Dody Goodman (October 28, 1914 – June 22, 2008) was an American
character actress. She played the mother of the title character in the television series ''
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
''Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman'' is an American satirical soap opera that aired in daily weeknight syndication from January 1976 to July 1977. The series follows the titular Mary Hartman, an Ohio housewife attempting to cope with various bizarr ...
'', her distinctive high-pitched voice announcing the show's title at the beginning of each episode. She was a frequent guest on ''
The Tonight Show
''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 2010� ...
'' in the 1950s, and cast member of ''
The Mary Tyler Moore Hour'' in 1979. Aside from film and television appearances, she also voiced Miss Miller in the television series ''
Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three ...
'' and the film spin-off ''
The Chipmunk Adventure''.
Early life
Born Dolores Goodman in
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...
, she was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dexter Y. Goodman. She had a sister, Rose, and a brother, Dexter Jr.
[ ] She attended North High School in Columbus, Ohio (now
Columbus International High School
Columbus North High School is a public high school building located on the north side of Columbus, Ohio at 100 E. Arcadia Avenue. It is part of the Columbus City School District. The school was closed in 1979 due to declining enrollment.
In D ...
) and is a member of the Hall of Fame at North High School. Goodman attended
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Chart ...
, where she studied dramatics, and two ballet schools—the
School of American Ballet
The School of American Ballet (SAB) is the most renowned ballet school in the United States. School of American Ballet is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in Ne ...
and the Metropolitan Opera Ballet School.
[
]
Stage
Goodman's Broadway debut came in 1941. She gained a measure of newspaper column space for her dancing solos in such Broadway musicals as '' High Button Shoes'' (1947), and ''Wonderful Town
''Wonderful Town'' is a 1953 musical with book written by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and music by Leonard Bernstein. The musical tells the story of two sisters who aspire to be a writer and ...
'' (1953). In 1955, she stopped the show in 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 tha ...
's ''Shoestring Revue'' with the novelty song "Someone's Been Sending Me Flowers." She also headlined Off-Broadway in the Jerry Herman
Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre.
One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyrici ...
musical revue ''Parade'' in 1960 with Charles Nelson Reilly
Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was ...
. She played the role of Princess Winifred the Woebegone in the 1961 revival of ''Once Upon a Mattress
''Once Upon a Mattress'' is a musical comedy with music by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer, and book by Jay Thompson, Dean Fuller, and Marshall Barer. It opened off-Broadway in May 1959, and then moved to Broadway. The play was writte ...
'', and Dora in the 1962 revival of '' Fiorello!'' She returned to Broadway in 1974 to appear in '' Lorelei'' with Carol Channing
Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921 – January 15, 2019) was an American actress, singer, dancer and comedian who starred in Broadway theatre, Broadway and film musicals. Her characters usually had a fervent expressiveness and an easily id ...
.
Goodman was described as "the darling of dinner theaters, regional theaters, summer stock, you name it." In 1976, she toured in a revival of '' George Washington Slept Here''.[ ]
Television
Adopting the guise of a fey airhead, Goodman was good for a few off-the-wall quotes whenever she submitted to an interview. She came to the attention of nighttime talkshow host Jack Paar
Jack Harold Paar (May 1, 1918 – January 27, 2004) was an American talk show host, author, radio and television comedian, and film actor. He was the second host of ''The Tonight Show'' from 1957 to 1962. ''Time'' magazine's obituary of Paar repo ...
who, after becoming enchanted with her ditzy persona and seemingly spontaneous malaprops, invited her to become a semi-regular on ''The Tonight Show
''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 2010� ...
''.
As Goodman's fame grew, she became difficult to handle on the show, and Paar was not happy with her upstaging habits. She would 'top' his jokes. Commenting on another guest one evening, Paar quipped "Give them enough rope," "And they'll skip," ad-libbed Goodman, brightly. Dropped summarily by Paar in 1958, Goodman spent the next decade showing up on other talk programs, game shows and summer stock as a " professional celebrity".
Following ''Mary Hartman'', Goodman was a regular cast member on '' The Mary Tyler Moore Hour'' on CBS in 1979. Her career gained momentum with regular appearances on TV's ''Diff'rent Strokes
''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackson ...
'', '' Search for Tomorrow'', ''Punky Brewster
''Punky Brewster'' is an American sitcom television series about a young girl (Soleil Moon Frye) being raised by a foster parent (George Gaynes). The show ran on NBC from September 16, 1984, to March 9, 1986, and again in syndication from Octo ...
'', and as aunt Mavis in 1982 on ''Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
'', movie roles in '' Grease'', '' Grease 2'' and '' Splash'', and cartoon voiceover work as Miss Miller, The Chipettes' guardian, on ''Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three ...
'' and its movie '' The Chipmunk Adventure''.
Her distinctive voice was once described as sounding like "a tweetie pie cartoon bird strangling on peanut butter".[
Her last television role was a cameo in the talk show satire, "Jim Davison's Broadway Party" on the local NYC ]Manhattan Neighborhood Network
Manhattan Neighborhood Network (MNN) is an American non-profit organization that broadcasts programming on five public-access television cable TV stations in Manhattan, New York City. The country’s largest community media center, MNN operates t ...
channel in 2007.
Modeling
Goodman posed for photographs by Cris Alexander
Cris Alexander (born Allen Smith, January 14, 1920 – March 7, 2012) was an American actor, singer, dancer, designer, and photographer.
Early life and education
Cris Alexander was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1920. He began using the name ...
in the Patrick Dennis
Edward Everett Tanner III (18 May 1921 – 6 November 1976), known by the pseudonym Patrick Dennis, was an American author. His novel '' Auntie Mame: An irreverent escapade'' (1955) was one of the bestselling American books of the 20 ...
mock-biography
A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or c ...
''First Lady,'' as Martha Dinwiddie's sister Clytie, who in the story married a European Count Przyzplätcki (pron. "splatsky") and perished on the . She also helped produce another book with Alexander's photography entitled ''Women, Women, Women!''
Recognition
In 1958, Goodman was nominated for an Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
for Best Continuing Performance (Female) in a Series by a Comedienne, Singer, Hostess, Dancer, M.C., Announcer, Narrator, Panelist, or any Person who Essentially Plays Herself. Her work in a revival of ''Ah, Wilderness!
''Ah, Wilderness!'' is a comedy by American playwright Eugene O'Neill that premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on October 2, 1933. It differs from a typical O'Neill play in its happy ending for the central character, and depiction of a ...
'' in 1984 earned her a nomination for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play.
Death
Goodman died of natural causes on June 22, 2008, at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center in Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from po ...
, after having lived at the Lillian Booth Actors Home
The Lillian Booth Actors Home of The Actors Fund is an American assisted-living facility, in Englewood, New Jersey. It is operated by the Actors Fund, a nonprofit umbrella charitable organization that assists American entertainment and performi ...
since October 2007.
Filmography
References
External links
*
*
*
*
Dody Goodman, Veteran Actress, dead at 93
*
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodman, Dody
1914 births
2008 deaths
American television actresses
American film actresses
American voice actresses
American video game actresses
American Christian Scientists
Actresses from Columbus, Ohio
20th-century American actresses
Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe (television) winners
American stage actresses
School of American Ballet alumni