Madeline Kahn

Madeline Kahn ( born September 29, 1942 in Boston, Massachusetts as Madeline Gail Wolfson, † December 3, 1999 in New York City ) was an American film, television and theater actress.

Life

Kahn was born as the daughter of a Jewish family and was named Madeline Gail Wolfson. Her mother Paula was 17 years old when Kahn was born. Her parents, whose marriage sprang from a childhood sweetheart left, divorced when she was two years old. After the divorce, she moved with her mother to New York. Her mother remarried a few years later, and Kahn grew up with two stepbrothers, Jeffrey and Robyn on. In 1948 she was sent to a boarding school in Pennsylvania, where she remained until 1952. During this time the mother encouraged her aspirations to become an actress, and Kahn appeared in several school plays. In 1960 she graduated at the Van Buren High School in Queens Village, New York, and received a scholarship to Hofstra University. There she studied music, drama and speech therapy and also appeared in several theater productions with. In 1964 she completed her studies with a degree in speech therapy.

First stage roles

Shortly after graduating from Hofstra University Kahn began auditioning for roles; the way she taught at private schools in Levittown, New York. Just before she took her stage name Madeline Kahn ( " Kahn " was the surname of her stepfather ) gave it to her stage debut in a revival of Kiss Me, Kate and entered directly after the Screen Actors Guild for. Their role in How Now, Dow Jones was deleted before the piece came to Broadway in 1967, just as it fared with the role of "Miss Whipple " in Promises, Promises. Her breakthrough on Broadway she had with New Faces of 1968; In the same year she received her first lead role in the operetta Candide occasion of the 50th birthday of Leonard Bernstein. In 1969 she appeared in the off- Broadway production promenade.

In the 1970s, she appeared in two Broadway musicals: in a minor role in Richard Rodgers Two by Two (1970) and in the leading role as Lily Garland in On the Twentieth Century (1978). With the latter, but was released after a short time, and her understudy, Judy Kaye took over the role, which gave a huge boost their career. Kahn also had a greater role in the revival of She Loves Me, alongside Barry Bostwick and the original cast from London, Rita Moreno afterwards.

Film roles

Her film debut was in 1968 in De Düva. Your most popular roles followed in the 1970s. Her breakthrough experienced in 1972 with her ​​portrayal of Eunice Burns, Howard Bannister (Ryan O'Neal ) hysterical fiancée in Peter Bogdanovich's screwball comedy What's Up, Doc? with Barbra Streisand. This was followed by Paper Moon (1973) and Mel Brooks comedies Young Frankenstein (1974 ), What's Up, Sheriff? (1974) and High Anxiety (1977). From Brooks was claimed in Hollywood that he was able to get the best out of her comedic talent. Their last collaboration was 1981 in Mel Brooks - The History of the World about. For her performances in Paper Moon and What's Up, Sheriff? the actress received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress respectively. Kahn was then occupied in 1974 for the role of Agnes Gooch in the film adaptation of the musical Mame. Due to artistic differences with Lucille Ball, who played the title role, but it was dismissed.

Kahn's roles were primarily comedic and less dramatic nature, although they also appeared in two films that both united with each other: In the Boom Boom Room (1974 ) and Marco Polo Sings a Solo ( 1977). After their success in the films of Brooks played in the 1980s in much less successful films. Most noteworthy here is her role as Mrs. White in Clue: The Movie ( All murderers are already there ).

Later years

Towards the end of her career, she returned to the stage, first in 1989 for the resumption of Born Yesterday. Then she received a 1993 Tony Award for her role as " Dr. Gorgeous " in The Sisters Rosensweig by Wendy Wasserstein. She played Angela Lansbury's role in a CD recording of Anyone Can Whistle. In the early 1990s could still be heard in the animated film The Magic 7 alongside John Candy Kahn's voice. Most recently, she had a role in the sitcom Cosby and took over the voice of Gypsy moth in A Bug's Life.

Kahn died on 3 December 1999 at the age of 57 years to ovarian cancer.

Theater

• Leonard Sillman 's New Faces of 1968 (1968)
• Two by Two ( musical) (1970 )
• Boom Boom Room (1973 )
• On the Twentieth Century (1978 )
• Born Yesterday (1989 )
• The Sisters Rosensweig (1993 )

Movies

TV

• Comedy Tonight ( 1970)
• Harvey (1972)
• The Muppet Show (1977 )
• Oh Madeline (1983 )
• Wanted: The Perfect Guy ( 1986)
• Mr. President (1987 )
• Welcome to the Monkey House (1991 )
• Lucky Luke (1991 )
• For Richer, For Poorer (1992 )
• New York News ( 1995)
• London Suite ( 1996)
• Cosby (1996-1999)