American actress (1932–2020)
Patti Karr
Patti Karr as a young dancer, from a 1949 newspaper.
Born Patsy Lou Karkalits
July 10, 1932Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.
Died July 11, 2020 (aged 88)New York City, U.S.
Occupation Actress Years active 1950s to 2000s
Patti Karr (July 10, 1932 – July 11, 2020), born Patsy Lou Karkalits , was an American actress, dancer, and singer in Broadway musicals, and in film and television.
Early life
Patsy Lou Karkalits was born in
Saint Paul, Minnesota , the daughter of Charles F. Karkalits and Estelle Klebold Karkalits.
[1] Her father was a businessman; her mother died when Patsy was a baby.
[2] She was raised in
Fort Worth, Texas ,
[3] where she graduated from
Paschal High School and attended
Texas Christian University .
[4]
[5] She began her dancing career in Texas,
[6]
[7] appearing in the
corps de ballet of the Fort Worth Civic Opera.
[8]
[9] She also danced with the Pittsburgh Light Opera,
[4] and the Summertime Opera Company in
Houston .
[10]
Career
Karr first appeared on
Broadway in 1953 as a dancer in a musical, Maggie . She went on to appear in over twenty Broadway productions, mostly musicals, including
Carnival in Flanders (1953),
Pipe Dream (1955-1956),
Bells Are Ringing (1956-1959),
The Body Beautiful (1958),
Redhead (1959-1960),
Once Upon a Mattress (1959-1960),
Bye Bye Birdie (1960-1961),
[11]
Do Re Mi (1960-1962),
Look to the Lilies (1970),
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1972),
Different Times (1972),
Seesaw (1973),
Irene (1973-1974),
Pippin (1974-1976),
A Broadway Musical (1978), and the 1993 revival of
My Fair Lady .
[12]
[13] She was often the understudy of stars, including
Chita Rivera ,
Carol Burnett ,
Michele Lee ,
Nancy Walker , and
Gwen Verdon .
[1]
[5]
[14] She also appeared in
off-Broadway plays and musicals, and national touring companies of several shows.
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18] In 1965, she played Anita in a production of
West Side Story , when it toured Japan for nine weeks.
[19]
Karr's film credits included small roles in
Mighty Aphrodite (1995),
Our Italian Husband (2006), and
The Savages (2007). On television, Karr appeared in the
soap operas
Ryan's Hope ,
All My Children ,
Guiding Light , and
The Edge of Night ,
[20] and had guest roles on dozens of other American series.
[1] She played three different roles in the
Law & Order franchise. Her final television credit was as a diner patron in the last scene of
"Made in America" , the final episode of
The Sopranos , in 2007.
[21]
Personal life
Karr lived on
West End Avenue in New York City.
[22] She was injured in a "bizarre accident" in 2017, when strong winds picked up a discarded Christmas tree from the curb, and it hit her in the face as she was walking her dog near her home.
[23]
[24] She died in 2020, the day after her 88th birthday.
[1]
References
^
a
b
c
d Gans, Andrew (August 3, 2020).
"Broadway Actor Patti Karr Dies at 88" . Playbill . Retrieved 2020-12-30 .
^
"Funeral Pending for Mrs. C. F. Karkalits" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . 1933-01-02. p. 16. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Brooks, Elston (1969-08-12).
"Enchanted Evenings Await 'South Pacific' Viewers" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . p. 6. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^
a
b Adler, Dorothy (1954-11-10).
"Patti Karkalits" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . p. 15. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^
a
b Brooks, Elston (1967-07-23).
"Paschal Pattie Returns as Patti" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . p. 77. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^
"40 in Dance Recital" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . 1947-05-18. p. 46. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Hand, Martha (1970-07-01).
"Hometown Girl Makes Good: Miss Patti Returns with 'Charity' " . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . p. 1. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Whitlock, Clyde (1948-10-31).
"Carmen Ballet Polished Under Eyes of Master" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . p. 28. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^
"To Dance Sunday" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . 1949-02-11. p. 30. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Halsell, Grace (1950-09-11).
"Fort Worth Ballerina Signs with Brigadoon" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . p. 19. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Garcia, Kevin Thomas (October 21, 2010).
"Photo Coverage: BYE BYE BIRDIE Celebrates 50th Anniversary at Sardi's" . BroadwayWorld . Retrieved 2020-12-31 .
^ Dietz, Dan (2014-04-10).
The Complete Book of 1960s Broadway Musicals . Rowman & Littlefield.
ISBN
978-1-4422-3072-9 .
^ Dietz, Dan (2015-09-03).
The Complete Book of 1970s Broadway Musicals . Rowman & Littlefield.
ISBN
978-1-4422-5166-3 .
^
"Bells Are Ringing Musical Features Johnson, Karr" . Plano Daily Star-Courier . 1968-07-10. p. 6. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Dietz, Dan (2010-03-10).
Off Broadway Musicals, 1910-2007: Casts, Credits, Songs, Critical Reception and Performance Data of More Than 1,800 Shows . McFarland.
ISBN
978-0-7864-5731-1 .
^ Corry, John (February 19, 1980). "Theater: 'The Housewives' Cantata': Down Musical Years". The New York Times . p. C5 – via ProQuest.
^ Corry, John (May 15, 1982). "Theater: A Trio of 'Baseball Wives' ". The New York Times . p. 13 – via ProQuest.
^ Holden, Stephen (December 13, 1981). "Theater: Cole Porter's 'Something for the Boys' ". The New York Times . p. 94 – via ProQuest.
^
"Civic Light Opera Stars Patti Karr" . The San Bernardino County Sun . 1965-01-24. p. 21. Retrieved 2020-12-31 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Clifford, Kambra (August 3, 2020).
"Soap alum Patti Karr has died" . Soap Central . Retrieved 2020-12-30 .
^ Heffernan, Virginia (2007-06-11).
" 'Sopranos' Allegedly Solved, or 'I guess you never hear it coming when it's your turn' " . The Medium . Retrieved 2020-12-31 .
^ Siegal, Nina (November 1, 1998). "A Manhole Not Fit for Men". The New York Times . p. CY7 – via ProQuest.
^
"Longtime Broadway Actress Hit By Flying Christmas Tree" . 2017-01-30. Retrieved 2020-12-30 .
^ Fractenberg, Ben (January 30, 2017).
"Windblown Christmas Tree Knocks Broadway Actress Unconscious on UWS" . DNAinfo New York . Archived from
the original on 2020-12-31. Retrieved 2020-12-31 .
External links