Teri Garr, Comic Star Of ‘Tootsie’ & ‘Young Frankenstein,’ Dies At 79

Oscar-nominated actress Teri Garr died at 79 on Tuesday. Her publicist, Heidi Schaeffer, shared that Garr died “surrounded by family and friends.” Garr was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) over two decades ago. 

In a screen career that spanned over 40 years, Garr is known for her role as Sandy in the romantic comedy Tootsie, and Inga in 1974’s film Young Frankenstein.

Garr was born on December 11, 1944, in Ohio. Her family shortly moved to Los Angeles. Garr attended Cal State Northbridge and moved to New York City to study acting. Initially a go-go and ballet dancer, she shimmies in the background of multiple Elvis Presley features and the filmed concert The T.A.M.I. Show. Her first official speaking role was in Jack Nicholson’s Head, a friend she connected with in acting class. She would go on to become a regular guest on The Sonny and Cher Show and work with many famous directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Robert Altman, among more.

Garr achieved a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her performance in Tootsie, and the film was later adapted into a musical for Broadway, which premiered in 2019. 

In her 2005 memoir Speedbumps: Flooring It Through Hollywood, Garr remembered her awards experience. “I was proud,” she wrote. “The Academy not only knew I existed, they thought I was good!”

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An influential actress who comedians such as Tina Fey have credited as an inspiration, Garr appeared in a variety of films and TV shows from the 1970s through the 1990s. She first revealed her MS diagnosis in a 2002 interview with CNN, in which she shared, “I think everybody is scared and frightened when they hear something like that…That’s because there’s so much — you know, there’s not a lot of information out there about it. And a lot of people don’t know that it’s not that bad. I mean, I’m going on with my life.”

Garr went on to become an outspoken advocate for the disabled community and traveled across the country, having conversations with medical professionals and patients to spread awareness.

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