Person biography:
Dorothy Loudon was born on September 17, 1925, in Boston, Massachusetts. She grew up in Indianapolis and Claremont, New Hampshire, and was raised by her mother, Dorothy Helen Shaw, who was a department store piano player. Dorothy earned a drama scholarship to Syracuse University and later transferred to Emerson College and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.
She began her career as a nightclub chanteuse in 1954 and quickly gained popularity for her satire and farce performances. She headlined at various clubs and cabarets, including the Ruban Bleu, Persian Room, and Blue Angel, and developed a strong cult following in New York and revues.
Loudon's television career included regular roles on the short-lived sitcom "It's a Business" and guest appearances on shows such as "Stump the Stars," "Dupont Show of the Month," and "The Ed Sullivan Show." She won a Golden Globe for her role on Garry Moore's variety series in 1962 and became a frequent game show panelist.
On stage, Loudon made her debut in "The World of Jules Feiffer" in 1962 and won a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in "Nowhere to Go But Up." She starred in the hit show "Luv" in 1965-66 and later appeared in "The Fig Leaves Are Falling," "Three Men on a Horse," "Lolita, My Love," "Plaza Suite," "The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds," "The Women," and "Winning Is Better."
Her breakthrough role came in 1977 as Miss Hannigan in the Broadway musical "Annie," for which she won the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle awards. She went on to star in "Ballroom," "Sweeney Todd," "West Side Waltz," "Noises Off," and "Jerry's Girls."
Loudon also appeared in two films, "Garbo Talks" (1984) and "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" (1997),and had a brief stint on the daytime soap "All My Children" in 1993. Despite her success on stage and screen, Loudon struggled to find consistent work in television and film, citing her larger-than-life personality as a reason.
In her later years, Loudon continued to perform on stage, appearing in shows such as "Comedy Tonight," "Show Boat," "Sweet Adeline," and "Over and Over." She was diagnosed with uterine cancer in 2002 and passed away on November 15, 2003, at the age of 78.
