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Redheaded comedic actress Deborah Rush, known for her quirky charm across theater, film, and television, was born on April 10, 1954, in Chatham, New Jersey. She developed a passion for making people laugh early in life. After high school, she committed fully to acting, beginning as an apprentice with the Play-House of the Ridiculous comedy troupe. She moved to New York and made her Broadway debut in the Tony-winning musical "Dance with Me" (1975), which ran for nearly a year. Later in the decade, she earned acclaim in several New York Shakespeare productions for Joseph Papp, including "The Misanthrope," "All's Well That Ends Well," and as Bianca opposite Meryl Streep’s Katherine and Raul Julia’s Petruchio in "The Taming of the Shrew." She also understudied Streep as Alice in Papp’s musical "Alice in Concert," inspired by Lewis Carroll’s character.
Deborah’s film and TV career began in the late 1970s, with a small role in Oliver's Story (1978), a remake of Love Story (1970). By her second film, she was gaining notice even in minor roles through her vacant expressions and her distinctive scratchy voice used for comic effect. Notably, she delivered a memorable performance as the cooey-voiced dental assistant alongside Dudley Moore and Blake Edwards in 10 (1979). Her stage work continued to be prominent, with TV adaptations of her performances in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1982) as Hermia and the musical Alice at the Palace (1982). She remained devoted to theater, starring in plays such as "Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You," "Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong," "Lips Together, Teeth Apart," and "The Sisters Rosenzweig." In 1983, Deborah returned to Broadway as the hilariously nearsighted actress Brooke Ashton in the slapstick farce "Noises Off," earning a Tony nomination and a Drama Desk Award. She later co-starred with Rosemary Harris and Campbell Scott in Noël Coward’s "Hay Fever" (1985).
While leading stardom eluded her, Deborah has been a consistent comic presence for five decades, providing memorable supporting performances for notable directors of the 1980s, including Woody Allen (Zelig (1983) and The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)), John Schlesinger (Honky Tonk Freeway (1981)), John G. Avildsen (A Night in Heaven (1983)), Frank Perry (Compromising Positions (1985)), Bob Balaban (Parents (1989)), Sidney Lumet (Family Business (1989)), and Susan Seidelman (She-Devil (1989)). Her knack for grabbing attention remains unmistakable.
On television, Deborah played the recurring role of the Mayor’s wife on the comedy series Spin City (1996) and had a regular part on the critically acclaimed but short-lived series Strangers with Candy (1999), which later inspired a feature film adaptation in 2005. The 1990s saw her in several comedic films including My Blue Heaven (1990) with Steve Martin; the ensemble comedy Passed Away (1992); the quirky Christmas crime film Reckless (1995); the madcap gay farce In & Out (1997) starring Kevin Kline; and the beloved romantic comedy You've Got Mail (1998) with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.
In the 2000s, Deborah took on delightfully offbeat roles in both comedy and drama, appearing in The Good Girl (2002) with Jennifer Aniston; American Wedding (2003), the second "American Pie" sequel; and Half Nelson (2006), portraying Ryan Gosling’s eccentric mother. She returned to Broadway after two decades in the revival of "Absurd Person Singular" (2005) and appeared off-Broadway as Henrietta Iscariot in "The Last Days of Judas Iscariot" alongside Sam Rockwell that same year. She also performed in a 2009 production of "Blithe Spirit."
Her later film comedy roles include The Good Life (2007), Julie & Julia (2009), Rhymes with Banana (2012), Women Who Kill (2016), and Accommodations (2018). On television, she has shown versatility in both comedic and dramatic roles on shows such as "The Good Wife," "Law and Order," "Inside Amy Schumer," "The Blacklist," and had recurring roles on Big Lake (2010), Orange Is the New Black (2013) as Piper’s mother, and Billions (2016).
Since 1985, Deborah has been married to Chip Cronkite (born Walter Leland Cronkite III), son of the legendary news anchor Walter Cronkite, and they have two sons: Walter Cronkite IV and Peter.
