Biography
Marcia Rodd, a striking dark-haired actress from Kansas, was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She experienced theatre early on, playing "Priscilla Alden" in a grade school pageant. After graduating high school, she studied drama under Alvina Krause at Northwestern University in the late 1950s before moving to New York to pursue stage acting.
Comedy, especially offbeat humor, was a significant part of her early career. She made her off-Broadway debut in the 1962 musical "Oh Say, Can You See!" and took on various roles in the revues "Oh, What a Lovely War!" (1964) and "The Mad Show" (1966). After touring with "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and "Chu Chem," she debuted on Broadway in 1967 with "Love in E Flat." She continued with roles such as Daisy Gamble in "On a Clear Day You Can Look Forever" and Viola in "Love and Let Love." Returning off-Broadway, she won a Drama Desk Award after replacing Marian Mercer just one week into the 1968 musical "Your Own Thing," based on Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night." She also performed this role during its London tour. Her memorable performance as a marijuana-smoking free spirit alongside James Coco in Neil Simon’s 1969 comedy "Last of the Red Hot Lovers" garnered attention.
Her impressive stage work led to a notable film debut in Jules Feiffer's black comedy "Little Murders" (1971) with Elliott Gould. She followed with a standout supporting role in the comedy-drama "T.R. Baskin" (1971) alongside Candice Bergen. Norman Lear noticed her talent and brought her to television with guest appearances on "All in the Family" (1971), playing the sensible and outspoken daughter of Bea Arthur’s character in a classic Archie Bunker episode. This role spun off into the popular series "Maude" (1972), though Adrienne Barbeau replaced her as daughter Carol when Marcia declined the sitcom, which ran from 1972 to 1978. She later appeared as a guest star in a notable episode of the series. Her TV credits also include episodes of "Young Doctor Kildare," "Medical Center," and "Barnaby Jones," before landing a lead role in the short-lived family comedy "The Dumplings" (1976).
With theatre as her passion, Marcia returned to the stage to portray Aldonza in a 1971 tour of "Man of La Mancha." She then went back East and earned a Tony nomination for the 1973 musical "Shelter." She toured with the comedy "Rms Riv Vu" in 1973 and played Mistress Page in "The Merry Wives of Windsor" (1975). Alongside roles in plays like "Once Upon a Time," "And If That Mockingbird Don’t Sing," and "The Goodbye People," she built a strong reputation as an L.A. stage director. She continued acting on stage in roles such as Golde in "Fiddler on the Roof" and Diana Vreeland in the one-woman play "Full Gallop."
Apart from occasional film roles in "Citizens Band" (1977) and "Last Embrace" (1979), Marcia’s on-screen focus remained on television. She played recurring wives in the 1980s series "The Four Seasons" (1984) and "Trapper John, M.D." (1979), and appeared in numerous episodes of shows including "Phyllis," "Quincy," "Archie Bunker’s Place," "Lou Grant," "Laverne & Shirley," "Flamingo Road," "Night Court," "Highway to Heaven," "Too Close for Comfort," "Empty Nest," "Murder, She Wrote," "21 Jump Street," "Doogie Howser," "Home Improvement," and "ER." She also co-starred with Eileen Brennan in the short-lived series "13 Queens Boulevard" (1979).
Into the 2000s, Marcia has maintained a presence on television with appearances on "Family Law," "Broken at Love," "The Young and the Restless," "Open House," "Grey’s Anatomy," and the short-lived series "Kaplan’s Korner" (2018). Having been married and divorced once, Marcia Rodd has proven herself to be a fascinating and versatile talent.
