Debbie Reynolds
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Debbie Reynolds (born April 1, 1932) is an American actress and singer.
She was born Mary Frances Reynolds in El Paso, Texas, the second child of Raymond Francis Reynolds (1903-1986) and Maxine N. Harman (1913-1999).
Her family moved to Burbank, California, in 1939. In 1948, she won the Miss Burbank Beauty Contest, which resulted in a motion picture contract with Warner Bros. They gave her a new first name and cast her in small roles in two movies.
Reynolds then signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. She was cast in Three Little Words, which starred Fred Astaire and Red Skelton. Her appearance in her second movie at MGM, Two Weeks With Love, received strong notices. She then appeared in Mr. Imperium opposite Lana Turner.
She was chosen for the female lead in Singin' in the Rain despite the fact that Gene Kelly, the star of the musical comedy, was initially opposed to the casting. Reynolds was inexperienced and did not know how to tap dance. She worked hard, however, and turned in a good performance along with Kelly and Donald O'Connor. Her participation in the movie helped make it one of the greatest musicals ever produced.
She went on to star in numerous motion pictures, release hit songs (most notably "Tammy" from her 1957 film Tammy and the Bachelor), and as of 2004 was still making acting appearances in film and television. She is one of a very small group of actors from MGM's "golden age of film" (including Anita Page, Mickey Rooney, Lauren Bacall, Cyd Charisse, Margaret O'Brien, Jane Powell, Rita Moreno, Leslie Caron, Dean Stockwell, Van Johnson, Angela Lansbury, Russ Tamblyn, and June Lockhart) who is still active in filmmaking.
Debbie Reynolds has been married three times: to Eddie Fisher (married 1955-divorced 1959), Harry Karl (married 1960-divorced 1973) and Richard Hamlett (married 1984-divorced 1994).
She is the mother of two children, Carrie Fisher (of Star Wars fame) and Todd Fisher (born 1958).
Reynolds was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964), a Golden Globe for The Debbie Reynolds Show on television (1970), a Golden Globe for the motion picture Mother (1997), and a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for In & Out (1997).
In 1997, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award in Comedy.
From 1999 to the present, she has played the recurring role of Bobbi Adler on Will & Grace.
Debbie Reynolds has done extensive work with charity (and has been active in the Thalians Club) and has headlined in major Las Vegas showrooms.
Reynolds has also fervently displayed her collection of movie memorabilia ,first in a Las Vegas resort in the 1990's, and currently in a museum close to the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles, California. She has auctioned off some of her items numerous times.
Her foot and hand prints are immortalized in the forecourt of Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, and she has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6654 Hollywood Boulevard.
Filmography
- June Bride (1948)
- The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady (1950)
- Three Little Words (1950)
- Two Weeks with Love (1950)
- Mr. Imperium (1951)
- Singin' in the Rain (1952)
- Skirts Ahoy! (1952)
- I Love Melvin (1953)
- The Affairs of Dobie Gillis (1953)
- Give a Girl a Break (1953)
- Susan Slept Here (1954)
- Athena (1954)
- Hit the Deck (1955)
- The Tender Trap (1955)
- Meet Me in Las Vegas (1956) (Cameo)
- The Catered Affair (1956)
- Bundle of Joy (1956)
- Tammy and the Bachelor (1957)
- This Happy Feeling (1958)
- The Mating Game (1959)
- Say One for Me (1959)
- It Started with a Kiss (1959)
- The Gazebo (1959)
- The Rat Race (1960)
- Pepe (1960) (Cameo)
- The Pleasure of His Company (1961)
- The Second Time Around (1961)
- How the West Was Won (1962)
- Mary, Mary (1963)
- My Six Loves (1963)
- The Story of a Dress (1964) (short subject)
- The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964)
- Goodbye Charlie (1964)
- The Singing Nun (1966)
- Divorce American Style (1967)
- How Sweet It Is! (1968)
- What's the Matter with Helen? (1971)
- Charlotte's Web (1973) (voice)
- Busby Berkeley (1974) (documentary)
- That's Entertainment! (1974) (narrator)
- Kiki's Delivery Service (1989) (voice in 1998) English dubbed version)
- The Bodyguard (1992) (Cameo)
- Heaven & Earth (1993)
- That's Entertainment! III (1994)
- Mother (1996)
- Wedding Bell Blues (1996) (Cameo)
- In & Out (1997)
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) (voice only)
- Zack and Reba (1998)
- Keepers of the Frame (1999) (documentary)
- Rugrats in Paris: The Movie (2000) (voice)
- Cinerama Adventure (2002) (documentary)
- Connie and Carla (2004) (Cameo)
- Fingers Walking (2005) (currently in pre-production)
TV appearances
- The Eddie Fisher Show (1957-1959) (regular performer throughout run)
- The Debbie Reynolds Show (1969-1970)
- Aloha Paradise (1981) (canceled after 4 months)
- Sadie and Son (1987)
- Battling for Baby (1992)
- Halloweentown (1998)
- The Christmas Wish (1998)
- A Gift of Love: The Daniel Huffman Story (1999)
- Virtual Mom (2000)
- Rugrats (cast member from 2000-2004) (voice)
- These Old Broads (2001)
- Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge (2001)
- Tracey Ullman in Trailer Tales (2003) (Cameo)
- Halloweentown III: Halloweentown High (2004)