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Jo Anne Worley
Worley in May 2010
Born	September 6, 1937 (1937-09-06) (age 87) Lowell, Indiana, U.S.
Occupations	Actress comedian singer
Years active	1955–present
Spouse	Roger Perry ​ ​(m. 1975; div. 2000)​

Jo Anne Worley (born September 6, 1937) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. Her work covers television, films, theater, game shows, talk shows, commercials, and cartoons. Worley is widely known for her work on the comedy-variety show Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.

Early life and education

Worley was born on September 6, 1937, in Lowell, Indiana, the third child of Rose Irene (née Gardner) and Joseph Lauraine Worley. In 1962, her parents divorced and her father remarried, having four children with his second wife, Nancy.

Always known for her loud voice, Worley once said that when she attended church as a little girl, she never sang the hymns but would only lip sync them for fear that she would drown out everyone else. Before graduating from high school, she was named school comedienne.

After graduating from high school in 1955, Worley moved to Blauvelt, New York, where she began her professional career as a member of the Pickwick Players. This led to a drama scholarship to Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas.

Career

After studying at Midwestern for two years, Worley moved to Los Angeles to study at Los Angeles City College and the Pasadena Playhouse. She was soon given her first musical role in a production of Wonderful Town. In 1961, Worley received her first major break when she appeared in the musical revue Billy Barnes People in Los Angeles; this production moved to Broadway, where it ran for only six performances. However, the New York Times reviewer wrote: "Jo Anne Worley has an earthy style that suggests she could be a rowdy comedienne." In 1964, she was selected to appear as a stand-in on the original Broadway production of Hello, Dolly! One year later, Worley created her own nightclub act in Greenwich Village, where she was discovered by Merv Griffin in 1966.

Impressed by Worley's talents, Griffin engaged her to be one of his primary guest stars on his show, where she made approximately 40 appearances on The Merv Griffin Show. In 1966, she appeared Off-Broadway in The Mad Show, a musical revue based on Mad Magazine. In 1967, Worley's stint on Griffin's show led to her discovery by George Schlatter, who soon cast her in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.

In 1970, Worley left Laugh-In to pursue other projects and has made guest appearances on several television series, including Love, American Style, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, The Andy Williams Show, Adam-12, Emergency!, Murder, She Wrote, The Middle, and different game shows such as Super Password, Hollywood Squares, and the many versions of Pyramid. She continued working in various movies, television series, and theatrical performances (original productions and revivals alike) over the years. Worley also became known for her work as a voice provider for several cartoons, animated movies, and video games. Her voice work includes Nutcracker Fantasy (1979), the Disney movies Beauty and the Beast (1991), A Goofy Movie (1995), Beauty and the Beast: Belle's Magical World (1998), and the voice of the Wardrobe in the video game Kingdom Hearts II (2005). She remains involved with Disney, making cameos in several Disney Channel sitcoms such as Kim Possible playing the role of Bonnie Rockwaller's mother, Wizards of Waverly Place, and Jessie.

Worley performed in regional theater, such as the Melody Top Theater in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she appeared in Gypsy: A Musical Fable as Rose (1984), Annie Get Your Gun (1982), Hello Dolly! (1980), Anything Goes (1978) and Once Upon a Mattress (1974), She also appeared at the Welk Dinner Theater in San Diego, California in Same Time, Next Year in 1985, Call Me Madam at the California Music Theatre, Pasadena, California, in 1987, and Nunsense at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, La Mirada, California, in 1991.

In 1989, Worley returned to Broadway to appear in Prince of Central Park, but the show was canceled after four performances. She was cast as the Wicked Witch of the West in a 1999 musical production of The Wizard of Oz, directed and adapted by Robert Johanson, with Mickey Rooney playing the eponymous role. The production had a limited run at the Pantages Theater, Hollywood, California, and at the Theater at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, and she also joined the limited US tour. Worley played Mrs. Tottendale in the Broadway musical, The Drowsy Chaperone at the Marquis Theatre from July through December 2007. She then reprised the role of Mrs. Tottendale at The Cape Playhouse from June to July 2015.

From January 8 until August 24, 2008, Worley played the role of Madame Morrible in the Los Angeles production of Wicked.

Personal life

Worley is an animal lover. For more than 40 years she has been involved with the organization Actors and Others for Animals, founded in 1971, which funds spay-and-neuter programs, and provides veterinary financial assistance to pet guardians in Southern California. She served on a voluntary basis on the board of directors for several years before becoming vice president, and since 2007, has served as president of the organization.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage roles

Video games

References

Citations

1. ^ "Jo Anne Worley". LockerDome. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
2. "Betsy Palmer Original Autograph Program Art". ecrater.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
3. "Jo Anne Worley". Masterworks Broadway. Sony Music Entertainment. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
4. ^ Bianculli 2010, p. 367.
5. ^ Hyatt 2006, p. 450.
6. ^ Erickson 2000, p. 76.
7. Los Angeles Magazine Staff 1967, p. 112.
8. Taubman, Howard. "Theatre: Coast Review", The New York Times, June 14, 1961, p. 10
9. "The Mad Show, 1966, listing" Archived 2009-09-07 at the Wayback Machine lortel.org, accessed July 21, 2009
10. Joslyn, Jay (June 1, 1984). "JoAnne Worley Gets Top Rolling". The Milwaukee Sentinel. Retrieved May 10, 2016.
11. Braunagel, Don. "Theaters build on big year," The San Diego Union-Tribune, January 10, 1986, p.C-1
12. "Names in the News", The Associated Press, May 9, 1987
13. "Jo Anne Worley stars in Nunsense at the La Mirada Theatre," Business Wire, April 24, 1991
14. Prince of Central Park Internet Broadway Database
15. Van Gelder, Lawrence (May 8, 1999). "Theater Review; Not in Kansas Anymore". The New York Times. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
16. Jones, Kenneth; Ehren, Christine (April 13, 1999). "'Laugh In' Worley Replaces Montevecchi April 14 in MSG Wizard of Oz Tour". Playbill. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
17. Gans, Andrew (December 18, 2009). "Worley to Join L.A. Wicked Cast; Levy to Succeed Espinosa". Playbill. Archived from the original on September 7, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
18. "Actors and Others Mission Statement". Actors and Others for Animals. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
19. ^ Gans, Andrew (July 20, 2007). "DIVA TALK: Chatting with Drowsy Chaperone's Jo Anne Worley Plus the Patti LuPone Gypsy". Playbill. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
20. Boegle, Jimmy (May 22, 2019). "Laugh Legend: Jo Anne Worley Returns to Michael Holmes' Purple Room". Coachella Valley Independent. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
21. "Actors and Others Directors and Financials". Actors and Others for Animals. Retrieved September 1, 2019.
22. "Moon Pilot". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
23. "Head". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
24. "The Shaggy D.A." Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
25. "Nutcracker Fantasy". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
26. "Beauty and the Beast". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
27. "A Goofy Movie". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
28. "The Feminist and the Fuzz". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
29. "What's a Nice Girl Like You...?". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
30. "Through the Magic Pyramid". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
31. "The Elf Who Saved Christmas". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
32. "The Elf and the Magic Key". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
33. "Family Reunion: A Relative Nightmare". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
34. ^ "Feature: Kingdom Hearts II (E3 2004)". GamePro. May 12, 2004. Archived from the original on February 14, 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2016.

Sources

• Erickson, Hal (2000). "From Beautiful Downtown Burbank": A Critical History of Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, 1968-1973. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 76. ISBN 978-0786440498.
• Hyatt, Wesley (2006). Emmy Award Winning Nighttime Television Shows 1948-2004. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 450. ISBN 978-0786423293.
• Bianculli, David (2010). Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour". New York City: Touchstone Books. p. 367. ISBN 978-1439101179.
• The Guide. 1967. p. 112. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)

External links

• Jo Anne Worley at IMDb 
• Jo Anne Worley at the TCM Movie Database
• Jo Anne Worley at the Internet Broadway Database
• Jo Anne Worley at the Internet Off-Broadway Database

• 1937 births
• Actresses from Indiana
• American film actresses
• American musical theatre actresses
• American television actresses
• American sketch comedians
• American voice actresses
• American video game actresses
• American women comedians
• Comedians from Indiana
• Comedians from New York (state)
• Living people
• Los Angeles City College alumni
• Midwestern State University alumni
• People from Lowell, Indiana
• People from Greater Los Angeles
• People from Blauvelt, New York
• 21st-century American women