Cynthia Szigeti (October 26, 1949 – August 10, 2016) was an American comic actress and

acting teacher An acting coach or drama coach is a teacher who trains performers – typically film, television, theatre, and musical theatre actors – and gives them advice and mentoring to enable them to improve their acting and dramatic performances, prepar ...

, known for her work at the

Groundlings The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniques ...

, an

improv Improv may refer to: *Improvisation, an act of spontaneous invention ** Improvisational theatre (includes improvisational comedy) **Musical improvisation Musical improvisation (also known as musical extemporization) is the creative activity of i ...

and

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and ...

troupe and school in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, and the

ACME Comedy Theatre The ACME Comedy Theatre is an American sketch comedy and improvisational theater located near Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, on La Brea near Wilshire's "Miracle Mile".Bronstad, Amanda (2002)Laughing matter: M.D. Sweeney has turned a bug fo ...

. Her students included

Adam Carolla Adam Carolla (born May 27, 1964) is an American radio personality, comedian, actor and podcaster. He hosts '' The Adam Carolla Show'', a talk show distributed as a podcast which set the record as the "most downloaded podcast" as judged by ''Guin ...

Will Forte Orville Willis Forte IV ( ; born June 17, 1970) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer. Forte is known for being a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' (2002–2010), a recurring character on the show leading to a feature film ada ...

Lisa Kudrow Lisa Valerie Kudrow ( ; born July 30, 1963) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She rose to fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004), which has since been named one of the greatest television cha ...

Joel McHale Joel Edward McHale (born November 20, 1971) is an American actor, comedian, and television host. He is best known for hosting ''The Soup'' (2004–2015) and his role as Jeff Winger on the NBC sitcom ''Community'' (2009–2015). He has performed ...

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for having hosted late-night talk shows for almost 28 years, beginning with '' Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' ( ...

and

Julia Sweeney Julia Anne Sweeney (born October 10, 1959) is an American actress, comedian, and author, who gained fame as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1990 to 1994. She played Mrs. Keeper in the film '' Stuart Little'' and voiced Brittany in ...

. Her professional acting credits included ''

National Lampoon's European Vacation ''National Lampoon's European Vacation'' is a 1985 American comedy film directed by Amy Heckerling and written by Robert Klane. The second film in National Lampoon's ''Vacation'' film series, it stars Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Dana Hill, ...

'', as well as roles in ''

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. It aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, over nine seasons and List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It stars Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld ( ...

'' and ''

Curb Your Enthusiasm ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' is an American television sitcom produced and broadcast by HBO since October 15, 2000, and created by Larry David, who stars as a semi-fictionalized version of himself. It follows David's life as a semi-retired televis ...

''.

Early life

Szigeti went to Fairfax High School in

. She later received her

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor or actress who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a bro ...

from the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

(UCLA). Szigeti began her career by waitressing at the Pitchell Players improv club after graduating from UCLA. Her work at the club inspired her to enroll in improv classes at

The Groundlings The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniq ...

, the L.A. improv school, for $45 a month. Szigeti took the classes before successfully auditioning to become a full-time member of The Groundlings' main comedy troupe.

Acting and improv career

Cynthia Szigeti eventually left The Groundlings for

The Comedy Store The Comedy Store is an American comedy club opened in April 1972. It is located in West Hollywood, California, at 8433 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. An associated club is located in La Jolla, San Diego, California. History The Comedy S ...

, a

comedy club A comedy club is a venue—typically a nightclub, bar, hotel, casino, or restaurant—where people watch or listen to performances, including stand-up comedians, improvisational comedians, impersonators, impressionists, magicians, ventriloquis ...

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most prominent gay villages ...

, where she joined The Comedy Store Players alongside

Taylor Negron Brad Stephen "Taylor" Negron (August 1, 1957 – January 10, 2015) was an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his role as Milo in the 1991 buddy cop action comedy film '' The Last Boy Scout''. Early life Negron was born in Glendale, ...

Martin Short Martin Hayter Short (born March 26, 1950) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, and writer. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 2019 Short became an Officer of the Order of Canada. H ...

and

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and comed ...

. In a 2009 interview, Szigeti spoke of the differences between performing within the comedy troupes of The Groundlings versus The Comedy Club, saying, "At the Groundlings it was all about

wig A wig is a head or hair accessory made from human hair, animal hair, or synthetic fiber. The word wig is short for periwig, which makes its earliest known appearance in the English language in William Shakespeare's ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona' ...

rehearsal A rehearsal is an activity in the performing arts that occurs as preparation for a performance in music, theatre, dance and related arts, such as opera, musical theatre and film production. It is undertaken as a form of practising, to ensu ...

s and

costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people. The term also was tradition ...

s. At the Store, it was immediate, topical and edgy." During the 1980s, Szigeti returned to The Groundlings to run the school. She also continued to teach improv, as well as directing and overseeing the training of its acting teachers. In addition to her work at The Groundlings, she also co-founded the

in 1989, as well as taught at Keep It Real Acting. Szigeti's improv students at The Groundlings and the ACME Comedy Theatre included

Cheri Oteri Cheryl Ann Oteri () is an American actress and comedian. A nominee of a Primetime Emmy Award, Oteri is best known for her tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 2000. Early life The daughter ...

and

. Actress

, who studied under her at The Groundlings during the 1980s, called Szigeti "the best thing that happened, on so many levels" and credited her with changing her perspective on acting. In a 2012 interview with the

Archive of American Television The Interviews: An Oral History of Television (formerly titled the Archive of American Television) is a project of the nonprofit Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, that records interviews with notable ...

, Kudrow spoke of her experience studying under Szigeti, "She spoke to me in a way that no on else could have. I wasn't going to be OK with a touchy, feely, everyone sort of moan, crazy acting exercise thing. She was, 'There's no time in improv to work up to an emotion! You guys just need to have it mmediately It's all pretend anyway!'." It was Szigeti who encouraged Kudrow to create her first "dumb" or "airhead" character, which Kudrow had initially resisted. Outside of improv, Szigeti accumulated her own numerous film and television credits, which spanned several decades. Her film credits included '' I Never Promised You a Rose Garden'' (1977), '' You Light Up My Life'' (1977), ''

The Gong Show Movie ''The Gong Show Movie'' is a 1980 American slapstick film starring, co-written and directed by Chuck Barris, the host and creator of the popular game show with the same name. Plot The film shows a fictional week in the life of Chuck Barris as th ...

'' (1980), '' Repo Man'' (1984), ''

The Wrong Guys ''The Wrong Guys'' is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Danny Bilson Plot Thirty years ago Louie Anderson was the leader of a group of Cub Scouts, Den 7: "The Owl Patrol", consisting of himself, neurotic Richard, ladies man Belz, smooth t ...

'' (1988) and '' Up Close and Personal'' (1996). Her

television sitcom Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising ...

roles included ''

WKRP in Cincinnati ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson and was based upon his experiences working ...

'', ''

Gimme a Break! ''Gimme a Break!'' is an American television sitcom created by Mort Lachman and Sy Rosen, that aired on NBC for six seasons from October 29, 1981, to May 12, 1987. The series starred Nell Carter as the housekeeper for a widowed police chief ...

'', '' Married... with Children'', '' Who's the Boss?'', ''

Empty Nest ''Empty Nest'' is an American television sitcom that aired for seven seasons on NBC from October 8, 1988, to April 29, 1995. The series, which was created as a spin-off of '' The Golden Girls'' by creator and producer Susan Harris, starred R ...

'', ''

The Norm Show ''The Norm Show'' is an American television sitcom that ran on ABC from March 24, 1999, to April 6, 2001. Starting in September 1999, the show's title was shortened to ''Norm''. The series starred Norm Macdonald, who created the series with Bru ...

'', ''

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the sh ...

'' and ''

''. Most notably, Szigeti played

Jerry Seinfeld Jerome Allen Seinfeld ( ; born April 29, 1954) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He is best known for playing a semi-fictionalized version of himself in the sitcom ''Seinfeld'', which he created and wrote with Larr ...

's former high school girlfriend in a 1991 episode of Seinfeld called " The Library". In the episode, Seinfeld tracks down Szigeti's character to use her as an

alibi An alibi (from the Latin, '' alibī'', meaning "somewhere else") is a statement by a person, who is a possible perpetrator of a crime, of where they were at the time a particular offence was committed, which is somewhere other than where the crim ...

for a borrowed book which he never returned to the

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress) ...

Death and legacy

Szigeti died from

idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), or (formerly) fibrosing alveolitis, is a rare, progressive illness of the respiratory system, characterized by the thickening and stiffening of lung tissue, associated with the formation of scar tissue. It is ...

at her home in Los Angeles on August 10, 2016, at the age of 66.

Gunnar Todd Rohrbacher Gunnar Todd Rohrbacher (born May 4, 1968) is an American acting coach, writer, director, producer, actor and comedian. He founded Actors Comedy Studio in Los Angeles, California, and is a staff writer for '' Backstage West''. He is a graduate of ...

, an acting coach, founder of Actors Comedy Studio, and another of Szigeti's former students wrote a tribute to Szigeti, noting, "She was definitely intimidating, unapologetic, shockingly intelligent, generous, joyful and demanding... She would tell stories that included names like

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award from four nominations, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, the Ceci ...

and

Helen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (born Helen Lydia Mironoff; born 26 July 1945) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdo ...

. If you studied with her, your life was changed, and it was that simple."

Filmography

*''

The Big Bus ''The Big Bus'' is a 1976 American disaster film, disaster comedy film starring Joseph Bologna and Stockard Channing, and directed by James Frawley. A satire, spoof of the disaster movie genre (which was popular at the time), it follows the mai ...

'' (1976) - Bus Passenger #21 *''American Raspberry'' (1977) - Dawn *'' I Never Promised You a Rose Garden'' (1977) - Nurse *'' You Light Up My Life'' (1977) - Cousin *''

'' (1980) - Diner Doll Sophie *''What's Up, Hideous Sun Demon'' (1983) - Nurse Darlene *'' Repo Man'' (1984) - Deidre, U.F.O. Lady *''

Johnny Dangerously ''Johnny Dangerously'' is a 1984 American crime comedy film, and a parody of 1930s crime/gangster movies. It was directed by Amy Heckerling. The film stars Michael Keaton as an honest, goodhearted man who turns to a life of crime to finance hi ...

'' (1984) - Mrs. Capone *''

'' (1985) - Mrs. Froeger *''

Hunk Hunk may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hunk'' (film), a 1987 comedy movie starring John Allen Nelson, Steve Levitt, James Coco, and Avery Schreiber * ''The Hunks'' a reality television series * Hunk, a movie character, the Scarecrow's Kan ...

'' (1987) - Chachka *''

'' (1988) - Spa Matron *'' 976-EVIL'' (1988) - Female Operator *'' A Sinful Life'' (1989) - Mrs. Crow *'' Midnight Ride'' (1990) - Mrs. Egan *''

Where the Day Takes You ''Where the Day Takes You'' is a 1992 American crime drama thriller film directed by Marc Rocco and starring Dermot Mulroney, Sean Astin, Balthazar Getty, Lara Flynn Boyle, Ricki Lake, James LeGros, Laura San Giacomo, David Arquette, Christian S ...

'' (1991) - Counselor *''

Man of the Year __NOTOC__ Person of the Year or Man of the Year is an award given to an individual by any type of organization. Most often, it is given by a newspaper or other news outlet to annually recognize a public person. Such awards have typically been awa ...

'' (1995) - Betty Levy *'' Up Close and Personal'' (1996) - Focus Group Member #6 *''Nobody Knows Anything!'' (2003) - Jimmy's Mother *''Diamonds and Guns'' (2008) - Mrs. Antignatti *''

Married With Children ''Married... with Children'' is an American television sitcom created by Michael G. Moye and Ron Leavitt for Fox. Originally broadcast from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997, it is the longest-lasting live-action sitcom that aired on Fox. ''Marri ...

'' Season 07. Episode 16. - Bertha

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Szigeti, Cynthia 1949 births 2016 deaths Acting teachers American film actresses American television actresses UCLA Film School alumni 21st-century American women