Connie Sawyer (born Rosie Cohen; November 27, 1912 – January 21, 2018) was an American stage, film, and television actress, affectionately nicknamed "The Clown Princess of Comedy". She had over 140 film and television credits to her name, but was best known for her appearances in Pineapple Express, Dumb and Dumber, and When Harry Met Sally.... At the time of her death at age 105, she was the oldest working actress in Hollywood, with a career spanning 85 years, and was the oldest member of the Screen Actors Guild and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Early life Connie Sawyer was born as Rosie Cohen on November 27, 1912 in Pueblo, Colorado, to Orthodox Jewish parents. Her father, Samuel Cohen, and mother, Dora Inger, were from Romania. Both of her parents came from the same village in Romania, but her mother arrived first in the United States. When she was 7, the family moved to Oakland, California, where her father opened an army-navy store.Connie Sawyer: The world’s eldest working actress, Jewishjournal.com; accessed January 22, 2018.

Professional career Sawyer's mother loved showbusiness and encouraged Sawyer to learn singing and dancing, and entered her into talent competitions as a child. In her first competition, a song and dance routine, at the age of 8, she won third prize and was given a stack of pies. She attended Roosevelt High School in Oakland and was the first woman to be senior class president. Following graduation, Sawyer won a radio contest (first place this time) which came with a chance to perform on a radio variety show in San Francisco titled “Al Pearce and His Gang,” a show which gave her the opportunity to develop her own comedy routine.

At the age of 19, Sawyer moved to New York and performed in nightclubs and vaudeville theaters. Sawyer and a few friends worked their way across the country (literally), staying in each city along the way and performing for several weeks. Once in New York she met Sophie Tucker, who connected Sawyer with a comedy writer, and she began to travel with her show. In the 1950s she began to appear on television, including The Milton Berle Show and The Jackie Gleason Show.

In the late 1950s, agent Lillian Small, who worked for Frank Sinatra, saw Sawyer in the Broadway show A Hole in the Head, playing "Miss Wexler". Sinatra later optioned the rights for a film version and hired Sawyer to reprise her role in the 1959 film production, which starred Sinatra, Edward G. Robinson, and Eleanor Parker. Sawyer continued to appear regularly on television, in such series as The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Laverne & Shirley, The Rockford Files, Hawaii Five-O, Dynasty, Murder, She Wrote, Home Improvement, Seinfeld, Boy Meets World, Will & Grace, Welcome Back, Kotter, ER, How I Met Your Mother, and Ray Donovan. In 2007, Sawyer appeared in the HBO series Tell Me You Love Me with Jane Alexander; however, Sawyer, later expressed regret as she considered the show to be pornographic. In 2012, the year of her centenary, she appeared on 2 Broke Girls, and, in recognition of her birthday, she was a guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Past 100 years of age, she appeared on television in NCIS: Los Angeles (2013), and, opposite Zooey Deschanel, in New Girl (2014), as "the Oldest Woman in the World". In 2014, she also appeared in two films: Lovesick and the short film Entanglement.

Autobiography In September 2017, Sawyer self-published an autobiography, I Never Wanted to Be a Star — and I Wasn't, describing her life in Hollywood.

Later life For 12 years, Sawyer lived at the Motion Picture & Television Fund’s Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital, a residential complex for entertainment industry retirees in Los Angeles, where she remained an active member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, continuing to watch all Oscar-nominated films before placing her votes each year.

Personal life and death Sawyer was married to film distributor Marshall Schacker for ten years, later separating. They had two daughters together, Lisa and Julie.

Sawyer suffered a heart attack and later died at her home at the Motion Picture & Television Fund’s retirement community in Woodland Hills, California on January 21, 2018, aged 105.Connie Sawyer, Late-Blooming Comic Actress, Dies at 105

Filmography Year Title Role Notes1959 A Hole in the Head Miss Wexler1961 Ada Alice Sweet1966 The Last of the Secret Agents? FlorenceUncreditedFor Pete's Sake! 1967 The Way West Mrs. McBee1969 True Grit Talkative woman at hangingUncredited Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice WaitressUncredited1971 Five Desperate Women Mrs. BrownTV movie1972 Evil Roy Slade Aggie PotterTV movieThe Strangers in 7A Mrs. LaytonTV movie1975 The Man in the Glass Booth Mrs. Levi1977 Oh, God! Mrs. Green1978 Foul Play Screaming Lady1979 Fast Break Mom...And Justice for All Gitel1984 The Rosebud Beach Hotel Carlotta1985 Hot Chili Mrs. Houston1987 Nights in White Satin Martha1989 Far From Home Viney HuntWhen Harry Met Sally... Documentary Couple #11990 Blue Desert Elderly ladyThe End of Innocence GrandmaThe Bonfire of the Vanities Ruskin Family member1992 The Opposite Sex and How to Live with Them Waitress from Hell1994 Roseanne and Tom: Behind the Scenes Motel ClerkTV movieMurphy Brown Woman on ElevatorDumb and Dumber Elderly lady1995 Scorpion Spring Diner Waitress1996 It Came From Outer Space II Dave's World (TV series) Mrs. Otis Alice BondurantTV movie Season 4 Episode 81998Out of Sight Old Elevator LadyWhere's Marlowe? Skip's mother1999 Becker Mrs. Yudelson Episode: Partial Law2000 That 70's Show Aunt Pearl Episode: Kelso's Serenade2002 The Trip Barbara BaxterStaring at the Sun GraceShort2003 View from the Top Grandma StewartSomething's Gotta Give Lady at the market2004 Promised Land Hazel2005 Complete Guide to Guys Senior Wife2006 Relative Strangers Old Lady2006ERSecond Old LadyEpisode: "Twenty-One Guns"2007 Kiss the Bride Aunt Minnie2008 Pineapple Express Faye Belogus2009 The Office Nana Scott Episode: "Dream Team"2010 Watch Out for Slick Gussie2014 Lovesick Nana BebeEntanglement RoseShort, (final film role)

See also List of centenarians (actors, filmmakers and entertainers)

References

Becker (TV series)

External links

Connie Sawyer at Find a Grave Connie Sawyer (Aveleyman)