Lois De Banzie, the Scottish-born actress who portrayed Eleanor Roosevelt in Annie and received a Tony nomination for her performance in Morning’s at Seven, has died. She was 90.
De Banzie died April 3 in in Greenbrae, California, her family announced.
De Bansie played Roosevelt in the 1982 film version of Annie and appeared in small roles in other movies including Tootsie (1982), Sudden Impact (1983), Mass Appeal (1984), Arachnophobia (1990), Sister Act (1992), Addams Family Values (1993) and Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994).
She received her Tony nomination and a Drama Desk award for her turn as the fiancée Myrtle Brown in the revival of Morning’s at Seven, which ran for 564 performances on Broadway through August 1981 and starred Maureen O’Sullivan, Teresa Wright, Nancy Marchand and Elizabeth Wilson.
De Bansie also worked on Broadway opposite Bernard Hughes in the long-running 1978-80 comedy Da and in 1972-73’s The Last of Mrs. Lincoln and 1985’s The Octette Bridge Club.
Born on May 4, 1930, in Glasgow, De Banzie made her onscreen debut on a 1957 episode of Perry Mason and went on to appear on The Fugitive, Mannix, Taxi, Hill Street Blues, Cheers, Amazing Stories, Generations and Home Improvement, among many other shows.
Her aunt was late British actress Brenda de Banzie (The Entertainer, Hobson’s Choice, The Man Who Knew Too Much).
