ToughPigs is saddened to learn that stage and screen actress Linda Lavin has passed away at the age of 87.
After performing with the improvisational troupe Compass Players, Lavin gained fame on Broadway in the 1960’s in such shows as It’s a Bird… It’s a Plane… It’s Superman, and Last of the Red Hot Lovers, the latter of which she earned a Tony nomination for in 1970. Setting her sights on Hollywood, Lavin moved into television, making recurring appearances as Detective Janice Wentworth on Barney Miller. She’s perhaps best known for playing the title character in the sitcom Alice, which ran from 1976 to 1985. For her work on the show, Lavin was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1979. After the show ended, she returned to Broadway in the Neil Simon play Broadway Bound, for which she finally won a Tony in 1987.
Given her theatrical and comedy background, Lavin was natural fit with the Muppets. She first worked with them when she guest starred in a season four episode of The Muppet Show, where she leads a salute to Kermit the Frog when the cast is led to believe that it’s his birthday. Five years later, she would encounter Kermit in a different way, playing the doctor who examines him post-accident in The Muppets Take Manhattan. The way she concludes Kermit has amnesia is brilliantly delivered. Without her, would Mr. Enrico Tortellini of Passaic, New Jersey be so beloved by Muppet fans?
For the laughter and music she gave us, we’re grateful she got to play with the Muppets.
Click here to help us remember Linda Lavin on the ToughPigs Discord!
by Matthew Soberman – Matthew@ToughPigs.com
