Cloris Leachman is a versatile actress who absorbs the challenges of any new play. She claims to have loved every role she has played. And the Denver audiences loved her. In describing her role in The Housekeeper, Leachman stated:
She portrays “an incipient bag lady who pulls herself together and gets herself a job as a housekeeper to an eccentric millionaire, whose mother has just died. He thinks he’s a writer, but she destroys that illusion and then she builds him up again. We go from the shady side of the street to tine sunny side.”
She costarred with Noel Harrison, son of the famed actor, Rex Harrison. Leachman enjoyed working with Harrison, whose life path was quite different from hers. While Harrison was absorbing theater in England from his father, she was growing up in Middle America and gained notoriety as a Miss America beauty pageant finalist.
[Borrillo, Theodore A., (2012). Denver’s historic Elitch Theatre : a nostalgic journey (a history of its times). pp. 328.]
In 1986 Leachman returned to the theatre… Denverites welcomed her return for the portrayal of the American-primitive artist, Grandma Moses, from her age 45 to age 100. Playwright Stephen Pouloit reportedly said to Leachman, “You’re the only one who could play this role.” To which Leachman amusingly acknowledged, “And he’s right. I’m the only one who could be 100.”5’2 After the final curtain, Leachman appeared before the house for a 100-candle birthday cake and a tribute from the audience. Jackie Campbell wrote that “all honors go to Leachman … (who) has worked the actor’s most mysterious art, that of becoming a character far in age and spirit from her own but nonetheless real.”
Leachman’s connection with Colorado went beyond the Theatre. Her son, Morgan Englund, attended the University of Colorado. While in Boulder, he auditioned for the Circle in the Square Theater training program in New York, was accepted and after a year joined the road show of Picnic. Another son, a musician, attended the University for a year. A third son who became a lawyer, recently turned actor, had also attended the University.
While in Denver during this season, Leachman sang the national anthem at Mile High Stadium before an important baseball game between the Denver Zephyrs and the Oklahoma City 89ers.
[Borrillo, Theodore A., (2012). Denver’s historic Elitch Theatre : a nostalgic journey (a history of its times). pp. 337.]
But, Leachman’s most recent visit was in 2010 when she came to Denver to participate in a fundraiser for the restoration of the theatre. It was such an honor to have her support for the Historic Elitch theatre.
Seasons at the Theatre
- 1983 & 1986
Productions/Roles:
- 1983 – The Housekeeper
- 1986 – Grandma Moses–An American Primitive
Notable Roles, Awards, and Other Work:
- 1972 Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for The Last Picture Show.
- 1976 Golden Globe Awared for Best Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy, for her role in Phyllis.
- As of 2024, she is tied for the most Emmy Performance Awards:
- Three guest-actress awards: two for Fox’s Malcolm in the Middle (2002, ‘06) and one for the CBS telefilm Promised Land (1998);
- Two supporting-actress awards: for CBS’s The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1974, ‘75);
- Two individual performance awards: for the CBS variety show Cher (1975) and the CBS special Screen Actors Guild 50th Anniversary Celebration (1984);
- A lead-actress award for the telefilm A Brand New Life (1973).
- Plus, a Daytime Emmy for an ABC Afterschool Special, The Woman Who Willed a Miracle (1983).
- In addition to her EIGHT Primetime Emmy Awards, and one Daytime Emmy Award, she also holds the record for the most performance nominations with 22 total! This includes nominations for series including The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Malcolm in the Middle, and Raising Hope.
Elitch Theatre Connections:
- The 2021 film, Not to Forget, has three of our very favorite alumnae! Check out Karen Grassle as the lead, but supporting roles for Olympia Dukakis as the Judge and Cloris as Donna.
- The Last Picture Show starred three Elitch Theatre Alum: Leachman, Timothy Bottoms, and Cybill Shepherd.
- Leachman appeared in the 1979 television miniseries Backstairs at the White House with Elitch Theatre alums, Julie Harris, Kim Hunter, and Eileen Heckart!
Wikipedia Link:
