Alice Elizabeth Drummond (née Ruyter, May 21, 1928 – November 30, 2016) was an American actress. A veteran

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

performer, she was nominated in 1970 for the

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance as Mrs. Lee in ''The Chinese'' by

Murray Schisgal Murray Joseph Schisgal (November 25, 1926 – October 1, 2020) was an American playwright and screenwriter. Life and career Schisgal was born in Brooklyn, New York City. He was the son of Jewish immigrants, Irene (Sperling), a bank clerk, and Ab ...

. She may be best known as Alice, the librarian, in the opening scenes of the 1984 horror-comedy '' Ghostbusters''.

Early life

Alice Elizabeth Ruyter was born in Pawtucket,

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

in 1928, the daughter of Sarah Irene (née Alker), a secretary, and Arthur Ruyter, an auto mechanic. She graduated from Pembroke College (the women's college of

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

) in 1950.

Career

Drummond played Nurse Jackson on the TV series ''

Dark Shadows ''Dark Shadows'' is an American gothic soap opera that aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966, to April 2, 1971. The show depicted the lives, loves, trials, and tribulations of the wealthy Collins family of Collinspo ...

'' in 1967 and was a regular on the CBS soap opera, '' Where the Heart Is'', on which she originated the role of Loretta Jardin, which she played until the series ended in 1973. She also appeared in a short-term role on another CBS

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio drama ...

, ''

As the World Turns ''As the World Turns'' (often abbreviated as ''ATWT'') is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created ''As the World Turns'' as a sister show to her other s ...

''. She appeared in guest roles on television series including '' Kate & Allie'', ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering ...

'', ''

Boston Legal ''Boston Legal'' is an American legal drama and comedy drama television series created by former lawyer and Boston native David E. Kelley, produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for ABC. The series aired from October 3, 200 ...

'' and '' Yes, Dear''. One of Drummond's notable movie roles is a librarian haunted and frightened by a

poltergeist In ghostlore, a poltergeist ( or ; German for "rumbling ghost" or "noisy spirit") is a type of ghost or spirit that is responsible for physical disturbances, such as loud noises and objects being moved or destroyed. Most claims or fictional desc ...

at the beginning of the feature film '' Ghostbusters''. She portrayed a temporarily animated catatonic patient in 1990's '' Awakenings''. She also played a

senior citizen Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...

in the movie '' Furry Vengeance''. Other notable appearances include '' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'', ''

To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar ''To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar'' is a 1995 American road comedy film directed by Beeban Kidron and starring Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze, and John Leguizamo as three New York City drag queens who embark on a road trip. Its ...

'' and ''

Pieces of April ''Pieces of April'' is a 2003 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Peter Hedges. Marking Hedges' directorial debut, the film stars Katie Holmes, Derek Luke, Sean Hayes, Alison Pill, Oliver Platt and Patricia Clarkson. The film ...

''.

Personal life and death

Alice Ruyter married Paul Drummond in 1951. They resided in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. They separated in 1975 and divorced in 1976. She died on November 30, 2016, from complications of a fall at her home in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

, New York City, at age 88.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Drummond, Alice 1928 births 2016 deaths Actresses from Rhode Island Pembroke College in Brown University alumni American film actresses American soap opera actresses American stage actresses American television actresses People from Pawtucket, Rhode Island 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Accidental deaths from falls Accidental deaths in New York (state)