Fran Ryan
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Nov 29, 1916
- Died
- Jan 15, 2000 (aged 83)
- Place of birth
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Credits
- 114
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Fran Ryan (November 29, 1916 – January 15, 2000) was an American character actress featured in television and films. She was born in Los Angeles, California.
Fran Ryan began performing at the age of 6, at Oakland's Henry Duffy Theatre, in Northern California. She attended Stanford University for three years, and during World War II was a member of the USO entertaining troops. She performed comedy, singing and acting on stage in California and Chicago but was not to launch her television career for two decades. Her small screen debut came in an episode on Television's Batman, in 1966, followed by a bit part in Beverly Hillbillies. Ryan's best known television role was as Aggie Thompson in The Doris Day Show (in its first incarnation plotline theme), though the gig only lasted a few months. This role was cut short because she was offered the 'replacement' role on the hit series Green Acres as Doris Ziffel from 1969-1971. Fran was to replace Barbara Pepper, who by then was in poor health. Sadly, Miss Pepper died just five months later of heart ailments, on July 15, 1969.
Ryan also starred on the long running TV Western series Gunsmoke during its twentieth and final season as Miss Hannah (Cobb). In 1987, she reprised the role of Miss Hannah in the TV movie Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge.
Fran Ryan played the role of Sister Agatha in the soap opera General Hospital in (1979). She also did voices for cartoons such as Hong Kong Phooey, Mister T and Little Dracula. Fran starred on some TV shows for children like Sigmund and the Sea Monsters in 1975 as Gertrude Grouch, and in 1970s children's show The New Zoo Revue as Ms. Goodbody, the 1980s TV series No Soap, Radio as Mrs. Belmont, the short lived 1980s CBS TV series The Wizard as Tillie Russell from 1986-1987. Her last regular TV role was on The Dave Thomas Comedy Show.
She starred in many feature films, including Flush (1977), Big Wednesday (1978), Take This Job and Shove It (1981), Pale Rider (1985), Chances Are, and in her scene-stealing cameo in 1981's Stripes, as a tortured cab fare to Bill Murray as the cabbie, in the opening scenes of the comedy film.
Ryan made guest appearances on TV shows ranging from Batman, Adam-12, CHiPs, Quantum Leap, Night Court, Baywatch to The Commish.
Fran Ryan was often compared to actress Marjorie Main; they looked similar to one another. Ryan died on January 15, 2000, at age 83. She is buried in the family plots alongside her mother, at the Holy Sepulchre Catholic Cemetery, in Hayward, California.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Fran Ryan, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known for
Filmography
River of Rage: The Taking of Maggie Keene
1993Movie
Hattie Clandell
Suture
1993Movie
Mrs. Lucerne
The Commish
1991TV
Little Dracula
1991TV
Thanksgiving Day
1990Movie
Lois
The New Adam-12
1990TV
Ida Collins
Tiny Toon Adventures
1990TV
Grandma (voice)
The Dave Thomas Comedy Show
1990TV
Archie: To Riverdale and Back Again
1990Movie
Miss Grundy
The Bradys
1990TV
Nick Knight
1989Movie
Jeannie
Baywatch
1989TV
Quantum Leap
1989TV
Dorothy Jaeger
Chances Are
1989Movie
Mavis Talmadge
Out Cold
1989Movie
Arlene
Murphy Brown
1988TV
The Asp
Lucky Stiff
1988Movie
Ma
Empty Nest
1988TV
Mrs. Kramer
Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge
1987Movie
Hannah
Quiet Cool
1986Movie
Ma
The Wizard
1986TV
Tillie Russell
Stewardess School
1986Movie
Fainting Lady
Fuzzbucket
1986Movie
Mrs. Langendorf
Matlock
1986TV
Doris Curtis
The Colbys
1985TV
Amazing Stories
1985TV
Mrs. Abbott
Pale Rider
1985Movie
Ma Blankenship
Rebel Love
1985Movie
Granny Plug
Father of Hell Town
1985Movie
Mother Maggie
The Sure Thing
1985Movie
Lady in Car
Hollywood Wives
1985TV
Nita Carrolle
Murder, She Wrote
1984TV
Rose Mulligan
Highway to Heaven
1984TV
Punky Brewster
1984TV
Brothers
1984TV
Mrs. Murphy
The Return of Marcus Welby, M.D.
1984Movie
Millie Clark
Night Court
1984TV
Ethel La Rue, Miss Crombie
Eyes of Fire
1983Movie
Sister (Calvin's Wife)
Manimal
1983TV
Brainwash
1983Movie
Marie Davis
Mister T
1983TV
Private School
1983Movie
Miss Dutchbok
Ghost Dancing
1983Movie
Judge
Tough Enough
1983Movie
Gert Long
Johnny Belinda
1982Movie
Aunt Aggie McAdam
It Takes Two
1982TV
Life of the Party: The Story of Beatrice
1982Movie
Beatrice's Mother
Matt Houston
1982TV
No Soap, Radio
1982TV
Savannah Smiles
1982Movie
Farmer Wilma
Shoot the Moon
1982Movie
Judge (uncredited)
Falcon Crest
1981TV
Cass
Father Murphy
1981TV
Stripes
1981Movie
Dowager in Cab
The Adventures of Nellie Bly
1981Movie
Mrs. Roman
Americana
1981Movie
Colonel
Foul Play
1981TV
Hill Street Blues
1981TV
Christmas Mountain: The Story Of A Cowboy Angel
1981Movie
Flora
The Long Riders
1980Movie
Mrs. Samuel
When the Whistle Blows
1980TV
Goldie and the Boxer
1979Movie
Ethel
Rocky II
1979Movie
Adrian's Nurse (uncredited)
Taxi
1978TV
Mrs. Elizabeth Weber
The Great Brain
1978Movie
Aunt Bertha
Big Wednesday
1978Movie
Lucy
Straight Time
1978Movie
Cafe Owner
Deadly Game
1977Movie
Frieda Beezly
CHiPs
1977TV
Nancy
Carter Country
1977TV
Panic in Echo Park
1977Movie
Grizzly Adams
1977TV
Gerty
How the West Was Won
1977TV
Liza’s Pioneer Diary
1976Movie
Martha Stedman
Stalk the Wild Child
1976Movie
Ellen Mott
Charlie's Angels
1976TV
Nurse Fager, Belle Asher
The Quest
1976TV
Mag Wood
Family Plot
1976Movie
Registrar Clerk (uncredited)
Good Heavens
1976TV
Laverne & Shirley
1976TV
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman
1976TV
Miss Adeline Jeeter
One Day at a Time
1975TV
Starsky & Hutch
1975TV
Landlady
Long Way Home
1975Movie
Marvis Bidwell
The Apple Dumpling Gang
1975Movie
Mrs. Stockley
Barney Miller
1975TV
Mrs. Hirsch, Homeless Woman
Hong Kong Phooey
1974TV
Devlin
1974TV
Hog Wild
1974Movie
Flora
Sigmund and the Sea Monsters
1973TV
Gertrude
The Waltons
1972TV
The Rookies
1972TV
New Zoo Revue
1972TV
The New Dick Van Dyke Show
1971TV
Dick's mother
Nichols
1971TV
Minnie Dowd
The Million Dollar Duck
1971Movie
Mrs. Purdham (uncredited)
Scandalous John
1971Movie
Farm Woman
Night Gallery
1970TV
The Partridge Family
1970TV
1st Wife
McCloud
1970TV
The Brady Bunch
1969TV
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1969TV
The Bill Cosby Show
1969TV
Mrs. Beal
Marcus Welby, M.D.: A Matter of Humanities
1969Movie
Adam-12
1968TV
Mrs. Killian
The Second Hundred Years
1967TV
Mrs. Sanders
That Girl
1966TV
Batman
1966TV
Chairlady
Mickey One
1965Movie
Homeless Woman (uncredited)
I Dream of Jeannie
1965TV
Switchboard Operator
Green Acres
1965TV
The Front Line
1965Movie
Haughty Customer
Daniel Boone
1964TV
Mrs. Jones
Gunsmoke
1955TV
Mrs. Keller, Hannah