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Teri Garr has died at the age of 79
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Beloved Friends, Young Frankenstein and Tootsie actress Teri Garr has died aged 79 as tributes from friends, family and fans flood in.
Garr passed away on Tuesday, October 29 from multiple sclerosis (a chronic autoimmune disease). Her publicist Heidi Schaeffer, confirmed the news and said she was "surrounded by family and friends".
She featured in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Greetings From Tucson, Life With Bonnie and other TV shows. She was best known for comedy including films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Black Stallion and The Escape Artist.
Garr had faced multiple health problems in recent years, including undergoing an operation in January 2007 to repair an aneurysm. In 1983, the actress started to feel "a little beeping or ticking" in her right leg which eventually spread to her right arm. In 1999, she consulted a doctor and got the diagnosis.
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For three years Garr didn't reveal her illness.
"I was afraid that I wouldn’t get work," she shared in a 2003 interview. "People hear MS and think, 'Oh, my God, the person has two days to live.'"
When she went public, Garr became a spokeswoman for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society across the US and Canada.
"You have to find your centre and roll with the punches because that’s a hard thing to do: to have people pity you," she said in 2005. "Just trying to explain to people that I’m OK is tiresome."
Tributes from fellow media personalities and former colleagues soon came in.
Friends alum Lisa Kudrow said in a heartfelt statement: "Teri Garr was a comedic acting genius who was and is a huge influence on me and I know I’m not alone in that. I feel so lucky and grateful I got to work with Teri Garr." Garr played Phoebe's mother in the hit series.
Elsewhere Bridesmaids director Paul Feig called her "truly one of my comedy heroes. I couldn’t have loved her more."
Meanwhile, Mel Brooks penned: "So very sorry to hear about Teri Garr’s passing. She was so talented and so funny. Her humor and lively spirit made the YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN set a pleasure to work on. Her “German” accent had us all in stitches! She will be greatly missed."
Over on social media, fans shared their love for the late star.
Rest in peace Teri Garr, 1944 – 2024
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