Jean Stapleton

Born: 1923-01-19

Jean Stapleton was born Jeanne Murray in Manhattan, New York City, to Marie A. (Stapleton), an opera singer, and Joseph Edward Murray, a billboard advertising salesman. Her paternal grandparents were Irish. She was a cousin of actress Betty Jane Watson. Other relatives in show business were her uncle, Joseph E. Deming, a vaudevillian; and her brother Jack Stapleton, a stage actor. She graduated from Wadleigh High School, NYC, in 1939, and attended Hunter College. She worked as a secretary before becoming an actress. Stapleton made her stage debut at the Greenwood Playhouse, Peaks Island, Maine, in the summer of 1941, and her New York stage debut in "The Corn Is Green" (1948). She appeared on Broadway in the musicals "Damn Yankees" (1955) and "Bells Are Ringing" (1956), and later repeated her roles in the movie versions (Damn Yankees (1958) and Bells Are Ringing (1960)). Her other Broadway roles included the original companies of "Rhinoceros" (1961) and "Funny Girl" (1964). Stapleton also played Abby Brewster in the 1986-87 revival of "Arsenic and Old Lace".


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as Birdie Conrad
Released: 1998-12-18

Book superstore magnate, Joe Fox and independent book shop owner, Kathleen Kelly fall in love in...

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Don't See

Klute

as Goldfarb’s Secretary
Released: 1971-06-23

A high-priced call girl is forced to depend on a reluctant private eye when she is stalked by a...

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Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World

as Mrs. Jenkins (voice)
Released: 1998-08-04

When news of John Smith's death reaches America, Pocahontas is devastated. She sets off to...

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Michael

as Pansy Milbank
Released: 1996-12-25

Tabloid reporters are sent by their editor to investigate after the paper recieves a letter from...

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Dead Man's Folly

as Ariadne Oliver
Released: 1986-01-08

During a murder hunt game at a country house, to which Hercule Poirot is invited as an "expert",...

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Bells Are Ringing

as Sue
Released: 1960-06-23

Ella Peterson works in the basement office of Susanswerphone, a telephone answering service. She...

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The Last Laugh

as Self
Released: 2016-04-18

Feature documentary about humor and the Holocaust, examining whether it is ever acceptable to...

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Cold Turkey

as Mrs. Wappler
Released: 1971-02-19

Reverend Brooks leads the town in a contest to stop smoking for a month, But some tobacco...

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The Trial

as Landlady (uncredited)
Released: 1993-06-18

Joseph K. awakes one morning, to find two strange men in his room, telling him he has been...

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Damn Yankees

as Sister Miller
Released: 1958-09-26

Film adaptation of the George Abbott Broadway musical about a Washington Senators fan who makes...

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Up the Down Staircase

as Sadie Finch
Released: 1967-06-28

Sylvia, a novice schoolteacher, is hired to teach English in a high school, but she’s met with...

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The Muppets Go Hollywood

as Self
Released: 1979-05-16

Kermit the Frog throws a glamorous party at the Cocoanut Grove nightclub to celebrate the...

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Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme

as Mother Goose
Released: 1990-05-19

Set in the mythical world of Rhymeland, Gordon Goose returns home to discover that his mom has...

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Something Wild

as Shirley Johnson
Released: 1961-12-23

A young rape victim tries desperately to pick up the pieces of her life, only to find herself at...

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Tail Gunner Joe

as Mrs. DeCamp
Released: 1977-02-06

Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin accuses prominent people of Communist sympathies in order...

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Like Mother Like Son: The Strange Story of Sante and Kenny Kimes

as Irene Silverman
Released: 2001-05-20

The real-life case based on the horrific crimes of Sante and Kenny Kimes, the mother and son duo...

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Pursuit of Happiness

as Lorrraine
Released: 2001-01-17

An advertising executive fails to realize that the woman of his dreams is his best friend since...

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Pursuit of Happiness

as Lorraine
Released: 2001-01-17

An advertising executive fails to realize that the woman of his dreams is his best friend since...

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The Buddy System

as Mrs. Price
Released: 1984-05-04

A school truant officer uncovers a young boy's attempt to fake his residential address and...

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Aunt Mary

as Mary Dobkin
Released: 1979-12-05

The true-life drama about a handicapped Baltimore woman living on welfare who organized a...

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A Matter of Sex

as Irene Wallin
Released: 1984-01-01

Dramatization of the true story of the so-called Willmar Eight, a group of Minnesota bank...

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Cinderella

as Fairy Godmother
Released: 1985-08-14

An oppressed young woman finds happiness when she secretly attends the royal ball.

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You Can't Take it With You

as Penny Sycamore
Released: 1979-05-16

Emmy winner Jean Stapleton and Academy Award winner Art Carney star in the Pulitzer...

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Isabel's Choice

as Isabel Cooper
Released: 1981-12-16

When the boss she helped climb the corporate ladder is forced into early retirement, a widowed...

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The Habitation of Dragons

as Lenora Tolliver
Released: 1992-09-08

Two brothers of totally different natures live in a small town in Texas. Since the death of...

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Angel Dusted

as Betty Eaton
Released: 1981-02-11

Cautionary anti-drug film based on a true story about the effects on Jean Stapleton and Arthur...

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Fire in the Dark

as Henry Dutton
Released: 1991-07-01

A 75-year old widow with battles herself as she struggles with being a burden to those she...

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Gonzo Presents Muppet Weird Stuff

as Self
Released: 1985-07-09

Gonzo hosts this collection of some of the weirdest moments from The Muppet Show at his trailer...

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Bury Me in Niagara

as Mildred
Released: 1993-10-31

When the controlling mother (Jean Stapleton) of Martin Mallory (Geraint Wyn Davies) dies,...

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Lily Dale

as Mrs. Coons
Released: 1996-06-09

In 1910, 19-year-old Horace Robedaux, still bitter toward his stepfather, goes to Houston to be...

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Baby

as Byrd
Released: 2000-10-08

A couple finds a baby on their doorstep with a note asking them to temporarily keep it. They...

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Jack and the Beanstalk

as The Giantess
Released: 1983-09-08

Imaginative and creative Jack seeks adventure while trying to provide for himself and his...

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Chance of a Lifetime

as Mrs. Dunbar
Released: 1998-03-29

Irreverent freelance investigative reporter Tom Maguire hits rock bottom when bigot editor in...

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The Television Revolution Begins: "All in the Family" Is On the Air

as Self
Released: 2009-06-09

DVD featurette documenting the success of "All in the Family".

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Those Were the Days: The Birth of "All in the Family"

as Self
Released: 2009-06-09

DVD featurette documenting the beginnings of "All in the Family"

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Funny Ladies: A Portrait of Women Cartoonists

as Narrator
Released: 1991-06-05

Profiles on the creative processes of Dale Messick, Cathy Guisewite, Nicole Hollander, and Lynda...

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The Mike Douglas Show

as Self
First aired: 1961-12-11

The Mike Douglas Show is an American daytime television talk show hosted by Mike Douglas that...

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My Three Sons

as uncredited
First aired: 1960-09-29

A widower and aeronautical engineer named Steven Douglas raises three sons with the help of his...

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Robert Montgomery Presents

as uncredited
First aired: 1950-01-30

Robert Montgomery Presents is an American dramatic television series which was produced by NBC...

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The Dick Cavett Show

as Self - Guest
First aired: 1968-06-06

The Dick Cavett Show has been the title of several talk shows hosted by Dick Cavett on various...

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The Philco Television Playhouse

as Bus Girl
First aired: 1948-10-03

The Philco Television Playhouse is an American anthology series that was broadcast live on NBC...

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Saturday Night Live

as Self - Cameo (uncredited)
First aired: 1975-10-11

A late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels. The...

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Everybody Loves Raymond

as Aunt Alda
First aired: 1996-09-13

Ray Barone is a successful sportswriter living on Long Island with his wife Debra, daughter...

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The Love Boat

as uncredited
First aired: 1977-09-24

Passengers who search for romantic nights aboard a beautiful ship travelling to tropical or...

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The Carol Burnett Show

as Self - Guest / Various Characters
First aired: 1967-09-11

The Carol Burnett Show is an American variety/sketch comedy television show starring Carol...

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Tony Awards

as Self - Host
First aired: 1956-04-01

The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award,...

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Tony Awards

as Self - Presenter
First aired: 1956-04-01

The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award,...

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The Electric Company

as uncredited
First aired: 1971-10-25

The Electric Company is an educational American children's television series that was produced...

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Touched by an Angel

as Emma
First aired: 1994-09-21

Monica, an angel, is tasked with bringing guidance and messages from God to various people who...

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Dennis the Menace

as uncredited
First aired: 1959-10-04

This 1959-1963 television situation comedy series follows the lives of the Mitchell family,...

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All in the Family

as Edith Bunker
First aired: 1971-01-12

Archie Bunker, a working class bigot, constantly squabbles with his family over the important...

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Great Performances

as Helen
First aired: 1971-01-28

The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse...

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Archie Bunker's Place

as uncredited
First aired: 1979-09-23

Archie Bunker's Place is an American sitcom originally broadcast on the CBS network, conceived...

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The Patty Duke Show

as uncredited
First aired: 1963-09-18

The Patty Duke Show is an American sitcom which ran on ABC from September 18, 1963 to April 27,...

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Grace Under Fire

as uncredited
First aired: 1993-09-29

Grace Kelly is a tough woman with kids to raise. A recently divorced recovering alcoholic, Grace...

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Scarecrow and Mrs. King

as uncredited
First aired: 1983-10-03

Scarecrow and Mrs. King is an American television series that aired from October 3, 1983, to May...

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Beakman's World

as Beakman's Mom
First aired: 1992-09-12

Beakman's World is an educational children's television show. The program is based on the...

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Caroline in the City

as uncredited
First aired: 1995-09-21

Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran on the NBC television network. It...

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The Ray Bradbury Theater

as uncredited
First aired: 1985-05-21

A Canadian-produced fantastic anthology series scripted by famed science-fiction author Ray...

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Dr. Kildare

as Nurse Whitney
First aired: 1961-09-27

The story of a young intern in a large metropolitan hospital trying to learn his profession,...

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Naked City

as Marilyn Konish
First aired: 1958-09-30

Naked City is a police drama series which aired from 1958 to 1963 on the ABC television network....

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Naked City

as Mrs. Trellis
First aired: 1958-09-30

Naked City is a police drama series which aired from 1958 to 1963 on the ABC television network....

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Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In

as Self
First aired: 1967-09-09

An American sketch comedy television program hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin.

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The Muppet Show

as Self - Special Guest Star
First aired: 1976-09-05

Go behind the curtains as Kermit the Frog and his muppet friends struggle to put on a weekly...

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Faerie Tale Theatre

as The Giantess
First aired: 1982-09-11

A live-action children's television anthology series retelling popular fairy tales.

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Faerie Tale Theatre

as The Fairy Godmother
First aired: 1982-09-11

A live-action children's television anthology series retelling popular fairy tales.

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Route 66

as uncredited
First aired: 1960-10-07

Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America in a Chevrolet...

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The Eleventh Hour

as uncredited
First aired: 1962-10-03

The Eleventh Hour is an American medical drama about psychiatry starring Wendell Corey, Jack...

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Lux Video Theatre

as Teacher
First aired: 1950-10-02

Lux Video Theatre is an American anthology series that was produced from 1950 until 1959. The...

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The Defenders

as Mrs. Larsen
First aired: 1961-09-16

The Defenders is an American courtroom drama series . It starred E. G. Marshall and Robert Reed...

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Intimate Portrait

as Self
First aired: 1993-11-14

Intimate Portrait is a biographical television series on the Lifetime Television cable network...

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Murphy Brown

as uncredited
First aired: 1988-11-14

Murphy Brown (Candice Bergen) is a recovering alcoholic who returns to the fictional...

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The Rosie O'Donnell Show

as Self
First aired: 1996-06-10

The Rosie O'Donnell Show was an American daytime television talk show hosted and produced by...

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Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories

as Narrator (Voice)
First aired: 1992-04-21

Actress Shelley Duvall presents charming animated versions of some of the most beloved...

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Hallmark Hall of Fame

as Mary Dobkin
First aired: 1951-12-24

Hallmark Hall of Fame is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark...

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E! True Hollywood Story

as uncredited
First aired: 1996-08-21

E! True Hollywood Story is an American documentary series on E! that deals with famous Hollywood...

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Style & Substance

as Gloria Utley
First aired: 1998-01-05

Style & Substance was a television situation comedy that premiered on CBS July 22, 1998. The...

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Cher

as Self
First aired: 1975-02-16

Emmy Award nominated American variety show.

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Bagdad Cafe

as uncredited
First aired: 1990-03-30

Bagdad Cafe is an American television sitcom starring Whoopi Goldberg and Jean Stapleton. The...

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