Actress. She is best remembered for her portrayal of the staunch Sister Mary Stigmata, more commonly referred to as "The Penguin," in "The Blues Brothers" (1980). Born into a prominent theatrical family, the daughter of a vaudeville actor and a professional opera singer, upon attaining her degree in theatrical arts from the UCLA, she began her career performing as a leading lady in repertory theaters and stock companies. While attending a luncheon at the prestigious Musso & Frank Grill, she was introduced to director Jules Dassin. Impressed by her blonde good looks, average physique, and remarkable sense of humor, he took notice of her potential and arranged for her to begin a career in the film industry beginning with her appearing in a minor role per his supervision in "The Naked City" (1948). From there, she would go on to flourish as a recognizable character actress appearing in over 300 features; often typecast as wives, mothers, grandmothers, relatives, old maids, nannies, educators, battle-axe neighbors, eccentrics, curmudgeons, landladies, nurses, busybodies, secretaries, housekeepers, retail clerks, salesladies, white-collared workers, indigenous people, musicians, beauticians, seamstresses, waitresses, reporters, city slickers, clergywomen, managers, and matriarchs. She appeared in such feature films as "Casbah" (1948), "Annie Was a Wonder" (1948), "No Man of Her Own" (1950), "Cause for Alarm!" (1951), "Singin' in the Rain" (1952), "A Perilous Journey" (1953), "3 Ring Circus" (1954), "Artists and Models" (1955), "The Midnight Story" (1957), "Houseboat" (1958), "North to Alaska" (1960), "Madison Avenue" (1961), "Wild Harvest" (1962), "Who's Minding the Store?" (1963), "Mail Order Bride" (1964), "That Funny Feeling" (1965), "Three on a Couch" (1966), "Point Blank" (1967), "The Helicopter Spies" (1968), "Support Your Local Sheriff" (1969), "The Ballad of Cable Hogue" (1970), "Head On" (1971), "Where Does It Hurt?" (1972), "Your Three Minutes Are Up" (1973), "So Evil, My Sister" (1974), "The Strongest Man in the World" (1975), "The Norseman" (1978), "Heartbeeps" (1981), "The Best of Times" (1986), "Dragnet" (1987), "The Wrong Guys" (1988), "Chances Are" (1989), "Gremlins 2: The New Batch" (1990), "Dutch" (1991), "Hocus Pocus" (1993), "Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult" (1994), "Candysack" (1996), "Hercules" (1997), "Blues Brothers 2000" (1998), "Seven Girlfriends" (1999), "Ready to Rumble" (2000), and "Shrek" (2001). On television, she appeared in numerous guest spots on such syndicated sitcoms as "Fireside Theatre," "I Married Joan," "Big Town," "Our Miss Brooks," "Cavalcade of America," "The Loretta Young Show," "Topper," "Mayor of the Town," "Matinee Theatre," "December Bride," "It's Always Jan," "Tombstone Territory," "Lassie," "Wagon Train," "77 Sunset Strip," "Hawaiian Eye," "Bourbon Street Beat," "Bachelor Father," "General Electric Theatre," "Margie," "The Beverly Hillbillies," "Laramie," "Rawhide," "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "Alfred Hitchcock Hour," "Bonanza," "The Mod Squad," "Hogan's Heroes," "Lotsa Luck," "Gomer Pyle: USMC," "I Dream of Jeannie," "Kojak," "Police Woman," "Hunter," "Mama's Family," "Simon & Simon," "Growing Pains," "The Facts of Life," "Murphy Brown," "L.A. Law," "ALF," "The Magical World of Disney," "Head of the Class," "Generations," "Mr. Belvedere," "Christine Cromwell," "A Family of Joe," "The Golden Girls," "Sons and Daughters," "Beverly Hills, 90210," "Tales from the Crypt," "Out of the World," "MacGyver," "Matlock," "Major Dad," "Doogie Howser, M.D.," "Herman's Head," "Martin," "Phenom," "Party of Five," "Renegade," "Dave's World," "Married...with Children," "Roseanne," "Melrose Place," "Coach," "ER," "Night Man," "Love Boat: The Next Wave," "Home Improvement," "Clueless," "Caroline in the City," "Providence," "Grown Ups," "Becker," and "As Told by Ginger." During her career, she was a member of the Screen Actors Guild, was supportive of the Motion Picture and Television Fund, was one of the founding members of the El Centro Theater, had been a member of the Hollywood Democratic Committee, was a regular parishioner within the Church of Religious Science, had been a commercial model for the Forbes Agency, was the celebrity spokeswoman for Charmin Bath Tissue, had been the official comedic sidekick for actor Jerry Lewis, was a nominee of the Tony Award for Best Feature Actress in a Musical, had been a winner of the Theater World Award, and was a theatrical instructor for the Pasadena Playhouse. She never married or had any children.