Jean Stapleton
Born January 19, 1923 (Age: 103)
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Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
Biography
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".
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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Filmography
The Last Laugh
2016
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as Self
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Age: 93
Those Were the Days: The Birth of "All in the Family"
2009
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as Self
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Age: 86
The Television Revolution Begins: "All in the Family" Is On the Air
2009
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as Self
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Age: 86
Baby
2000
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as Byrd
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Age: 77
You've Got Mail
1998
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as Birdie Conrad
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Age: 75
Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World
1998
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as Mrs. Jenkins (voice)
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Age: 75
Chance of a Lifetime
1998
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as Mrs. Dunbar
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Age: 75
Michael
1996
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as Pansy Milbank
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Age: 73
Lily Dale
1996
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as Mrs. Coons
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Age: 73
Bury Me in Niagara
1993
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as Mildred
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Age: 70
The Trial
1993
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as Landlady (uncredited)
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Age: 70
The Habitation of Dragons
1992
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as Lenora Tolliver
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Age: 69
Fire in the Dark
1991
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as Henry Dutton
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Age: 68
Funny Ladies: A Portrait of Women Cartoonists
1991
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as Narrator
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Age: 68
All in the Family: 20th Anniversary Special
1991
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as
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Age: 68
Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme
1990
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as Mother Goose
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Age: 67
Cinderella
1985
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as Fairy Godmother
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Age: 62
Faerie Tale Theatre: Cinderella
1985
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as Fairy Godmother
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Age: 62
Gonzo Presents Muppet Weird Stuff
1985
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as Self
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Age: 62
Something's Afoot
1982
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as Miss Tweed
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Age: 59
Isabel's Choice
1981
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as Isabel Cooper
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Age: 58
No Image
Good Evening Captain
1981
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as Self
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Age: 58
Angel Dusted
1981
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as Betty Eaton
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Age: 58
Acts of Love and Other Comedies
1973
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as Gina's Mother
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Age: 50
Klute
1971
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as Goldfarb’s Secretary
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Age: 48
Cold Turkey
1971
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as Mrs. Wappler
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Age: 48
Something Wild
1961
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as Shirley Johnson
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Age: 38
Bells Are Ringing
1960
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as Sue
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Age: 37
Damn Yankees
1958
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as Sister Miller
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Age: 35