Penny Marshall Biography

Carole Penny Marshall (born October 15, 1943) is an American actress, voice actress, director, and producer. In 1975, after playing several supporting roles on television, Marshall was cast as Laverne DeFazio for a guest appearance on the sitcom Happy Days. Her performance was well received, prompting a spin-off sitcom, Laverne & Shirley. Marshall reprised the DeFazio role for the show's entire run from 1976 until 1983. She was nominated for a Golden Globe award for her performance three times.

She progressed to directing films such as Big (1988), the first film directed by a woman to gross in excess of $100 million at the U.S. box office; Awakenings (1990), which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture; and A League of Their Own (1992). She produced Cinderella Man (2005) and Bewitched (2005), as well as episodes of According to Jim (2009).

Early life

Carole Penny Marshall was born in New York City, New York, in 1943, to Marjorie Irene (ne Ward; 1908-1983), a tap dance teacher who ran the Marjorie Marshall Dance School, and Anthony "Tony" Masciarelli (1906-1999), later Marshall, a director of industrial films and later a producer. She is the sister of actor/director/TV producer Garry Marshall and Ronny Hallin, a television producer. Her birth name, Carole, was selected because her mother's favorite actress was Carole Lombard. Her middle name was selected because her older sister, Ronny, wanting a horse in the Bronx, was saving her pennies; her mother chose the middle name in an attempt to console her.

Her father was of Italian descent, his family having come from Abruzzo, and her mother was of German, English, and Scottish descent; her father changed his last name from Masciarelli to Marshall before Penny was born. Religion played no role in the Marshall children's lives. Garry Marshall was christened Episcopalian, Ronny was Lutheran, and Penny was confirmed in a Congregational Church, because "[Mother] sent us anyplace that had a hall where she could put on a recital. If she hadn't needed performance space, we wouldn't have bothered."

She grew up at 3235 Grand Concourse, the Bronx, a very long street that was also the childhood home of Neil Simon, Paddy Chayefsky, Calvin Klein, and Ralph Lauren. She began her career as a tap dancer at age three, and later taught tap at her mother's dance school. She graduated from Walton High School and attended the University of New Mexico. In 1967, she moved to Los Angeles to join her older brother Garry Marshall, a writer whose credits at the time included TV's The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-1966).

Career

One of her first jobs was for a TV commercial for a beautifying shampoo. She was hired to play a girl with stringy, unattractive hair, and Farrah Fawcett was hired to play a girl with thick, bouncy hair. As the crew was lighting the set, Marshall's stand-in wore a placard that read "Homely Girl" and Fawcett's stand-in wore a placard that said "Pretty Girl". Farrah Fawcett, sensing Marshall's insecurity about her looks, crossed out "Homely" on the Marshall stand-in placard and wrote "Plain". She and another actress Billie Hayes were the only two auditioned for the role of Witchiepoo for H.R. Pufnstuf, produced by Sid and Marty Krofft. Marshall thought that she wasn't right for the part. Hayes got the role.

Marshall appeared as a waitress in a film called 'The Crooked Hearts' 1972. Marshall first gained prominence as a television actress with a recurring guest role of Myrna Turner on The Odd Couple (1971-1975). In Marshall's final appearance as Myrna Turner, Myrna married her boyfriend, Sheldn ("They forgot the 'o' on his birth certificate; legally, it's 'Sheldn'"), played by her then-real-life husband, Rob Reiner, and briefly introduced her brother and sister, Werner Turner and Verna Turner (played by, respectively, Marshall's real-life siblings, Garry and Ronny). Before appearing on The Odd Couple, Marshall was considered to play the role of Gloria Bunker Stivic on All in the Family. She ultimately lost the part to Sally Struthers while her husband, Rob Reiner, was cast as Gloria's husband, Michael "Meathead" Stivic.

In 1974, James L. Brooks and Allan Burns, executive producers of the hit situation comedy, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, cast Marshall as Janice Dreyfuss, sister-in-law to Paul Dreyfuss (played by actor Paul Sand) in the series, Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers. It aired on CBS-TV Saturday nights beginning September 14, 1974, as part of the powerhouse lineup of All in the Family, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Bob Newhart Show, and The Carol Burnett Show. Despite good reviews and decent ratings, it was canceled mid-season. Brooks and Burns, along with studio head Grant Tinker were so impressed with Marshall's comedic talent that the following season, they hired Marshall and actress Mary Kay Place to play Mary Richards' new neighbors (Paula and Sally Jo, respectively) on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, after Mary moved into her new apartment in a high-rise. Then Garry Marshall, creator/part-time writer for Happy Days, cast his sister, Penny, and Cindy Williams to guest on an episode of that show. The installment, titled "A Date with Fonzie", aired on November 11, 1975 and introduced the characters LaVerne DeFazio and Shirley Feeney (played by Marshall and Williams, respectively). In that episode, Laverne and Shirley were a pair of wise-cracking brewery workers, who were dates for Fonzie (played by Winkler) and Richie (played by Howard). The pair were such a hit with the studio audience that Garry Marshall decided to co-create and star them in a hit spin-off, Laverne & Shirley (1976-1983). The characters of Laverne and Shirley also appeared in five more episodes of Happy Days. In 1982 at the beginning of the eighth season, Williams left Laverne & Shirley because of her pregnancy, while Marshall stayed till the end when the series was canceled. It would take a few years before both actresses reconciled.

In 1983, while still filming Laverne and Shirley, Marshall guest-starred on Taxi in a cameo appearance as herself. In the Taxi episode "Louie Moves Uptown", Marshall is turned down for residency in a new high-rise condo in Manhattan. The Laverne and Shirley episode "Lost in Spacesuits" is referenced in the scene.

She lent her voice to Ms. Botz aka Ms. Botzcowski, the "babysitter bandit", on the first produced episode of The Simpsons, and played a cameo role as herself on the HBO series Entourage. She also made a cameo appearance alongside her brother Garry in the Disney Halloween-themed movie Hocus Pocus as husband and wife.

She was reunited with her Laverne & Shirley co-star Cindy Williams on a November 2013 episode of Sam & Cat.

Directing career

At the encouragement of her brother, Marshall became interested in directing. She directed four episodes of Laverne and Shirley and other TV assignments. She soon moved on to theatrical films, her first film being Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986) starring Whoopi Goldberg.

Marshall has directed several successful feature films since the mid-1980s, including 1988's Big starring Tom Hanks (the first film directed by a woman to gross over US$100 million), Awakenings (1990) starring Robin Williams and Robert De Niro, A League of Their Own (1992) with Geena Davis, Tom Hanks, Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell, and The Preacher's Wife (1996) starring Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston. In 1991, she was awarded the Women in Film [[Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards#THE CRYSTAL AWARD|Crystal Award]].

In 2010-2011, she directed three episodes of the Showtime series United States of Tara.

In 2013, Women in Film and Video presented her with the Women of Vision Award.

In 2014 she announced she was developing a biopic on Effa Manley entitled Effa.

Personal life

While attending the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, Marshall met Michael Henry, a football player. She left college to marry him in 1961; they had a daughter, Tracy. Marshall worked as a secretary and later as a tap dance teacher. The marriage lasted 3 years. On April 10, 1971, Marshall married actor/director Rob Reiner, who adopted her daughter and gave her his last name. Her marriage to Reiner lasted until 1981.

Marshall had a brief relationship with singer Art Garfunkel in the mid-1980s, and he credits her with helping him through his depression. Their friendship stayed strong even after their romantic relationship ended. Garfunkel would later say of Marshall, "Everything changed. Penny is a sweet human being who can bring anybody down to earth. We had a lot of laughs, great sex, and a ton of party nights."

In 2010, it was reported that Marshall had been diagnosed with lung cancer that had metastasized to her brain, but she revealed in 2012 that she was in remission.

Marshall has three grandchildren through her daughter, Tracy Reiner.

Filmography

Film

As an actress

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1968	The Savage Seven	Tina
1968	How Sweet It Is!	Tour Girl
1970	The Grasshopper	Plaster Caster
1970	Where's Poppa?	Courtroom Spectator	Uncredited role
1975	How Come Nobody's on Our Side?	Theresa	aka Capers
1979	1941	Miss Fitzroy	Uncredited role
1985	Movers & Shakers	Reva
1991	The Hard Way	Angie
1993	Hocus Pocus	The Master's Wife	Uncredited role
1995	Get Shorty	Herself	Cameo
1998	The Emperor's New Clothes: An All-Star Illustrated Retelling of the Classic Fairy Tale	The Imperial Lady-in-Waiting #2	Voice
1999	Special Delivery
2000	High Fidelity	Funeral Attendee	Uncredited role
2004	Stateside	Lt. Chevetone	Uncredited role
2005	Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World	Herself	Cameo
2007	Everybody Wants to Be Italian	Teresa the Florist
2007	Alice Upside Down	Mrs. Plotkin	Direct-to-video film
2007	Blonde Ambition	Bolo Executive
2011	New Year's Eve	Herself - Ahern Party
2014	Going to America	Herself - Famous Director
2015	Scooby-Doo! and Kiss: Rock and Roll Mystery	The Elder (voice)	Direct-to-video film
2016	Mother's Day	Narrator

As a director

Year	Title	Notes
1986	Jumpin' Jack Flash
1988	Big
1990	Awakenings	Also Executive producer
1992	A League of Their Own	Also Executive producer
1994	Renaissance Man	Also Executive producer
1996	The Preacher's Wife
2001	Riding in Cars with Boys

As a producer

Year	Title	Notes
1993	Calendar Girl	Executive producer
1996	Getting Away with Murder	Producer
1998	With Friends Like These...	Producer
2003	Risk	Producer
2005	Cinderella Man	Producer
	Bewitched	Producer

Television

As an actress

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1968-1969	That Girl	Assistant Librarian / Joan	Episodes: "Secret Ballot", "Fix My Screen & Bug Out"
1969	My Friend Tony	Janet	Episode: "Computer Murder"
1969	Then Came Bronson	Claire	Episode: "The Runner"
1970	Love, American Style	Mary Agnes	Episode: "Love and the Pick-Up" segment
1970	Barefoot in the Park		Episode: "In Sickness and in Health"
1970	The Wonderful World of Disney	Mayor's Secretary	Episodes: "The Wacky Zoo of Morgan City" (Parts 1 & 2)
1971	The Feminist and the Fuzz	Liberation Lady	Television film
1971	Getting Together	Mona	Episode: "Those Oldies But Goodies Remind Me of You"
1972-1974	The Odd Couple	Myrna Turner	27 episodes
1972	Evil Roy Slade	Bank Teller	Television film
1972	The Super	Janice	Episode: "The Matchmaker
1972	The Bob Newhart Show	Stewardess	Episode: "Fly the Unfriendly Skies"
1972	The Crooked Hearts	Waitress	Television film
1972	The Couple Takes a Wife	Paula	Television film
1973	Banacek	Receptionist	Episode: "The Greatest Collection of Them All"
1974-1975	Paul Sand in Friends and Lovers	Janice Dreyfuss	14 episodes
1974-1976	The Mary Tyler Moore Show	Toni / Paula Kovacs	Episodes: "I Was a Single for WJM", "Murray in Love", "Menage-a-Lou"
1975	Let's Switch!	Alice Wright	Television film
1975	Wives	Connie	Television film
1975	Chico and the Man	Anita Cappuccino	Episode: "Chico and the Van"
1975	Saturday Night Live	Herself	Episode: "Rob Reiner"
1975-1979	Happy Days	Laverne DeFazio	5 episodes
1976	Good Heavens		Episode: "Take Me Out to the Ball Game"
1976-1983	Laverne & Shirley	Laverne DeFazio	178 episodes
1977	Saturday Night Live	Herself	Episode: "Live from Mardi Gras"
1977	Blansky's Beauties	Laverne DeFazio	Episode: "Nancy Remembers Laverne"
1978	Mork & Mindy	Laverne DeFazio	Episode: "Pilot"
1978	More Than Friends	Matty Perlman	Television film
1979	Carol Burnett & Company	Herself	Episode #1.3
1981	Laverne & Shirley in the Army	Laverne DeFazio (voice)	13 episodes
1982	Mork & Mindy/Laverne & Shirley/Fonz Hour	Laverne DeFazio (voice)	8 episodes (Laverne & Shirley with the Fonz segment)
1984	The New Show	Various Characters	Episode #1.4
1984	Love Thy Neighbor	Linda Wilson	Television film
1985	Challenge of a Lifetime	Nora Schoonover	Television film
1990	The Simpsons	Ms. Botz (voice)	Episode: "Some Enchanted Evening"
1993	The Odd Couple: Together Again	Myrna	Television film
1996	Saturday Night Live	Various Characters	Episode: "Rosie O'Donnell/Whitney Houston"
1998	Nash Bridges	Iris Heller	Episode: "Skin Deep"
1999	Jackie's Back!	Herself	Cameo
2004	Frasier	Celeste (voice)	Episode: "Frasier-Liste"
2006	Campus Ladies		Episode: "Webcam"
2006	Bones	Herself	Episode: "The Woman at the Airport"
2008	The Game	Doris Fox	Episode: "A Delectable Basket of Treats"
2012	The Life & Times of Tim	PR Executive (voice)	Episode: "The Smug Chiropractor/Corporate Disaster"
2012	Portlandia	Barbara	Episode: "Feminist Book Store 10th Anniversary"
2013	Sam & Cat	Sylvia Burke	Episode: "#SalmonCat"
2014	Mulaney	Tutti	Episode: "Sweet Jane"
2016	The Odd Couple	Patty Dombrowski	Episode: "Taffy Days"

As a director

Year	Title	Notes
1979	Working Stiffs	1 episode: "The Preview Presentation"
1979-1981	Laverne & Shirley	4 episodes: "Squiggy in Love", "The Duke of Squigman", "The Dating Game", "But Seriously, Folks"
1993	A League of Their Own	1 episode: "Dottie's Back"
2009	According to Jim	2 episodes: "The Yoga Bear", "Physical Therapy"
2010-2011	United States of Tara	2 episodes: "Explosive Diorama", "Wheels"

As a producer

Year	Title	Notes
1993	A League of Their Own	Producer, TV series
1997	Heaven Will Wait	Executive producer, TV pilot
2004	Crossover	Executive producer, TV documentary