Cloris Leachman

Biography: While other actresses complain about the lack of roles for mature women, this incredibly versatile character player of stage and screen has never lacked for work. Involved in entertainment since her youth, the native Midwesterner performed on the radio while still in high school and headed for New York after competing in the 1946 Miss America pageant. The Actors Studio-trained thespian impressed audiences with her chameleonlike talents, racking up dramatic credits on Broadway, TV and occasionally film. Although she slowed her pace a bit in the 1950s and 1960s to raise her five children with producer-director George Englund, she found her greatest success well into her forties. In 1970, she signed on to Mary Tyler Moore as the title character's nosy landlord, a comedic role that earned her two Emmys as well as her own spin-off sitcom. During her tenure, she took home another Emmy for her serious turn as a middle-aged wife facing motherhood in A Brand New Life, the first of manyWhile other actresses complain about the lack of roles for mature women, this incredibly versatile character player of stage and screen has never lacked for work. Involved in entertainment since her youth, the native Midwesterner performed on the radio while still in high school and headed for New York after competing in the 1946 Miss America pageant. The Actors Studio-trained thespian impressed audiences with her chameleonlike talents, racking up dramatic credits on Broadway, TV and occasionally film. Although she slowed her pace a bit in the 1950s and 1960s to raise her five children with producer-director George Englund, she found her greatest success well into her forties. In 1970, she signed on to Mary Tyler Moore as the title character's nosy landlord, a comedic role that earned her two Emmys as well as her own spin-off sitcom. During her tenure, she took home another Emmy for her serious turn as a middle-aged wife facing motherhood in A Brand New Life, the first of many successful TV-movies starring Leachman. She also snagged an Oscar for her devastating performance as a lonely wife in 1971's The Last Picture Show. Although that big-screen success led to a handful of plum parts — notably a trio of broad roles in three Mel Brooks comedies, including her hilarious turn as Frau Blücher in Young Frankenstein, which showed off her knack for bizarre accents — the small screen and, to a lesser extent, the stage remained her mediums. From 2001 to 2006 she had a recurring role as the bitter Grandma Ida on Malcolm in the Middle, and, by 2006, she had a total of eight Emmy statuettes (plus one Daytime Emmy) and toured the country to great acclaim as the title character in the play Grandma Moses: An American Primitive. Also in the 2000s, she began popping up in movies more than ever before, usually playing outrageous grandmothers, from senile (Bad Santa) to boozy (Spanglish) to just plain disgusting (Beerfest). Leachman then turned in a memorable stint on the seventh season of Dancing With the Stars in 2008 and had the honor of being the oldest competitor to date. The dancing gig renewed audiences' interest in the now eightysomething actress, and she saw a career surge that she spun into more guest-starring roles on TV and film. Off screen, Leachman is an outspoken vegetarian and has worked with PETA on an advertising campaign. Expand

Cloris Leachman's Scores

Average career score: 63
Highest Metascore: 92 The Simpsons: Season 2
Lowest Metascore: 35 Rollergirls: Season 1
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 11
  2. Negative: 2 out of 11
11 tv reviews
Title: Year: Credit: User score:
69 American Gods: Season 3 Jan 10, 2021 Cloris Leachman 6.6
47 American Gods: Season 2 Mar 10, 2019 Zorya Vechernyaya 5.2
tbd Teachers (2016): Season 3 Jun 5, 2018 Cloris Leachman / Memaw tbd
tbd Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Season 5 Feb 18, 2018 Appearing 5.0
77 American Gods: Season 1 Apr 30, 2017 Zorya Vechernyaya 7.4
tbd To Tell the Truth: Season 2 Jan 1, 2017 Panelist / Cloris Leachman tbd
tbd Royal Pains: Season 8 May 18, 2016 Actor tbd
tbd Bob's Burgers: Season 6 Sep 27, 2015 Meryl 8.0
tbd Celebrity Wife Swap (US): Season 4 May 20, 2015 Appearing tbd
tbd Girl Meets World: Season 2 May 11, 2015 Mrs. Svorski 7.1
tbd The Millers: Season 2 Oct 20, 2014 Aunt Louise tbd
tbd Hawaii Five-0: Season 5 Sep 26, 2014 Ruth Tennenbaum 7.0
tbd Franklin & Bash : Season 4 Aug 13, 2014 Actor 7.7
tbd Pioneers of Television: Season 4 Apr 15, 2014 Appearing tbd
48 Kirstie: Season 1 Dec 4, 2013 Shirley / Shirley 5.9
tbd Raising Hope: Season 4 Nov 15, 2013 Maw Maw / Maw Maw 7.3
tbd The Queen Latifah Show (2013): Season 1 Sep 16, 2013 Guest tbd
tbd The Arsenio Hall Show: Season 1 Sep 9, 2013 Guest / Guest / Cloris Leachman / Cloris Leachman tbd
tbd Phineas and Ferb: Season 4 Dec 7, 2012 Mrs. Feyersied 8.2
tbd Hot in Cleveland: Season 4 Nov 28, 2012 Peg tbd
tbd Raising Hope: Season 3 Oct 2, 2012 Maw Maw / Maw Maw 8.0
tbd The Talk: Season 3 Sep 10, 2012 Guest tbd
tbd The Doctors: Season 5 Sep 10, 2012 Guest / Cloris Leachman tbd
tbd Raising Hope: Season 2 Sep 20, 2011 Maw Maw / Maw Maw 7.9
tbd The Wendy Williams Show: Season 4 Sep 12, 2011 Guest tbd
tbd The Talk: Season 2 Sep 6, 2011 Guest 1.1
tbd Phineas and Ferb: Season 3 Mar 4, 2011 Cloris Leachman 8.2
tbd The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Season 19 Jan 3, 2011 Guest tbd
75 Raising Hope: Season 1 Sep 21, 2010 Maw Maw / Maw Maw 8.1
tbd The View: Season 14 Sep 7, 2010 Cloris Leachman tbd