllis' books on child rearing, and was educated on sexuality, etc.). Gerritsen returned in the role in the sequel Phyllis

Phyllis (TV series)

Phyllis is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from September 11, 1975 to March 13, 1977.Created by Ed Weinberger and Stan Daniels. it was the second spin-off series from The Mary Tyler Moore Show . The show starred Cloris Leachman as Phyllis Lindstrom, who was previously Mary Richards'...

(1975-77).

In addition to her television roles, she also was cast in several movies. She made her first big-screen appearance in Airport playing the role of Libby Bakersfeld. She also appeared as Linda in The War Between Men and Women

The War Between Men and Women

The War Between Men and Women is a 1972 slapstick live-cartoon comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Barbara Harris, and Jason Robards.It is based on the writings of humorist James Thurber, and was released in 1972 by Cinema Center Films. Like many other films in the Cinema Center catalog, it has long...

, which starred Jack Lemmon

Jack Lemmon

John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III was an American actor and musician. He starred in more than 60 films including Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, Mister Roberts , Days of Wine and Roses, The Great Race, Irma la Douce, The Odd Couple, Save the Tiger John Uhler "Jack" Lemmon III (February 8, 1925June...

 and Barbara Harris

Barbara Harris (actress)

Barbara Harris is an American actress who was a Broadway stage star and later became a film actress. She appeared in such films as A Thousand Clowns, Plaza Suite, Nashville, Family Plot, Freaky Friday, Peggy Sue Got Married, and Grosse Pointe Blank...

. Lemmon's character was loosely based on the life of author James Thurber

James Thurber

James Grover Thurber was an American author, cartoonist and celebrated wit. Thurber was best known for his cartoons and short stories published in The New Yorker magazine.-Life:...

.

Television career

Main Filmography

Recurring roles:| My World and Welcome to It My World and Welcome to It My World and Welcome to It was a US-made half-hour sitcom based on the humor and cartoons of James Thurber. It starred William Windom as John Monroe, a Thurber-like writer and cartoonist who works for a magazine that closely resembles The New Yorker, called The Manhattanite...  (1969) | Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970) | Phyllis Phyllis (TV series) Phyllis is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from September 11, 1975 to March 13, 1977.Created by Ed Weinberger and Stan Daniels. it was the second spin-off series from The Mary Tyler Moore Show . The show starred Cloris Leachman as Phyllis Lindstrom, who was previously Mary Richards'...  (1975) | Guest star roles: Bonanza Bonanza Bonanza is an American western television series that both ran on and was a production of NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series and still continues to air in syndication. It centers on the...  | The Courtship of Eddie's Father The Courtship of Eddie's Father The Courtship of Eddie's Father is an American television sitcom based on the 1963 movie of the same name, which was based on the book written by Mark Toby...    | The Doris Day Show The Doris Day Show The Doris Day Show is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS network from September 1968 until September 1973. In addition to showcasing Doris Day, the show is remembered for its many abrupt format changes over the course of its five-year run...  (1968) | Family Affair Family Affair Family Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to September 9, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do civil engineer and bachelor Bill Davis as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis' traditional...   | Gunsmoke Gunsmoke Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....  | The Virginian The Virginian (TV series) The Virginian is an American Western television series starring James Drury and Doug McClure, which aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971 for a total of 249 episodes. Filmed in color, The Virginian became television's first 90-minute western series...

Film career

Main Filmography

Airport (1970) | The War Between Men and Women The War Between Men and Women The War Between Men and Women is a 1972 slapstick live-cartoon comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Barbara Harris, and Jason Robards.It is based on the writings of humorist James Thurber, and was released in 1972 by Cinema Center Films. Like many other films in the Cinema Center catalog, it has long...  (1972) | A Howling in the Woods (1971) | Locusts (1974) | Mixed Company Mixed Company Mixed Company is a 1974 comedy film starring Barbara Harris....  (1974)

External links

• Eric Zorn

"Desperately seeking Lisa -- or maybe not so desperately", Chicago Tribune, 7 February 2000