Distinctive American character actor and sometime leading lady with a smoky voice, curly hair and a slightly wild-eyed expression, adept at both dramas and zany comedy. Brennan enjoyed stage success in the early 1960s in "Little Mary Sunshine" (1960, which won her an Obie Award) and "Hello, Dolly!" (1964). She began a prolific run of TV appearances beginning later in the decade, most notably on "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" where her zippy comic timing garnered nationwide attention. Although success in features was gradual, Brennan did rack up several very interesting credits in films including "The Last Picture Show" (1971), "The Sting" (1973) and "Daisy Miller" (1974).
Brennan had long displayed a keen sense of camp by this point in her career, and in "At Long Last Love" (1975) showed an affinity for the glories of classical Hollywood's tough but good-hearted working women of 30s backstage musicals and 40s film noirs. Her greatest success in features came in the late 70s as tough but neurotic old-style dames in comedies including "Murder by Death" (1976) and "The Cheap Detective" (1978). Her work as a tough Army captain in "Private Benjamin" (1980), meanwhile, showed a nuanced yet disciplined reining in of her flair for the outlandish, and she won a supporting Oscar nomination for her efforts.
Brennan recreated her role (and won an Emmy) as the hardened Captain Lewis in the early 80s sitcom of the same name. Her career, though, was put on hold for several years after a car accident confined her to a wheelchair. Brennan was later quite open about the dangers of becoming addicted to prescription painkillers, and successfully resumed her acting career in 1985. Her feature films ("Clue" 1985, "Texasville" 1990, "Jeepers Creepers" 2001) have generally been a bit disappointing, but Brennan has managed to enliven the small screen since the late 80s with memorable TV guest spots, including Emmy-nominated turns on "Newhart" and "thirtysomething".
- Also Credited As:
Verla Eileen Regina Brennen
- Born:
September 3, 1932 in Los Angeles, California
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Job Titles:
Actor
Family
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Father: John Gerald Brennen.
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Mother: Regina Brennen. appeared in silent films
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Son: Patrick Oliver Lampson. born on December 25, 1972
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Son: Samuel John Lampson. born on August 23, 1971
Education
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American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York, New York, 1955-56
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Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Milestones
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1960 Stage acting debut, the title role in the Off-Broadway musical "Little Mary Sunshine"
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1964 Co-starred as Irene Molloy in original Broadway cast of "Hello, Dolly!" with Carol Channing and Reilly
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1967 Early TV appearance in support of Dustin Hoffman in "The Star Wagon" (PBS)
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1967 Feature film debut, "Divorce, American Style"
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1968 Regular role on "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In"
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1971 Appeared as Genevieve, the world-weary waitress, in "The Last Picture Show", directed by Peter Bogdanovich
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1973 Co-starred in the NBC miniseries "The Blue Knight"
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1973 Portrayed Paul Newman's landlady in "The Sting"
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1974 Reteamed with Bogdanovich for "Daisy Miller"
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1975 Had singing and dancing role in Bogdanovich's disastrous "At Long Last Love"
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1976 Offered amusing turn in "Murder By Death", scripted by Neil Simon
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1977 Delivered a powerful turn as the mother of drug-addicted son in "The Death of Richie" (NBC)
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1979 Played leading role of Kate Flanagan on the short-lived ABC sitcom, "A New Kind of Family"
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1979 Played leading role of Felicia Winters on the short-lived ABC sitcom, "13 Queens Boulevard"
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1980 Earned Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for her turn as the hardnosed army captain in "Private Benjamin"
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1982 Was struck by a car and seriously injured
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1984 Resumed acting career near the end of the year after recovering from her injuries
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1985 Cast as Mrs. Peacock in the film version of the board game "Clue"
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1990 Reprised role of Genevieve in "Texasville", the sequel to "The Last Picture Show"
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1992 Cast as a candy store owner in "I Don't Buy Kisses Anymore"
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1993 Portrayed the unsuspecting mother of a serial killer in "Poisoned by Love: The Kern County Murders" (CBS)
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1995 Had small role of a defrocked nun in "Reckless", adapted from Craig Lucas' stage play
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1995 Played the principal in the ABC/Disney remake of "Freaky Friday"
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1997 Portrayed another nun, this time the Mother Superior. in the comedy "Changing Habits"
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1998 Returned to the NYC stage as the mother in Martin McDonagh's "The Cripple of Inishmaan"
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2001 Had supporting role in the horror film "Jeepers Creepers"
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2002 Had a recurring role as Zandra on the NBC comedy "Will and Grace"; received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy series (2004)
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Reprised role as Captain Doreen Lewis in the CBS TV sitcom, "Private Benjamin"
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Worked in NYC cabarets partnered with Charles Nelson Reilly