Actress Teri Garr, known for her role in Young Frankenstein and guest appearance on Friends, died Tuesday at the age of 79.
The comedic actress died after a long battle with multiple sclerosis. She first revealed her diagnosis in 2002 and retired from acting in 2011.
Her first breakout role was in Young Frankenstein where she starred as Inga, Dr. Frederick Frankenstein’s assistant. She might be more well known to fans of the hit show Friends where Teri portrayed the character of Phoebe’s mom in three episodes between 1997 and 1998.
Teri was nominated for an Oscar for her role as Sandy Lester in the 1982 film Tootsie. That year, the award went to her Tootsie co-star Jessica Lange.
Other notable roles she held were Ronnie Neary, Richard Dryfuss’ wife in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Caroline Butler, the working mom in the 1983 comedy Mr. Mom.
In 2006, she released her memoir Speedbumps: Flooring It Through Hollywood which shared details about her career and her MS diagnosis. After her diagnosis, the star gave her reason for sharing the information publicly.
“I’m telling my story for the first time so I can help people,” she said, “I can help people know they aren’t alone and tell them there are reasons to be optimistic because, today, treatment options are available
The same year she released her memoir, she suffered a brain aneurysm that left her in a coma for a week. Teri went through extensive therapy after her aneurysm and slowly regained her speech and motor skills.
Fans shared their condolences on social media. “God speed Teri Garr,” one fan wrote on X, formally known as Twitter, “Her mere presence in any film just made everything better. An absolute brilliant wit made her one of the greatest comedic actors.”
“So many great performances in so many great movies,” another penned, “Never the star, but always shining. She made everything she was in better. RIP, Teri Garr.”
A third added: “R.I.P. Teri Garr, a luminescent presence in American cinema. She was smart and lucky enough to great material, but always made it livelier and funnier than it could possibly have been on the page.”
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